By Foday Moriba Conteh
The Legal Aid Board (LAB) has provided legal representation to 85 indigent accused persons, including one juvenile, during the September 2024 Criminal Session Call-Over of the High Court in Freetown. The session, presided over by Acting Chief Justice Nicholas Browne-Marke, took place between September 17 and September 30, 2024, at the Freetown High Court on Siaka Stevens Street.
A total of 104 accused persons had their cases heard during the Call-Over. Out of this number, 85 were represented by the Legal Aid Board, while 19 were represented by private Counsels or were absent from proceedings. The charges against the accused persons ranged from conspiracy to defraud, murder, larceny and burglary, to wounding with intent, robbery, shop breaking and fraudulent conversion.
Of the 85 defendants represented by the LAB, 34 pleaded guilty and were sentenced to various prison terms, including time served. Additionally, 11 of the accused were granted bail, while three were discharged due to lack of prosecution. Among those who received time-served sentences were Amara Sahr, Foday Sillah, Malikie Kallay, Idrissa Kamara, and Nabieu Bangura, who had been arrested in Tokeh on February 20, 2024, for the larceny of cattle.
Following the release of some of the accused persons, the Executive Director of the Legal Aid Board, Ms. Fatmata Claire Carlton-Hanciles, encouraged them to abide by the law and seek legal redress through established community structures. She urged them to focus on rebuilding their lives and contributing positively to their communities, warning against resorting to crime as a means of survival.
The accused individuals represented by the LAB were defended by Legal Aid Counsels including Cecilia Tucker, Ibrahim Samba, Randy Bangura, Morrison Karimu, Ibrahim Bangura, Cyril Taylor-Younge, Abraham Kargbo, Mustapha Dauda and Olu V. Garber.
In a separate development, the LAB also secured the release of four accused persons in Moyamba during separate court sittings. Three individuals were released from the High Court presided over by Justice Moody, while one person was released by the Moyamba Magistrate Court under Magistrate Santigie Bangura. The released individuals included Augustine Bargoria, who was freed on September 18, 2024, and Abu Bakarr Koroma, Gabriel Monrovia, and Fatmata Conteh, who were discharged on September 26, 2024. The accused persons were represented by Legal Aid Counsel A.K. Jawara.
The Legal Aid Board continues to play a crucial role in ensuring that indigent persons across Sierra Leone have access to legal representation, particularly in cases where they would otherwise be unable to afford private Counsel.
