A birthday celebration in Lagos last Sunday turned sour when trigger-happy police security who was hired to guard the venue decided to shoot some shots into the air for the entertainment of the guests.
According to the eyewitness report; the policeman was not able to properly position the gun but rather shot into the crowd killing three persons on the spot and leaving numerous others who scampered for their lives severely wounded.
Some things cannot just be justified. How can you justify a policeman shooting into the air as he claimed or opening fire with an Ak47 rifle fully loaded in a crowded public place in the name of cheering on the crowd?
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This is a common occurrence in Nigeria, policemen shoot into the air at parties and guests will cheer them on but this police guy and the guests at the party on Sunday became quite unfortunate.
In an act like this, the offender (the shooter) will be charged with murder, it does not matter that it was an accidental discharge or he had no intention (the mensrea) of shooting directly at the victims or that he only wants to release some shots into the air. This is usually an offense of strict liability.
A trained policeman armed with rifles is presumed to know that the aftermath of a shooting in a crowded public place is getting some people shot. There’s no reasonable justification whatsoever for those shots unless the police agency now permits its officers to shoot into the air for celebratory purposes.
For clarifications purposes of what the term murder or unlawful homicide really means under the Nigeria law; i will replicate its definition as provided in the criminal code act.
Section 315 of the act hereby provides (Unlawful homicide);
Any person who unlawfully kills another is guilty of an offense which is called murder or manslaughter, according to the circumstances of the case.
Section 316 went on to state the circumstances where murder or unlawful homicide will be said to have taken place, thus:
316: Except as hereinafter set forth, a person who unlawfully kills another under any of the following circumstances, that is to say?
(1) if the offender intends to cause the death of the person killed, or that of some other person;
(2) if the offender intends to do to the person killed or to some other person some grievous harm;
(3) if death is caused by means of an act done in the prosecution of an unlawful purpose, which act is of such a nature as to be likely to endanger human life;
(4) if the offender intends to do grievous harm to some person for the purpose of facilitating the commission of an offence which is such that the offender may be arrested without warrant, or for the purpose of facilitating the flight of an offender who has committed or attempted to commit any such offence;
(5) if death is caused by administering any stupefying or overpowering things for either of the purposes last aforesaid;
(6) if death is caused by wilfully stopping the breath of any person for either of such purposes, is guilty of murder.
The act of the policeman shooting some shots into the air falls into the category provided in S. 316 (3): “…. which act is of such a nature as to be likely to endanger human life”.
Therefore, When a person who ought to know and was negligent in his actions which led to the death of another person, the offender will be held to have committed murder and it does not matter that the killer has no intention (mensrea) to cause the death of the victim.
Murder as an offense is the only crime currently that carries capital punishment in Nigeria. Therefore the punishment for murder as provided in the criminal code act is the death sentence;
S 319(1) provides; Subject to the provisions of this section of this Code, any person who commits the offense of murder shall be sentenced to death.
Section 33(1) of the constitution also acknowledges the death penalty for an offender. It provides thus: Every person has a right to life, and no one shall be deprived intentionally of his life, save in execution of the sentence of a court in respect of a criminal offense of which he has been found guilty in Nigeria.
Trigger happy policemen and other security agents should know that in every action there are consequences, when you cause the unjustified death of another you will pay for it with your own life, it does not matter that the act was done in your line of duty.