LEGAL IMPLICATIONS OF WRONGFUL CONVICTION UNDER THE NIGERIAN CRIMINAL JUSTICE SYSTEM

Abstract

Wrongful conviction occurs where a court pronounces guilty verdict and sentences a person for an offence not committed. This phenomenon, which is becoming more apparent in the Criminal Justice System of Nigeria (CJS), contravenes the basic principle of justice that no one should suffer for offences not committed. Previous studies have focused more on causes of wrongful conviction in Nigeria and other jurisdictions with little attention paid to its effects on victims and their reintegration into society. This study was, therefore, designed to investigate the causes, effects and legal implications of wrongful conviction in Nigeria with a view to enhancing the reintegration of victims. Due Process and Justice theories were adopted. The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), Criminal Procedure Act, Penal Code Act, Evidence Act, Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015 and some judicially determined cases were the primary sources used. Legal text, journal articles, newspapers, magazines (digital and prints) were the secondary sources. In-depth interviews were conducted with three victims of wrongful conviction, two members of victims‘ family, eight police officers, five legal practitioners, three non-governmental organisation officials, four law officers from the Ministry of Justice, one officer each from three government establishments (Legal Aid Council, National Human Rights Commission and Office of the Public Defender), four magistrates and four forensic experts. Data were subjected to content and comparative analyses. Prosecutorial misconduct and underutilisation of forensic evidence were the leading causes of wrongful conviction in Nigeria. Different levels of inefficiency and misconducts by the police, prosecutors, defence counsel, judicial officers and other stakeholders in the CJS gave rise to incessant occurrence of wrongful conviction in Nigeria. In one of the case studies, the court convicted and sentenced the victim to death on the sole basis of confessional statements involuntarily obtained from the victim by the investigating police officer. In another case, the prosecutor falsified inculpatory evidence and suppressed exculpatory evidence to obtain conviction against the victim. Wrongful conviction causes social, psychological, physical and financial harm to the victims. It ruined victims‘ lives, destroyed their careers and led to their separation from family. Even after exoneration, victims of long-term wrongful imprisonment found it difficult to fit back into the society due to the resultant permanent physical, iii psychological and emotional disorders. These amounted to a violation of the victims‘ fundamental right to freedom guaranteed by the Constitution. Consequently, citizens lose confidence in the CJS. Wrongful conviction occasioned by criminal justice actors‘ misconduct and forensic inefficiency impacted negatively on victims‘ lives, break family bonds and undermines the Nigerian Justice System. There is the need to increase access to modern forensic test in crime investigation, ensure the preservation of evidence, properly apply relevant laws and introduce compensation schemes for victims wrongfully convicted