Don’t turn plea bargain into a joke - Bamwine

Left to right: An inmate shares a light moment with Acting Commissioner General Robert Munanura and Principal Judge Yorokamu Bamwine during the plea bargain training for the prisoners at the Upper Prisons in Luzira in May 2018. PHOTO BY RACHEL MABALA

What you need to know:

  • Ms Miranda Tabifor, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) deputy country representative, said the special court session must not only stop at piloting level, but should be sustained to handle all the sexual gender-based violence cases in the country.
  • A plea bargain is an agreement between a defendant/suspect and a prosecutor in which the accused accepts to plead guilty or “no contest” (nolo contendere) in exchange for a lenient sentence or be relieved of one or more charges.

Kampala. The Principal Judge, Mr Yorokamu Bamwine, has warned judicial officer against what he called ridiculous leniency during plea bargaining.
“You should not make the plea bargaining a handshake ceremony,” Justice Bamwine charged.

He was speaking at the opening of a special court session for trying Sexual and Gender- Based Violence at the Uganda Law Development Centre in Kampala on Friday.
Justice Bamwine said while the current court session will deal with SGBV cases, many suspects may want to plead guilty and warned that the judges handling the trial must take them up, but make appropriate sentencing equal to the gravity of the committed crimes.

“Whatever the case, the purpose of a sentence is to act as a punishment, a deterrent and a measure of protection for society. In some plea bargaining sessions some judges have failed to conclude some cases on account of ridiculously low sentences proposed by the accused persons. Convicts ought to be given their due desserts, not handshakes, whether they pleaded guilty or opted for full trial. That is when deterrence as one of the objectives of sentencing will have meaning. Otherwise ridiculously low sentences especially in SGBV cases have the effect of trivialising the offences against women and girls,” he said.

Sexual and gender-based violence, he noted, is a serious crime and needs the toughness to make the culprits learn from their own mistakes.
He said managing a pretrial process is very important as it influences the outcome and successful prosecution or convictions.
Justice Jane Frances Abodo of the High Court said there will be 13 court sessions across the country and each judge is assigned 50 cases to handle. She said the figure is the minimum load but judges are allowed to handle up to 200 cases within the next two months.

“We expect by 15th December this year, all the 50 or more cases to be completed and that will determine the next direction on how to go about establishing a permanent special court for handling SGBV cases,” she said.
She said sexual and gender-based violence cases take long to be concluded and many victims abandon the court process out of frustration. She said some of the cases are poorly investigated by police, which puts the victims at risk.

“We are dealing with families, with people’s feelings and therefore we need to think of reconciliation. Plea bargaining will help in such reconciliation,” Justice Abodo cautioned.
Ms Miranda Tabifor, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) deputy country representative, said the special court session must not only stop at piloting level, but should be sustained to handle all the sexual gender-based violence cases in the country.

About plea bargaining
A plea bargain is an agreement between a defendant/suspect and a prosecutor in which the accused accepts to plead guilty or “no contest” (nolo contendere) in exchange for a lenient sentence or be relieved of one or more charges. After this stage a specific sentence acceptable to the suspect is recommended to the judge.