[ad_1]
General News of Monday, April 15, 2019
Source: ghananewsagency.org
2019-04-15
Defense lawyer of two accused requested for psychiatric examination
The Accra High Court on Monday ordered the Accra Psychiatric Hospital to conduct a psychiatric examination of Daniel Asiedu, one of the detained suspects for the murder of JB Danquah Adu, former Member of the Parliament of Abuakwa North.
The court instructed the hospital to conduct the examination expeditiously without "conditioning the execution, the execution and the release to the payment".
The court chaired by Judge George Boadi further ordered the hospital to conduct the review within one month and submit the report by May 27 at the latest.
This would allow the court to determine if Asiedu aka Sexy Dondon is fit to stand trial.
He also ordered the Ghana Prison Service to make Asiedu available so that the medical examination could proceed smoothly.
According to the court, its clerk should also ensure that court orders are executed before April 16.
The court 's decision comes after defense counsel for the two accused, Mr. Augustine Obuor, has asked the court to subject the first accused to a psychiatric examination because of his behavior and certain statements that he has made. he had made concerning the choice of counsel for the International Criminal Court.
According to Mr Obuor, he had already lodged an application with the District Court, but it had been rejected.
Before he could argue his case in the High Court, it was better for the soundness of Asiedu 's mind to be established, underlining that under the law, a defense of insanity would render a trial void.
The defense attorney said that he wished to reiterate the application in the trial court because his client had called him on the phone only to inform him that he ( Asiedu) was going to be installed as a chef in Akwapim and that he wanted him to take care of him. the food to serve during its installation.
The lawyer indicated that this was not good with respect to Asiedu's mental capacity, and that in advanced countries the medical examination would have been done without hesitation.
Regarding the age of Sexy Dondon, defense counsel noted that in some cases Asiedu's age had been indexed at 18, 22 and 24 years.
Ms. Sefakor Batse, Senior Attorney General, informed the court that Asiedu had not demonstrated in court that he was mentally incapable of answering his appeal.
Ms Batse said, as far as the state is concerned, "we are not aware of any mental problems with Asiedu and we have opposed the request of the defense lawyer.
In the meantime, Chief Officer David Tsuishitoo of the Ghana Prison Service drew the court's attention to the fact that the cost of the examination had to be borne.
Chief Officer Tsuishitoo said that the service had to pay about five such cases, as hospital authorities often asked for money before an examination could be conducted .
He explained that the Service was obliged to pay for consultations and medications because the national health insurance scheme did not cover them.
The court therefore decided that his orders would also be notified to the Ghana Prison Service.
Asiedu is on trial with Vincent Bossu, aka Junior Agogo, following the murder of J.B Danquah Adu.
Asiedu and Bossu are charged with conspiracy to commit a robbery crime. Asiedu faces another charge of murder.
The two are accused of having participated in the death of the MP at his home in East Legon, from which they were arrested as a result of a police investigation.
The two suspects who were placed in pretrial detention are expected to reappear on 3 June for the adoption of the medical report on Asiedu.
Source link
