Mens rea

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1975

Principle established: An indictment for embezzlement is defective if it omits the word "fraudulently", as fraudulent intention is an essential element that must be specifically averred in the particulars of offence.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1975

Principle established: An indictment charging embezzlement must explicitly aver the element of fraudulent intention, and the omission of the word "fraudulently" renders the charge fatally defective.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1920-36

Principle established: Statutory prohibitions against importing improperly folded woven goods create offenses of absolute liability, though compliance warnings to overseas suppliers may mitigate sentencing.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1972

Principle established: A charge of using insulting words to provoke a breach of the peace does not require specifying the person insulted, and minor verbal clerical defects do not invalidate the charge.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1972-73

Principle established: A charge of insulting conduct under public order legislation does not require naming the specific person insulted, and intent to provoke a breach of the peace may be inferred from context.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: Proof that the accused intended to cause at least grievous bodily harm to the deceased warrants a conviction for murder based on malice aforethought.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1962

Principle established: Malice aforethought can be established even if formed only an extremely short space of time before the commission of the fatal act.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1962

Principle established: Malice aforethought for murder may exist even where it is formed only for a very brief duration before the act.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1973

Principle established: A misdirection on law or fact requires quashing a conviction unless, on a proper direction, the only reasonable verdict is guilty; 'grievous bodily harm' bears its ordinary meaning of really serious injury.

Sierra Leone — Supreme Court · 1983

Principle established: To convict a person of fraudulent conversion, the prosecution must prove a fraudulent and dishonest intent, which may be inferred from the natural and probable consequences of the accused person's acts.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: An intention to inflict grievous bodily harm satisfies the mental element of malice aforethought required for murder.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: An intention to inflict at least grievous bodily harm upon the deceased suffices to sustain a finding of murder with malice aforethought.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1963

Principle established: Evidence showing an intention to inflict at least grievous bodily harm is sufficient to establish malice aforethought in a murder trial.

South Africa · 2022

Principle established: To secure a murder conviction on the basis of common purpose with dolus eventualis, the State must prove beyond reasonable doubt that the accused actively associated with the criminal conduct and foresaw the fatal result.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1964-66

Principle established: In determining whether a political publication is seditious, the court must construe the work as a whole with due regard for press freedom, rather than focusing solely on objectionable excerpts.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1961

Principle established: A conviction for murder will be sustained where eyewitness testimony links the weapon to the victim and the evidence sufficiently establishes malice aforethought.

Zimbabwe · 2022

Principle established: Magistrates must exercise caution when accepting a plea of guilty from an accused person who appears to suffer from a mental disorder, ensuring the plea is genuine and understood.

Zimbabwe · 2023

Principle established: A conviction for murder requires proof beyond reasonable doubt that the accused unlawfully caused the death of the deceased with the requisite intent or realization of the risk of death.

Zimbabwe · 2024

Principle established: A defense of mental disorder in a murder trial requires evidence that the accused was incapable of appreciating the unlawfulness of their conduct at the time of the offence.

Zimbabwe · 2022

Principle established: A plea of guilty must be unequivocal; if the accused provides an explanation that impacts the admission of guilt, the court must record a plea of not guilty.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1979

Principle established: A judge's summing-up on a murder charge must adequately direct the jury on the issue of malice aforethought and alternative verdicts such as manslaughter when defences like self-defence or provocation are rejected.

Sierra Leone — African Law Reports · 1950-56

Principle established: Drunkenness does not amount to a defence to a criminal charge unless it renders the accused incapable of forming the specific intent necessary to constitute the offence.

Sierra Leone — Court of Appeal · 1951

Principle established: Drunkenness is only a defense if it rendered the accused incapable of forming the specific intent required for the offense or induced a state of actual insanity.