THE STATE v KHOLISANI NYATHI

HB 26/24

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Case Details

Court

Bulawayo High Court

Date

20 February 2024

Citation

HB 26/24

Neutral Citation

[2024] ZWHB 26

Outcome

unknown

Case Type

Trial

Bench

Presiding

DUBE-BANDA J

Full Bench

DUBE-BANDA JMr Mabandla (Assessor)Mr Mashingaidze (Assessor)

Areas of Law

Criminal ProcedureConstitutional Law (Fair Trial Rights)

Keywords

RecusalMero MotuBiasPrevious ConvictionFair Trial

Key Issues

{"issue_text":"Whether the judge should recuse himself from presiding over the trial due to a reasonable apprehension of bias.","issue_type":"procedural","dispositive":"yes","related_facts":"Knowledge of previous conviction; similarity of charges; prior adjudication of accused's case"}

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background

Facts of the Case

Background

The accused was set down for trial on charges of murder and attempted murder. The presiding judge realized he had previously convicted the same accused of murder in a similar robbery-related case (HB 138/22). Both counsel agreed that the judge should recuse himself due to a perception of bias arising from his knowledge of the accused's previous conviction.

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