{"id":89142,"date":"2025-05-28T06:00:33","date_gmt":"2025-05-28T06:00:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dnllegalandstyle.com\/dnl\/?p=89142"},"modified":"2025-05-28T06:00:36","modified_gmt":"2025-05-28T06:00:36","slug":"scrap-trial-within-trial-san-urges-judiciary","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dnllegalandstyle.com\/dnl\/scrap-trial-within-trial-san-urges-judiciary\/","title":{"rendered":"Scrap Trial-Within-Trial, SAN Urges Judiciary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Charles Mekwunye, has called on the Nigerian judiciary to abolish the outdated practice of \u201ctrial within trial\u201d in determining the admissibility of confessional statements.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He believes the law has moved on, and the courts must follow.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Mekwunye, the continued use of the common law procedure undermines statutory reforms and perpetuates injustice, especially for the poor and unrepresented.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The SAN spoke at the public presentation of the book: \u201cHonourable Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, CJN, GCON Through the Cases,\u201d which he co-authored with Ayo Olanrewaju, the Deputy Editor-in-Chief\/Chairman, Editorial Board of the Nigerian Weekly Law Reports (NWLR)<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mekwunye said: \u201cThe law of confession in Nigeria has changed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSections 15 and 17 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015 now require that confessions must be recorded electronically or made in the presence of a lawyer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAnything short of that is inadmissible.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Citing the Supreme Court\u2019s decision in Charles v. People of Lagos State (2023), Mekwunye criticised lower courts for ignoring both legislation and binding appellate judgments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTrial within trial has become a weapon of delay and injustice. It\u2019s time we put it to rest,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He noted that many high Courts still defaulted to the obsolete method despite clear rulings from the Court of Appeal since Zhiya v. People of Lagos State (2016).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis is not just a legal error; it is a systemic failure that disproportionately harms the vulnerable,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mekwunye urged heads of court to immediately guide their judges to stop relying on inadmissible confessions and align with existing law.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe are throwing helpless Nigerians into prison based on confessions beaten out of them. This must end,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The event, which honoured the judicial legacy of Hon. Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, Nigeria\u2019s 22nd Chief Justice and Chairman of the Body of Benchers, also served as a platform for Mekwunye to raise broader issues in the justice sector.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He decried the plight of detainees held for years without trial, calling on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to issue an Executive Order for the immediate release or arraignment of all such individuals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese are not criminals; they are victims of poverty and neglect. No one with power or influence suffers this fate,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

While praising Justice Ariwoola as a jurist of integrity and humility, Mekwunye said the book also serves as a reminder to judges that their judgments are their legacies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe will celebrate your service, but we will also critique your rulings\u2014not in newspapers, but in law faculties and appellate briefs,\u201d he concluded.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Dr. Charles Mekwunye, has called on the Nigerian judiciary to abolish the outdated practice of \u201ctrial within trial\u201d in determining the admissibility of confessional statements. He believes the law has moved on, and the courts must follow. According to Mekwunye, the continued use of the common law procedure undermines statutory reforms […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":13,"featured_media":89143,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_hide_featured_image":false,"_jetpack_featured_image_duplicate_dismissed":0,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-89142","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t