Kadija O. Sesay v S (SC CRIM APP 6 of 2020) [2020] SLCA 32 (24 November 2020)

CRIM. MISC.APP 6/2020 IN THE COURT OF APPEAL OF SIERRA LEONE NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR EXTENSION OF TIME WITHIN 2 NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR EXTENSION OF TIME WITHIN WHICH TO APPEAL BETWEEN KADIJA OLAMATUSESAY —- APPELLANT/ APPLICANT AND ‘THE STATE . RESPONDENT/ RESPONDENTS

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HON MR JUSTICE MONFRED MOMOH SESAY - JA HON MRS JUSTICE MUSU DAMBA KAMARA - JA HON MR JUSTICE JOHN BOSCO ALLIBU - JA counsex D.E TAYLOR ESQ for the Appellant/ Applicant 0.V. ROBIN-MASON (SNR) Esq. for the Respondent/Respondent

RULING DELIVERED ON _24* DAY OF NOVEMBER, 2020 HON. MR, JUSTICE MONFRED MOMOH SESAY - JA

‘ INTRODUCTION By Notice of Application for Extension of Time within which to Appeal addressed to the Registrar of this Court and dated the 9 September, 2020 and filed in the Registry of the Court on the said date, the Appellant/Applicant applied to this court for extension of time within which to Appeal ‘The Appellant/Applicant was convicted on the 13% day of August, 2020 by Hon. Justice Fatmatta Bintu Alhadi JA of the offence of misappropriation of public property contrary to Section 36 (1) of The Anti-Corruption Act, 2008, Act No 12 of 2008 and sentenced The Appellant/Appellant failed to appeal against her conviction within the time required by law i.e. within twenty-one (21) days after the date of her conviction. The 21" day after the said conviction was on 3" September, 2020. The Appellant/Applicant therefore missed out the time within which to appeal by six (6) days i.c. as at the date of the present application.

The Law

‘The relevant law on enlargement of time can be found in Section 64 of The Courts Act, 1965, Act No.31 of 1965 and Rule 39 of The Court of Appeal Rules, 1985, Public Notice No. 20 of 1985. By thene provisions of the above mentioned law, # twenty-one (21) day time limit in imposed within which convicts of certain offence including the one for which the Appellant/Applicant was convicted can appeal or seck leave to appeal same if that time limit is extended where a convict misses out on the time. Section 64 of The Courts Act, 1965 provides as follows

—26tf “Where a person convicted desires to appeal to the Court of Appeal, or to obtain leave of that Court to appeal, he shall give notice of appeal or notice of his application for leave to appeal in such manner ” as may be directed by Rules of Court within twenty-one days of the date of his conviction: Provided that, except in the case of a conviction involving sentence to death, or corporal punishment the time within which notice of appeal or notice of an application for leave to appeal may be given, may be extended at any time by the Court or by the Court below, before whom the appellant was convicted’ (emphasis added) Rule 39 of The Court of Appeal Rules (which provisions are similar to those of Section 64 of The Courts Act, 1965) provides as follows: “Where any person aggrieved desires to appeal to the Court or to obtain leave of the Court to appeal, he shall give notice of appeal or notice of his application for leave to appeal in such manner as may be directed by these Rules within twenty-one days after the date of conviction or acquittal or discharge as the case may be: Provided that except In the case of conviction Involving aentance af death or corporal punishment, the time within which notice of appeal or notice of an application for leave to appeal may be given, mau be extended at any time by the Court or by the Court below” (emphasis added) “These two provisions are applicable to criminal appeals from the High Court as Section 64 of The Courts Act, 1965 appear in Part IV of Chapter Il of the Act under the rubric sAPRUALM IN CRIMINAL CARE TRIED IN THI SUPREME COURT (Me, THIG HAH COURT) AT FIRMT INSTANOR AND OBRVAIN OTHER MATTIOAM RIGHT OF ADMUAL AND DETERMINATION OF APPEAL?. ‘The Sections inchude Sections 57.69 inclusive

Rule 39 of The Court of Appeal Rules, 1985, on its part appears in Part IV under the rubric “CRIMINAL APPEALS” and it includes Rules 39-63. My reading of both Section 64 and Rule 39 informs me as follows: i, that the twenty-one (21)-day time limit imposed is for two reliefs, namely: a. to give notice of appeal; and b. to give notice of an application for leave to appeal;

ii, that the twenty-one day time limit imposed may be extended for either or both reliefs by this Court or by the trial Court below if for good reason the convict fails to file the appeal or apply for leave to appeal within the said twenty-oneday time limit.

iii, that both reliefs are discretionary for both this Court and the trial Court below which discretion must be exercised judiciously.

‘The present application before this court and which was moved by Learned Counsel, D. E. Taylor Esq. for the Appellant/Applicant is for extension of time within which to appeal as the time limited for such conviction had lapsed since the 3" September, 2020. Attached to the said application is another application for leave to appeal against conviction by the said same Appellant/Applicant.

I think I need to confine myself to the application for extension of time as prayed and to consider and determine whether the Appellant/Applicant iw in the correct forum. As held earlier in this Ruling, both Section 64 and Rule 29 (supra) give this Court and the trial Court below the jurisdiction and, I dare say, the concurrent jurisdiction to hear and determine such applications.

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