Making Ghana's Criminal Procedure Law Conform to Its Grundnorm: Decisions of the Supreme Court

Abstract

In this article, I discuss 11 Supreme Court cases decided since 1993 in connection with Ghana’s criminal procedure law. Most of the cases tested the constitutionality of some provisions of the criminal procedure law and the outcomes reformed, and/or proposed institutional, policy and legal reforms. To facilitate presentation and analysis, I grouped the cases into the following constitutional/legal principles: liberty of the accused or suspect; right to be represented by counsel of one’s choice; compensation for wrongful arrest/detention/conviction; access to justice and to the court; the accused’s right to adequately prepare to mount a defence; determinants of the mode of criminal trials, and the right of the accused to know and the duty of criminal justice officials to explain. I conclude that the Court has largely upheld the Constitution and balanced individual and communal rights while protecting the accused and suspects. It has demonstrated its willingness to exercise its oversight functions but has been overly mindful of the impact of its decisions on the taxpayer. I also conclude that the criminal procedure law is outdated. Although the Court directed its orders for legislative reform at specific institutions, most of them have been ignored. Recommendations include reforming the criminal procedure law to conform to the Constitution and establishing a mechanism to oversee the implementation of the Court’s orders.