Of late in southern Nigeria, the police launched a manhunt following a reported incident of an attempt to rape some young female boarders in their school dormitory by five hefty men before their operation was foiled by the quick response and arrival of the police at the scene.
Upon their arrival at the scene of the incident, the Police Quick Response Squad, a team of ten police men specially trained to combat crime in the region, had earlier sighted the criminals before taking to their heels but the squad identified some of them. The criminals soon disappeared into the neighbourhood thereafter and this necessitated the combing of the whole area by the squad.
Suddenly during the search, which had lasted for about two hours, the police squad came across an abandoned building and a member of the squad noticed a sudden strange movement in the building. He, then, alerted his colleagues and they surrounded the building. They warned whoever was in the house to come out with his two hands in the air.In disobedience to this instruction, two members of the gang of rapists being searched for tried to escape and they were gunned down and died instantly. The three others were subsequently arrested.
Was the killing of the two members of the gang without trial lawful in the scenario?
THE LEGAL POSITION
Section 271 of the Criminal Code, which applies to the southern part of Nigeria, empowers a police officer to use a reasonable force, which may result in the killing of a suspect, to resist an attempt by the suspect to escape if the offence he is to be arrested for is punishable with death or with imprisonment for seven years or more.
Again, section 359 of the same Criminal Code provides for fourteen years' imprisonment for the offence of attempt to rape. It will be recalled that in the above scenario the suspects had not actually committed the substantive offence of rape before their plan was foiled. Thus, all they could have been suspected to have done was an attempt to rape those school girls.
Going by the above provision of section 271, the killing of the two suspects by the police was lawful because the offence they were to be arrested for is punishable with more than seven years' imprisonment and they took to flight when they were about to be arrested thereby giving their killer the legal basis to pull the trigger in the circumstances.
Further, may I reiterate that this is the licence that Nigeria police have to shoot a suspect at sight if he tries to escape arrest.This police licence to kill is one of the exceptions to an individual's inalienable right to life as guaranteed in the Nigerian Constitution as that right itself is declared not to be absolute by the constitution.
So, dear reader, do not risk your life in such encounter with the police.Just surrender yourself for arrest in such situation so that an overzealous police officer will not terminate your life for fun and still be legally justified in doing so even when you have not hurt a fly.Do not run when you are not supposed to run.
See you in my next post.
Have a wonderful day!
Upon their arrival at the scene of the incident, the Police Quick Response Squad, a team of ten police men specially trained to combat crime in the region, had earlier sighted the criminals before taking to their heels but the squad identified some of them. The criminals soon disappeared into the neighbourhood thereafter and this necessitated the combing of the whole area by the squad.
Suddenly during the search, which had lasted for about two hours, the police squad came across an abandoned building and a member of the squad noticed a sudden strange movement in the building. He, then, alerted his colleagues and they surrounded the building. They warned whoever was in the house to come out with his two hands in the air.In disobedience to this instruction, two members of the gang of rapists being searched for tried to escape and they were gunned down and died instantly. The three others were subsequently arrested.
Was the killing of the two members of the gang without trial lawful in the scenario?
THE LEGAL POSITION
Section 271 of the Criminal Code, which applies to the southern part of Nigeria, empowers a police officer to use a reasonable force, which may result in the killing of a suspect, to resist an attempt by the suspect to escape if the offence he is to be arrested for is punishable with death or with imprisonment for seven years or more.
Again, section 359 of the same Criminal Code provides for fourteen years' imprisonment for the offence of attempt to rape. It will be recalled that in the above scenario the suspects had not actually committed the substantive offence of rape before their plan was foiled. Thus, all they could have been suspected to have done was an attempt to rape those school girls.
Going by the above provision of section 271, the killing of the two suspects by the police was lawful because the offence they were to be arrested for is punishable with more than seven years' imprisonment and they took to flight when they were about to be arrested thereby giving their killer the legal basis to pull the trigger in the circumstances.
Further, may I reiterate that this is the licence that Nigeria police have to shoot a suspect at sight if he tries to escape arrest.This police licence to kill is one of the exceptions to an individual's inalienable right to life as guaranteed in the Nigerian Constitution as that right itself is declared not to be absolute by the constitution.
So, dear reader, do not risk your life in such encounter with the police.Just surrender yourself for arrest in such situation so that an overzealous police officer will not terminate your life for fun and still be legally justified in doing so even when you have not hurt a fly.Do not run when you are not supposed to run.
See you in my next post.
Have a wonderful day!
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