₦airaland Forum

My NL people,this question goes to the lawyers in the house..
Do we have Juries {Jury} in the Nigerian Law court

Bcuz all i see is a Judge in Nigeria is a Judge, Jury and Executioner.. Is that right?

A friend of mine a United State Citizen came for Christmas Hoilidays in December to stay till end of February but as the case will be, his housemate got a mail and he was told that he will be on a Jury list and he is to appear in court mid-January.. He had to cut his holiday to go back to perform his Civic duties and i Heard that if you don't make ur self available, u can be charged or possibly jailed for sometime.

I was actually tripped/Impressed on how the USA handle this and the Jury's final verdict influences the Judges final verdict.

So why cant dis happen in this country

Lawyers in the house.. can you help me understand dis?


Meanwhile, Here are some definitions o a Jury below..

1. Law A body of persons selected to decide a verdict in a legal case, based upon the evidence presented, after being given instructions on the applicable law. Also called petit jury, trial jury.


2. A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict (a finding of fact on a question) officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty or not guilty (not proven; a verdict of acquittal, based on the state's failure to prove guilt rather than any proof of innocence, is also available in Scotland). The old institution of grand juries still exists in some places, particularly the United States, to investigate whether enough evidence of a crime exists to bring someone to trial.



Pls MODs direct the tread to the right place.

Lalasticala Help me to understand this

No we dont use jury system because they can be easily compromised or bribed.Our level of moral uprightness is very crooked to say the truth.No 9 most religious country in the world but many of us dont have the fear of God.

But lately some Judges have been bribed and Judgements are quite favoured to the elites..

Thanks for ur input.

talktonase:
No we dont use jury system because they can be easily compromised or bribed.Our level of moral uprightness is very crooked to say the truth.No 9 most religious country in the world but many of us dont have the fear of God.

talktonase:
No we dont use jury system because they can be easily compromised or bribed.Our level of moral uprightness is very crooked to say the truth.No 9 most religious country in the world but many of us dont have the fear of God.

true talk. a very corrupt country.... all with the hunger and lack pervasive in the system,a Nigerian juryman can and will be easily bought over.

geez18:
true talk. a very corrupt country.... all with the hunger and lack pervasive in the system,a Nigerian juryman can and will be easily bought over.

OK...

Since the jury can easily be bought over..

When was the jury system removed from our law institutions..

Bcuz those on Jury duty are lodged in a hotel during the trail period and most times.. U are not to talk to each other till the case is closed.

The question is was it ever done in Nigeria?

We do not use a jury system.

The jury system can only be effective in a country with a mostly efficient and up to date data of its citizens. Nigeria as we know has no central data for its citizens. That is why ur friend can get a message to serve or report for jury duty.

Even though members of a jury here can easily be corrupted or threatened, that can be surmounted to an extent with a jury sequestered for the duration of a trial. After the final selection is made from the number initially informed, they can be kept away from members of their families, the press and any remote possibility of bias and inducements until their job is done.

Jury service is not a free civic duty. The selected members of the jury are paid stipends with standard accommodation and transportation arrangements. Nigeria is notorious for its indebtedness especially when it's of no benefit to the powers that be.

The greatest stumbling block would be our highly pronounced tribalism which will always colour the perception of anyone who is on jury duty. Imagine the trial of Nnamdi Kanu for instance, you can be sure that a certain set of people will already be biased for or against him without recourse to actual legal provisions as far as his alleged offence is concerned.

Barring unforseen circumstances, a jury trial must be concluded within a short and definite period, most likely no more than one month (subject to confirmation). This is only proper because u cannot keep citizens away from their jobs and families ad infinitum. Is our trial designed for this? We know how both the prosecution and defence exploit our porous guidelines for endless adjournments.

Fact is, the Nigerian system is not designed to empower the members of the public or its citizens in any way. Leadership has become an exclusive cult for the elite and that is why they fight tooth and nail to get there and once they do, it's a jamboree. The judges in the US for instance are voted for by the citizens of any given state. What is the procedure for appointment of judges here? I'll leave this for anyone interested to figure out...

freeze001:
We do not use a jury system.

The jury system can only be effective in a country with a mostly efficient and up to date data of its citizens. Nigeria as we know has no central data for its citizens. That is why ur friend can get a message to serve or report for jury duty.

Even though members of a jury here can easily be corrupted or threatened, that can be surmounted to an extent with a jury sequestered for the duration of a trial. After the final selection is made from the number initially informed, they can be kept away from members of their families, the press and any remote possibility of bias and inducements until their job is done.

The greatest stumbling block

True!

But why will a country like Nigeria not have a centralized information of its citizens..

I have drivers license,national ID card, voters card, BVN and everything.. If I commit a crime today.. No one can trace my finger prints..

It's so sad...

I pray we get a leader that will head us to our promise land..

SmithHumble50:
My NL people,this question goes to the lawyers in the house..
Do we have Juries {Jury} in the Nigerian Law court

Bcuz all i see is a Judge in Nigeria is a Judge, Jury and Executioner.. Is that right?

A friend of mine a United State Citizen came for Christmas Hoilidays in December to stay till end of February but as the case will be, his housemate got a mail and he was told that he will be on a Jury list and he is to appear in court mid-January.. He had to cut his holiday to go back to perform his Civic duties and i Heard that if you don't make ur self available, u can be charged or possibly jailed for sometime.

I was actually tripped/Impressed on how the USA handle this and the Jury's final verdict influences the Judges final verdict.

So why cant dis happen in this country

Lawyers in the house.. can you help me understand dis?


Meanwhile, Here are some definitions o a Jury below..

1. Law A body of persons selected to decide a verdict in a legal case, based upon the evidence presented, after being given instructions on the applicable law. Also called petit jury, trial jury.


2. A jury is a sworn body of people convened to render an impartial verdict (a finding of fact on a question) officially submitted to them by a court, or to set a penalty or judgment. Modern juries tend to be found in courts to ascertain the guilt, or lack thereof, in a crime. In Anglophone jurisdictions, the verdict may be guilty or not guilty (not proven; a verdict of acquittal, based on the state's failure to prove guilt rather than any proof of innocence, is also available in Scotland). The old institution of grand juries still exists in some places, particularly the United States, to investigate whether enough evidence of a crime exists to bring someone to trial.



Pls MODs direct the tread to the right place.

Lalasticala Help me to understand this

Nigeria uses a single judge system copied from the British.

adadadon:
Nigeria uses a single judge system copied from the British.

OK...
Thanks..

@freeze001, I must say u trashed the topic very well.. Tribalism alone could jeopardize d whole jury process..

Btwn, are u a lawyer?