Bulawayo City Council v The State

HB 179-19

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Case Details

Court

Bulawayo High Court

Date

28 November 2019

Citation

HB 179-19

Neutral Citation

[2019] ZWHB 179

Outcome

unknown

Case Type

Appeal

Bench

Presiding

MAKONESE J

Full Bench

MAKONESE JTAKUVA JJ

Areas of Law

Criminal LawCulpable HomicideCausation

Keywords

culpable homicidenegligencefactual causationlegal causationprohibition signsgravel pitsdrowning

Key Issues

{"issue_text":"Whether the appellant was negligent in causing the death of the deceased","issue_type":"mixed","dispositive":"yes","related_facts":"Gravel pits left unfilled since 1995, no rehabilitation despite 2012 warning"}
{"issue_text":"Whether factual and legal causation were proven","issue_type":"law","dispositive":"yes","related_facts":"Deceased's voluntary act of approaching pits, presence of prohibition signs"}
{"issue_text":"Whether the deceased's judgment was impaired by immaturity","issue_type":"fact","dispositive":"no","related_facts":"Deceased was 15 years old"}

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background

Facts of the Case

Background

The appellant, Bulawayo City Council, was convicted of culpable homicide after a 15-year-old boy drowned in water-filled gravel pits that the Council had dug in 1995 for road construction and left unfilled. The boy had gone to wash his hands at the pits when he slipped and drowned.

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