JUDICIAL ATTITUDE TO HOMICIDE IN NIGERIA

By

Author

Presented To

Department of Law

JUDICIAL ATTITUDE TO HOMICIDE IN NIGERIA

ABSTRACT

Criminal Law in Nigeria is so wide that it applies to a wide range of crimes. a crime is and actatute or by the Common Law to be a public wrong and is therefore punishable by the state in Criminal proceeding. The crime of homicide which can be divided into two namely, lawful homicide which is a division of homicide justified or excused by law and they are self defence, suppression of riot, defence of property etc. unlawful homicide is prohibited by law with very stiff punishment melted out to its offenders. Unlawful homicide could be either murder or manslaughter, murder is an intentional killing of and human being and its carries a severe punishment of a sentence to death while manslaughter is an unintentional killing of another which must have been through provocation, negligence, causation, omission etc. and its carries a sentence of life imprisonment.the actus reus and mens rea of a crime must be proven before and accused can be convicted, the burden of proving that the accused committed the crime is on the prosecution and it never shifts. This study will be narrowed down to homicide generally ,the problems facing in the proving of guilt of an accused person by the prosecution and solutions will be proferred.
Chapter one, general introduction to the whole will be discussed.
The second chapter unearths the different definition of crime by different jurists and legal writers,ts and legal writers, it will discuss the burden of prove in Criminal Cases,and the ingredients that constitute crime.
Chapter three discusses extensively the critical and general overview of the meaning of homicide, under which lawful and unlawful would be discussed.
Chapter four espouses the main aim of this study where the judicial trend of Courts will be discussed, also the origin and meaning of punishment, enforcement of homicide laws, punishment for crime of homicide will be discussed.
The fifth chapter closes with the summary of the whole study, Recommendation would have been made towards the advancement of Criminal Law through the provisions of both the criminal code and the penal code

TABLE OF CONTENTS

ABSTRACT
TABLE OF CASES
TABLE OF STATUTES
LIST OF ABBREVIATION

CHAPTER ONE
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
100:   INTRODUCTION
110:  BACKGROUND TO THE STUDY
120:  OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
130:  FOCUS OF THE STUDY
140:  SCOPE OF STUDY
150:  METHODOLOGY
160:  LITERATURE REVIEW
170:  DEFINITION OF TERMS
180:  CONCLUSION
CHAPTER TWO
INTRODUCTION TO THE CONCEPT OF CRIME
200: INTRODUCTION
210: MEANING OF CRIME
220: INGREDIENTS THAT CONSTITUTE CRIME
221: ACTUS REUS
222: ACTS
223: OMISSIONS
224: ACTUS REUS AND CAUSATION
230: PRINCIPLESOFMENS REA
231: INTENTION
232: PROOF OF INTENTION
233: RECKLESSNESS
234: KNOWLEGDE
235 NEGLIGENCE
236: MOTIVE
240: BURDEN OF PROOF IN CRIMINAL CASES
250: CONCLUSION
CHAPTER THREE
A CRITICAL AND GENERAL OVERVIEW OF THE MEANING OF  HOMICIDE
30 0: INTRODUCTION
310: WHAT IS HOMICIDE?
320: DISTINCTION BETWEEN LAWFUL AND UNLAWFUL
HOMICIDE
330: UNLAWFUL HOMICIDE
331: MURDER-CULPABABLE HOMICIDE PUNISHABLE WITH
DEATH
332: MANSLAUGHTER-CULPABABLE HOMICIDE NOT
PUNISHABLE WITH DEATH
333: VOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER
334: ELEMENTS OF PROVOCATION
335: INVOLUNTARY MANSLAUGHTER
340: LAWFUL HOMICIDE
341: EXECUTION OF SENTENCE
342: SELF DEFENCE
343: DEATH BY MISADVENTURE
344: SUPPRESSION OF RIOT
345: DEFENCE OF PROPERTY
346: CONSENT TO DEATH
347: PREVENTION OF CERTAIN OFFENCES
348: LAWFUL ARREST, PREVENTING ARREST OR RESCUE
AFTER ARREST
349: KILLING OF THIEVES
350: CONCLUSION

CHAPTER FOUR
EXAMINATION OF JUDICIAL ATTITUDE TO HOMICIDE IN NIGERIA
400: INTRODUCTION
410: ORIGIN OF PUNISHMENT
420: ENFORCEMENT OF HOMICIDE LAWS IN NIGERIA
430: PUNISHMENT FOR THE CRIME HOMICIDE
440: JUDICIAL TREND OF COURTS IN HOMICIDE CASES
IN NIGERIA
450: CONCLUSION
CHAPTER FIVE
CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION
500: CONCLUSION
510: RECOMMENDATION

BIBLIOGRAPHY