Description of Story – the brief fact of the case is that the defendant who had a poultry farm discovered that his birds were missing mysteriously and this left him wondering who the culprit could be. So, on a fateful Sunday, the 13th of October, 2013, the defendant caught the complainant who lives in the same compound with him with one of his birds and started shouting, calling on his neighbours to witness that episode then the complainant left the chicken and ran away. One of his neighbours came out and inquired what the matter was and he told her. According to him, he wanted to go and report the matter to the police but the neighbour pleaded with him to resolve the issue amicably in the yard so he asked the complainant to pay for the chicken she stole before the issue could be resolved. The next morning, the complainant invited four of her brothers who came to the compound and started beating his pregnant wife. He rushed out of the bathroom to save his wife; with the help of a neighbour, he went to the police station and reported a case of assault on his wife and invited the police to come to the scene of the crime.
The police went to the scene of the crime and arrested both the complainant, the defendant and three of his wife’s assailants and took them to the station. At the police station, the complainant and his brothers bailed themselves but because he does not have fifty thousand naira (₦50,000) to give to the police, they detained him and subsequently arraigned him at the magistrate court on the charge of attempted murder alleging that he threw the complainant down a story building twice. The magistrate court for want of jurisdiction remanded him to prison custody and adjourned the matter sine die.
It was during one of CAPIO’s weekly visit to the prison that she met the defendant and was touched by the pathetic nature of the case. She decided to render free legal services to him.
During trial, the prosecution called one witness, the IPO (PW1) and closed their case. While the defence called two witnesses, DW1 the defendant’s wife and DW11 the defendant himself and equally closed their case. Then the case was adjourned for judgment.
On the day of judgment, the judge, delivering a well-researched and considered judgment, discharged and acquitted the defendant. This judgment was joyfully received by the defendant who started jumping at the dock and praising the court and God.
