Law of Evidence (Part A) Test, February 2026

Question 115 marks

After protests in various cities in Sierra Leone, concerning political disagreements, Parliament passed the Political Offences Act 2023, coming into force on 1st February 2023. Section 1 states: “A person who without lawful excuse destroys or damages any property belonging to another for political reasons, shall be guilty of an offence.” Section 2 specifies that property is “damaged”, if it is temporarily or permanently physically harmed. Section 3 provides examples of what might amount to a “lawful excuse”, including “action undertaken to prevent what is honestly believed to be a crime.” Section 4 specifies penalties on conviction as a prison term of up to ten years or a fine of Nle100,000.00.

On February 5, 2023, Mohamed took part in a demonstration in support of his political party, the Action Democratic Party and whilst there he saw a group of people belonging to the opposition People’s Action Party, approach them singing political songs and holding a large banner. Mohamed then took a stick he was holding and threw it at the large banner of the Peoples Action Party, thereby damaging it. Mohamed is arrested and charged with Criminal Damage under the Political Offences Act 2023. At his trial, Mohamed claimed that before he attended the demonstration, he had heard that Safety at Demonstrations Act 2022, prohibits “violent attacks on peaceful lawful demonstrations and states that it shall be lawful to act in self defence where attacked” and says that it convinced him that his actions were lawful.

Answer the following questions, indicating the relevant evidence:

• 1.Leaving aside the issue of lawful excuse, what facts does the prosecution need to prove, and to what standard of proof?
• 2.What lawful excuse for his actions is Mohamed claiming? What burdens rest on the defence and/or prosecution in respect of this excuse, and what standard of proof, if any is entailed for defence and/or prosecution?
• 3.Critically evaluate the law on burden of proof, paying particular attention to how fair you think the allocation of burdens is in the Safety at Demonstrations Act 2022.

Question 215 marks

“Relevance is the foundation of admissibility, but not all relevant evidence is admissible.”

Discuss this statement with reference to the rules governing admissibility of evidence. Illustrate your answer with decided cases.