STATE APPEALS TWIM PALM BOYS ACQUITTAL

By GRACE CHAILE LESOETSA THE State has appealed to the Court of Appeal against the acquittal of four former Twin Palm Secondary School pupils accused of killing a Kabulonga Boys Secondary School learner, Ryan Phiri.Elvis Nsokolo and three juveniles were on December 4, 2020 alleged to have beaten to death Ryan .However, on July 20, …

STATE APPEALS TWIM PALM BOYS ACQUITTAL
By GRACE CHAILE LESOETSA THE State has appealed to the Court of Appeal against the acquittal of four former Twin Palm Secondary School pupils accused of killing a Kabulonga Boys Secondary School learner, Ryan Phiri.Elvis Nsokolo and three juveniles were on December 4, 2020 alleged to have beaten to death Ryan .However, on July 20, this year, Lusaka High Court Judge Sharon Newa set at liberty the four because there was no evidence linking them to the murder of Ryan.But the State has appealed against the judgement in the Court of Appeal stating that Ms Justice Newa erred at law when she misapplied the law on res gestae and acquitted the four.The State stated that it will raise more grounds of appeal at the hearing of its notice of appeal.According to legal dictionary, res gestae describes a common law doctrine governing testimony. Under the hearsay rule, a court normally refuses to admit as evidence statements that a witness says he or she heard another person say.