The High Court in Accra presided over by Justice Lydia Osei Marfo has admonished a seven-member jury panel selected to try the two boys standing trial for the ritual murder of a 10-year-old Ishmael Mensah Abdallah to stay away from the influence of money.
According to the judge, as jurors, “you are the accredited representatives of the society,” and “You are expected to be present in court at all times to listen, to see and hear the witnesses that will be called by the prosecution in their quest to establish the guilt of the accused persons.”
The court said the accused persons have both been charged with conspiracy to murder and murder for which reason if they are found guilty their punishment is to suffer death.
The two ‘Kasoa boys’, a 15-year-old juvenile and an 18-year-old young offender have been held for the murder of Ishmael Mensah and are facing the charge of murder.
In court on Monday, October 10, the jurors were empaneled after the pleas of the accused persons were taken on two charges of conspiracy and murder.
Though the 15-year-old accused pleaded guilty to conspiracy, he denied the charge of murder.
But, the law allows the court to enter a not-guilty plea for him and allow the case to be tried by the jury. For the 18-year-old young offender, he denied charges.
Justice Marfo who was addressing the jurors after their empanelling urged them to do their work diligently without any external influence.
“It is a duty that has been conferred on you by the 1992 Constitution of the Republic of Ghana. The accused persons have both been charged with conspiracy to murder and murder for which reason if they are found guilty their punishment is to suffer death,” the court admonished the jurors.
“The same Constitution places a duty on the court to have them tried by a seven-member jury. This is the reason why you have so carefully been selected. Note that, you are the accredited representatives of the society. You are expected to be present in court at all times to listen, to see, and hear the witnesses that will be called by the prosecution in their quest to establish the guilt of the accused persons.”
She added: “You are supposed to arrive at a verdict which is unanimous and your verdict is binding on this court. In other words, if your decision is that of not guilty it has to be unanimous, and if your decision is that of guilty, it has to be unanimous.
“You are not supposed to be influenced by anything you hear or see in relation to this matter on social media or society. You are only bound by the evidence that you hear or see in this courtroom.
“You are expected to comport yourselves inside and outside of the courtroom diligently. You must not be influenced by money or any other consideration whatsoever. No discussion about the case in which you are involved outside of this courtroom.
She said, “the court expects maximum cooperation from you as far as timing and dates are concerned. The court will not hesitate to apply the needed legal sanction to any recalcitrant juror.
“You are going to be judges of the trial of fact in the case and anything legal is left to the court and you will be directed as and when the same comes up during the trial,” the court urged.
The case has been adjourned to October 24 for prosecution and defense lawyers to address the jury.
Source: Ghana/Starrfm.com.gh/Murtala Inusah
