THE State V Emmanuel Chiota

### Preamble
1
HH 785-22
CRB NO. 79/22
---------


THE STATE

versus

EMMANUEL CHIOTA

HIGH COURT OF ZIMBABWE

MUNGWARI J

HARARE, 19 & 20 October 2022

Criminal Trial

Assessors:  Mr Shenje

Dr Mushonga

T Mabika, for the State

C Makorokotera, for the accused

MUNGWARI J:     Emmanuel Chiota (the accused) was indicted before the High Court facing a charge of murder as defined in s 47 (1) of the Criminal Law (Codification and Reform) Act [Chapter 9.23].  He is alleged to have stabbed his biological mother, Nelia Chiota (the deceased) on the neck with a scissors thereby causing mortal injuries. He pleaded not guilty due to insanity.

The agreed facts are that on the 20 November 2016, the accused then a 23year old university student came home and found his 57 year old mother alone at home. He armed himself with a scissors and proceeded to stab her on the neck resulting in her instant death.

The offence came to light when the accused’s father and deceased’s husband, Bodimeni Chiota returned home. He was in the company of Shepherd Jiriyengwa. The two men were greeted by the sight of a trail of blood and some broken wooden stools which led to the bedroom where the body of the deceased lay. A report was made to the police leading to the arrest of the accused and the recovery of the scissors and stools. An autopsy conducted on the remains of the deceased concluded that her death was due to hypovolemic shock, neck artery damage and stab wounds.

It is clear from the facts that the accused is a mental patient. Both counsel for the state and the accused conceded to this fact. The affidavit by Dr Walter Mangezi exhibit 1 confirms this fact. As per the report the accused had a long-standing history of mental illness dating back to 2016. In 2018 he started abusing drugs.  He would hear voices inside his head and seeing visions that others were not seeing.  He underwent medical treatment at Chikurubi psychiatric hospital and was put on medication such as Chlorpromazine for mental illness until he was no longer hallucinating and psychotic. The doctor although certifying that the accused is now fit to stand trial made a finding that when accused committed the offence of murder he was mentally disordered as a result of misuse of drugs. We are convinced that the accused is mentally unsound and find the state’s concessions thereto well placed.

Accordingly, we hereby return a special verdict: The accused is not guilty because of insanity as is provided for in s 29(2) of the Mental Health Act [Chapter 15:12].

In determining the fate of the accused following the return of a special verdict, we are mindful that as a court we are guided by the provisions of s 29(2)(a) to (c) of the Mental Health Act [Chapter 15:12].

We note with great concern that there is a drug abuse scourge within the country. Equally so, cases of murder committed by drug induced mentally ill persons are on the rise in the country. There is therefore a greater need for relatives and society as a whole to monitor those members of society who are abusing drugs. This is to ensure that they do not and up with drug induced psychosis or other forms or mental illnesses caused by the use of drugs. If they are already on treatment, it is important to ensure that they religiously adhere to treatment to avoid relapsing. In casu the accused was abusing drugs despite his known mental state.  As a result, a life was lost. Not just any life however but the life of his own mother, the woman who gave birth to him. A life was lost at the hands of its own son, a university student for that matter.  Nothing can be more tragic than that.

From the facts before us, the accused had become a menace to the family and community at large. It is therefore our considered view that we have a duty to protect the society from the accused and also protect the accused from himself. On the evidence before us, we cannot guarantee that accused will not relapse and that these tragic events will not recur. It would therefore be injudicious to release the accused back into society without fuller information on his state of recovery. The pre-trial psychiatric report, exhibit 1 shows that the accused was last examined on 10 June 2022. This translates to some 4 months ago. The purpose of the examination was to outline the accused’s mental affliction and determine if the accused was fit to stand trial. Contained in the report is a suggestion that compliance with medication and abstention from drugs are key factors to maintain the accused’s state of sanity. No examination was carried out to determine if the accused was now fit to be released back into society. As a result, we do not have sufficient evidence or information on whether it would be safe and in the interest of justice to release the accused back into society. The proper course of action therefore is to send the accused back to Remand Prison so that he will be transferred to Chikurubi psychiatric unit for examination and possible treatment. Thereafter the accused can only be released back into society after a proper evaluation by the experts upon being satisfied that he is no longer a danger to himself or to society.

Accordingly, it is ordered that the accused be returned to Harare Remand Prison and thereafter be transferred to Chikurubi Psychiatric Unit for examination and or treatment in terms of s 29(a)(a) of the Mental Health Act and to be released in accordance with the provisions of the said Mental Health Act [Chapter 15:12].

National Prosecuting Authority, applicant’s legal practitioners

Sinyoro and Partners, accused’s legal practitioners