PRIVCON PRIVACY AWARDS: CALL FOR NOMINATIONS

by Legalnaija | Oct 16, 2023 | Blawg

PRIVCON PRIVACY AWARDS: CALL FOR NOMINATION

The conveners of PrivCon Nigeria – an annual privacy and data protection conference in Nigeria – are delighted to announce the call for nominations into varying categories of their inaugural PrivCon Privacy Awards 2024. These awards have been established to identify and celebrate outstanding contributions to the growth and development of privacy and data protection in Nigeria.

Nominations are now open into the following categories:

• Privacy Leading Light (Legal) for lawyers in private practice or in-house counsel.
• Privacy Leading Light (Tech)– Privacy professionals in tech (non-lawyers)
• Privacy Leading Light (Academics): University lecturers teaching law, cybersecurity, ICT and other related courses.
• Privacy Leading Light (Research): Researchers with published works in the area of privacy, data protection, cybersecurity or related subjects.
• Privacy Leading Light (Women category): Women in tech, female lawyers
• Privacy Leading Light (Advocacy): Non-governmental organisations leading privacy/data protection advocacy in Nigeria.
• Privacy Team of the Year (Private sector): Private and public companies with formidable privacy departments.
• Privacy Team of the Year (Public sector): Government agencies with formidable privacy departments.
• Best Privacy Culture Development: Nigerian Organisations with the best privacy culture
• Best Privacy Product/Programme: Nigerian Companies with privacy-enhancing products or programmes
• DPO of the Year (private sector): DPOs in private or public companies.
• DPO of the Year (public sector): DPOs in government departments
• DPCO of the Year: licenced DPCOs in Nigeria
• Rising star (Legal): young lawyers (1 -5 years post-call)
• Rising star (Tech): young privacy professionals (1-5years experience)
• Rising star (Undergraduate): University students (including postgraduate and law school)

Nominations are invited from individuals, organizations, and entities who have made significant strides in promoting the privacy and data protection industry in Nigeria. Please consider submitting nominations for deserving candidates in these categories.

HOW TO NOMINATE:

Head over to PrivCon Privacy Awards website at www.privconprivacyawards.ng. Fill out the nomination form with the required information. Include a detailed description of the nominee’s contributions and why they deserve recognition in the selected category.

NOMINATIONS TIMELINE:

Call for Nominations Opens:16^th October 2023

Nominations Deadline: 30^th November 2023

Shortlisted Nominees Announced: 7^th December 2023

Voting starts: 8^th December 2023

Voting closes:  8^th January 2024

Final Nominees Announced: 31^st January 2024

Panel of Judge Announced: 1^st February 2024

Awards Ceremony:  April 2024

For any inquiries or require assistance, please contact host@privconnigeria.ng

Join us in celebrating those who have made significant strides in advancing privacy and data protection in Nigeria.

Criminal Instinct; Inborn Or Socially Imbibed | A. V. Adeleye (Part 2)

by Legalnaija | Oct 14, 2023 | Blawg

Criminal Instinct; Inborn Or Socially Imbibed^[1]

CRIME FACTORS

1. CONSTITUTIONAL/ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS

Research had been carried out and it is deduced that to ascertain the causes of crime, the researcher must start somewhere, which necessitates some assumptions. The most popular presumption is that criminal behavior results from constitutional, environmental, and psychological factors operating either alone or in concert with one another on the offender. The presence of these forces must be dealt with as best as we can while keeping in mind the significant degree of overlap between them, even though their intensity and size are not now subject to precise measurement.

I allude to the physical traits that predispose the offender to act in the manner he does when I talk about constitutional variables in crime causation. These physical traits may be long-lasting or fleeting. Drunkenness is an example of a temporary criminogenic factor, although a physical condition like dwarfism may be a lifelong criminogenic predisposing factor. Studies on heredity, twins, hormones, and physical appearance all provide support for the constitutional tendency to criminal behavior at this time.

Early phrenologists, or men who sought to establish a link between the skull, the brain, and social behavior, are credited with starting the scientific study of these topics. Franz Joseph Gall^[2]  believed that the physical makeup of the skull and the structure of the brain was connected to a person’s propensities for particular types of behavior, including criminal behavior. But Lombroso was the one who popularized this anthropological theory of criminal behavior. The study that disproved the accuracy of anthropological beliefs was conducted by Dr. Charles B. Goring, an English jail doctor. In his book The English Convict,^[3] Goring summarizes his research, which he conducted using control groups and statistical methods Pearson developed at University College, London.

2. HEREDITY

Numerous observers have remarked how frequently criminal behavior in children matches criminal behavior in parents or siblings, and some have concluded that a propensity for criminal behavior is an inheritable trait. Studies of ‘criminal families’ such as Richard Dugdale’s The Jukes,^[4]  Estabrook’s and Davenport’s The Nam Family,^[5] and Henry Goodard’s The Kallikaks^[6] have been used in support of this conclusion.

In Nigel Walker’s words, most delinquent children have lived with their delinquent parents or siblings long enough to acquire ways of life by imitation or some other non-genetic process of transmission.^[7] Nevertheless, Cyril Burt came to the opinion that constitutional considerations are important in determining juvenile delinquency, but it would be erroneous to assume that every criminal is a helpless victim of his predisposition to crime.^[8]

3. TWINS

The age-old and crucial question in criminology is “nature vs. nurture.” The studies of twins that examined the degree of concordance or discordance in the criminal behavior of monozygotic (identical) and dizygotic (non-identical) twins have proven to be the most effective means of addressing it. Monozygotic twins are produced when a single ovum is fertilized and separated into two separate embryos, each of which has an identical set of genes. These monozygotic twins are always identical in terms of sex, blood type, and appearance. On the other hand, the simultaneous fertilization of two ova by two spermatozoa leads to the development of dizygotic twins. These twins, which could be made up of one male and one female, two males, or two females, do not have genetically identical sets. Both of them may or may not share the same blood type, and they may or may not look alike.

When it comes to behavior, twins who display the same behavior are considered to be concordant in that regard. When it comes to the behavior aspect, twins that display divergent behavior are considered to be discordant. In this sense, two twins with the same genetic complexion are said to be concordant. This trait may be the result of genetic transmission if monozygotic twins exhibit a much higher rate of concordance with the trait of criminal behavior than dizygotic twins. Medical research has shown that at least one type of abnormal behavior, the symptom caused by Huntington’s chorea,^[9] is genetically transmitted. Monozygotic twin pairs have also been reported to have high concordance rates for alcoholism, idiopathic epilepsy, and schizophrenia.^[10]

According to Walker,^[11] incorrect categorization will most frequently result in dizygotic being labeled as monozygotic, which will if anything, lower the concordance rate. One can only presume that the investigator was aware of the issue of prejudice and took appropriate action in response to the second criticism. The use of monozygotic twins who were raised in different circumstances is the only way to address the last complaint, which is of course the most serious. Studies in this vein have proved ‘that there are a marked genetic factor underlying measurable traits of personality, such as extraversion and neuroticism, and of course intelligence.’^[12]

There is strong but not conclusive evidence based on unseparated twins for a partial determination of ‘criminality, by genetic inheritance; and fairly conclusive evidence, based on separated and unseparated twins, for a similar determination of at least two personality traits. The onus of proof, therefore, seems to lie on those who wish to explain away the higher concordance rates for delinquency in monozygotic.^[13]

4. ENDOCRINOLOGY

Some have hypothesized that endocrine disorders in the individual are a contributing factor in criminality generally and particularly in the case of sexual offenses. In their book The New Criminology,^[14] Schlapp and Smith made an effort to explain why there was a high rate of crime among immigrant parents’ first-born children in America by claiming that the mother’s glandular disorders were caused by the stress of immigration. The authors postulated that their offspring received this glandular imbalance from them. Children that were born later were not affected once the mother’s problems calmed. Hormonal therapy and castration of sexual offenders, both essentially presume an endocrine foundation for the proscribed behavior, have neither had outstanding outcomes nor been free of debate.^[15]

5. PHYSIQUE

Ernst Kretschmer, a well-known German psychiatrist, contributed significantly to the field of serious investigation on the relationship between body composition and personality. He was able to prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that different body types are associated with particular types of mental diseases. For instance, he found a link between schizophrenia and an athletic body type. The work of Sheldon and the Gluecks in America may be credited to Kretschmer for having first connected bodily kinds (somatypes) to criminality. Kretschmer continued to make this connection. Sheldon defined four body kinds, or somatypes, based on his system of categorizing body types, which is predicated on the idea that a particular type of tissue will predominate in every individual.

• The endomorph in which fatty tissue predominates. This type is given to food, drink, comfort, company, and sleep.
• The ectomorph in which skin and the nervous system predominate. This type is given privacy, is sensitive to pain, needs sleep, and is youthful in appearance.
• The mesomorph is in which bone, muscle, and sinew predominate. He is insensitive to pain and is given to movement and aggression.

The balanced type or that body build in which equal amounts of the features of the preceding types are found.

6. MENTAL FACTOR

Mental disease, as opposed to mental sub-normality, is always characterized by the affected person’s persistent inability to live up to the expectations of the reality in which he or she is immersed. Because it is famously difficult to distinguish between periodic and constant failure, the literature frequently uses varying language and lacks accuracy. As a result, the interested person has a lot of latitude in how he constructs his thinking on the matter. The ideas of intellect, emotional maturity, and persistence have all been utilized in attempts to isolate, stabilize, and quantify components of mental existence. Intelligence is the ability to successfully adapt behavior to changing circumstances and to learn from experience. When it comes to pursuing action that is motivated by intelligence, emotion, or both, persistence is the opposite of emotional adjustment, which is the ability to reconcile one’s thoughts about things.

It is obtained that the mother is the primary caregiver for a child’s emotional needs from birth to age four, and this is crucial for healthy growth. The child starts to develop long-lasting relationships with others between the ages of four and seven, and father-child relationships become significant. The child’s intelligence is gradually growing at the same time that this emotional pattern is taking shape. The child’s ability to develop mentally depends on how well his emotional and intellectual growth keeps up with one another. His intelligence is known to rise throughout infancy, peaking between the ages of fourteen and sixteen, and then remain constant at that level until the second half of his life when it starts to fall.

For an informal discussion, mental diseases are frequently separated into two major categories: organic and functional. Organic mental illness is dependent on a specific physical illness, such as advanced syphilitic infection or drug use. Functional mental diseases are those that ‘have not yet been shown to have a clear physiological cause.’^[16] They are recognized psychologically as opposed to physically. Examples of mental disorders with a functional origin include anxiety and hysteria.

7. PSYCHOSES

The general paralysis of the insane (dementia paralytica) caused by syphilitic infection, traumatic psychoses brought on by accidents, encephalitis lethargica, senile dementia, puerperal insanity, epilepsy, intoxication, psychoses, paranoia, paraphrenia, mania, and schizophrenia are the psychoses that are of interest from a criminological perspective.

• General paralysis of the Insane due to Syphilitic Infection

An overall decline in the quality of the person’s entire personality is a symptom of this psychosis. Antisocial behavior, such as theft, fraud, forgery, and violence performed without any attempt at covertness, sometimes precedes the onset of clinical symptoms. In the lack of clinical signs, these people may be mistakenly held responsible for their actions.

• Traumatic Psychoses Caused by Accidents

There have been cases when brain injuries were followed by pronounced personality changes, including an excess of sensitivity to the effects of alcohol, excitability, and a propensity for violent crimes. The punch-drunk boxer’s antisocial behavior is a hallmark of this type of psychosis.

• Encephalitis Lethargica (Sleeping Sickness)

An inflammation of the brain is caused by psychotic fever, which is ‘typically followed by serious and long-lasting aftereffects and changes in physique, intelligence, and character.’^[17] The post-encephalitic stage is characterized by ‘committing thefts, assaults, acts of cruelty, or sexual misdemeanors’ by the patients. Only placing them in specialized hospitals is something that can be done.^[18]

• Epilepsy

The organic psychosis known as epilepsy is commonly linked to criminal activity. Unconsciousness, convulsions, and uncontrollable body movement may result from the brain’s normal electrical activity being incredibly erratic and violent. A typical epileptic seizure follows. This disturbance, nevertheless, can be less severe and the epileptic features hardly noticeable. Although these epileptic seizures can sometimes be created intentionally, in the case of the actual epileptic, they are brought on by relatively unidentified internal impulses. In some epileptics, the focal point of the severe electrical activity surges has been seen to be damaged areas of the brain. It is well-recognized that some illnesses and poisonings can cause epilepsy.

• Intoxication

It is often said intoxication leads to psychosis,^[19] when it does we may be treated to the situation found in R. v. Hartridge^[20], where Hartridge shot his wife to death while he was in a highly intoxicated state. Hartridge didn’t try to hide what he had done, and there wasn’t a clear reason for the shooting. In actuality, the rifle’s report, per his testimony, was the occasion that brought the reality of the situation to the forefront of his thoughts. He was unable to recall any of the activities leading up to the shooting. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal rejected his arguments in a thorough ruling issued by Culliton, C.J.S. He had defended automation and the psychosis that it implies.

The source of the psychosis, in the Court’s opinion, was of utmost importance. This opinion was undoubtedly informed by the criminal law’s well-known unwillingness to absolve culpability in situations where intoxication was the offender’s state^[21]. Criminological intoxication has four facets;^[22]

• To what extent is intoxication per se a crime?
• What influence does intoxication have on the commission of a crime?
• What is the psychiatric significance of intoxication?
• What is the reaction of the criminal law to offenses committed under the influence of alcohol?
• Manic-Depressive Psychosis

Intervals of enthusiasm and depression alternate with sporadic intervals of rationality in this type of mental disease, which swings back and forth. Reactive depression is defined as depression brought on by an external force, such as the flu or the usage of sulphonamides. It might be endogenous and have no known external origin. Suicidal behavior^[23] frequently follows depression, regardless of the reason. A severe depression mood might result in a parent killing his children and himself or a couple making a suicide pact.^[24] On the other end of the spectrum, mania will show itself as intense, uncontrollable enthusiasm, which can occasionally result in violence like homicide, which is a reflection of an exaggerated urge to kill. Most often, medication or electroconvulsive therapy is used to treat depression and manic episodes.

1. NEUROSES

The psychotic’s reality is so controlled by his imagination that he is no longer subject to natural laws. Reality has vanished. The neurotic, on the other hand, can see the world for what it is, but he is significantly less able to handle its demands. Hallucinations or delusions are not a part of neurotic symptoms, and their onset is never abrupt. Although medication may occasionally be used, psychotherapeutic techniques of treatment are typically used.

• Hysteria

Hysteria is a condition in which the person has lost control over some aspect of his behavior,’ according to one definition. This may cause the person to make utterly unconscious movements or verbalizations. A powerful example is how the film ‘For King and Country’ tackled the battle exhaustion of one particular soldier. The physical changes that may accompany hysteria are entirely reversible, and its underlying causes are solely emotional. Hysteria always has the same underlying cause: a never totally conscious and usually wholly unconscious attempt on the part of the victim to use the portrayal of disease symptoms for their benefit. These physical symptoms are just as valid as those with only physiological explanations. The alleviation of unresolvable mental conflict is advantageous to the patient. Treatment must take this into account since, if it eliminates the main channel of release without offering a suitable substitute, severe harm may follow.

• Anxiety Neurosis and Phobias

One of the neuroses that affect people the most frequently is this one. It is defined by the person experiencing extreme and ongoing anxiety over circumstances that would not trigger such a response in a non-sufferer. The typical level of anxiety response prevalent in all of these people reaches such a high pitch that it significantly impairs the sufferer’s capacity to deal with the demands of his surroundings. When a student asks to postpone taking a test after having fully prepared himself for it from an objective standpoint, that behavior is an example of anxiety neurosis. It is typically referred to as a phobia when this extreme worry is caused by a wholly irrational view of an object or circumstance.

8. THE ‘USUAL’ OFFENDER

A ‘normal’ criminal does not exist, which is an absurdity. The crime itself is an indication of abnormality. If psychosis, neurosis, psychopathy, or mental deficiency are supposed to be absent from normality, the ‘normal’ offender is the one whose personality does not include any of these. Any examination of the ‘normal’ offender must start with the premise that offenders and non-offenders have distinct psychological makeups. However, the study has been unable to identify any particular personality traits of the offender group. The study, in Wooton’s opinion, shows that ‘personality traits are distributed in the criminal population in about the same way as in the general population.’^[25] Although it has been documented to cause suicide in extreme situations, anxiety neurosis has no direct criminological significance. Occasionally, hospitalization may be required.

9. PSYCHOPATHY

It is necessary to take into account a group whose mental instability is more readily seen in their conduct than in their mental processes through the study of abnormal mental life. From a criminologist’s perspective, this group reflects criminals whose behavior is characterized by frequent run-ins with the law that seem to be the result of a pronounced inability to draw on prior experience. Repeated offenses and penalties have little effect on the pattern of their behavior, and they just make them more hopeless and resentful. The psychopath’s career usually starts in youth, lasts his entire life, and seems to be influenced by both physical and emotional aspects.

The unusual electroencephalographic pattern of electrical activity in the brain and the immature capillary loop formation in the nail bed are two physical traits associated with psychopaths. A disproportionately large number of psychopaths’ recorded electrical patterns reveal brain processes that are similar to those often found in young infants.

10. MENTAL DEFICIENCY

In a New York survey of 10,000 consecutive criminals, 2.6% were classified as having mental impairments. Since Alfred Binet’s studies in France in the eighteenth century, there has been debate over whether intelligence and delinquency are related. The early idea that crime was a logical choice of behavior gave rise to the belief that people with mental defects shared no legal liability for their actions with newborns and the crazy. Early in the nineteenth century, mental incapacity was distinguished from insanity, but it wasn’t until the latter part of the century that scientific standards for gradations of mental ability were developed. It is important to keep in mind that the same elements contributing to an individual’s resulting IQ score may also contribute to criminality when examining the association between intelligence and delinquency. If comparisons of the IQ of delinquents and non-delinquents are to be relevant, they must only take into account delinquency. Walker^[26] contests the idea that people chosen by society for the delinquent group are increasingly characterized by an inferior mentality.

About 10% of all cases of severe mental abnormalities can be attributed to grossly distorted newborn rearing. For many years, early-life psychological trauma has been studied as a potential cause of mental illness. However, because severe mental deficiency is typically linked to apparent organic disease, this idea has been ignored in severe mental deficiency. Emotionally adverse environments likely have a substantial role in mental disability.^[27]

Congenital intellectual impairment refers to people who exhibit signs of a lower level of intellectual capability or ability from birth. This intellectual disability is described as a condition of limited potential for, or arrest of, cerebral development, as a result of which the affected person is unable, at maturity, to adapt himself to his environment or the needs of the community to maintain an existence independent of external support.^[28] Intellectual disability may result from environmental or inherited causes, intrauterine developmental abnormalities, or early childhood infections or traumas that cause damage to the neurological system.

It is critical to keep in mind that, in addition to the subject’s intrinsic intellect, other factors may have an impact on the test’s outcomes. When the mental age score from the Binet test is divided by the chronological age result, the result is the I.Q. These are the categories of intelligence;

• the moron with an IQ of less than 50,
• the imbecile with a score of 25 to 50,
• the idiot with a score of 50 to 70,
• the moron with a score of 50 to 80, the dull normal 80 to 90,
• the average 90 to 110,
• the superior 110 to 120,
• the very superior, over 120,
• and the genius or close to genius with a score of 140 and above.

Any determination of a person’s intellectual capacity should be supported by both clinical judgment and psychological testing.

11. SOCIAL FACTORS

1. FAMILY

Just like Vin Diesel said in most parts of Fast and Furious, family is all that matters. The first set of persons an individual is introduced to, learns from, and grows with is the family, every member of the family, all their activities, words, actions, and inactions. Because they have an impact on a child’s development, the family environment and parenting style are significant risks or protective factors for involvement in crime. The likelihood that a youngster will become a criminal adult is significantly shaped by parental behavior. A child’s likelihood of experiencing conduct issues and subsequent criminal involvement appears to be significantly elevated when their parents are criminals. Due to the numerous methods (common environmental influences, genetic risk factors, biological risk factors, and parental negative role modeling) that may transmit a parent’s risk of criminal participation to their child, the influence of parental criminality is complicated.

Significant generational consequences on a person’s risk of committing a crime are caused by family violence and child abuse. According to some studies, childhood abuse doubles a person’s likelihood of committing many different types of crimes.

The impact of family influences seems to be greatest during a child’s formative years and diminishes as they age, though inadequate parental supervision and a lack of affection between parents and their teenage children have also been identified as risk factors for future offenses.

2. COMMUNITY AND PEERS

Another institution we are quickly introduced to after the family which also has a great influence in our lives whether good or bad is the community we are born and grow into and also the field we keep. Although it can be challenging to quantify, community and neighborhood effects on criminality do seem to have an impact on both crime and antisocial behavior. As a youngster gets older, the influences of the neighborhood become more significant.

Numerous studies have indicated that violent behavior and the emergence of antisocial peer groups are closely related. Most of the people involved in crime and nabbed have been asked what motivated them into committing the crime and they have confessed to being brainwashed and influenced by those they call friends. Some have even said when they rejected their offer, they were bullied and cheated they later conceded.^[29]

3. EDUCATION

On countless times the video of teachers maltreating the pupils kept under their care trended on the internet. With the cruel treatment, the individual is exposed to help to train their minds and perception about things which in turn makes them brutal and heartless. A risk factor for subsequent delinquency and criminal conduct is not participating in school-level education. When compared to lawful work, education alters the relative opportunities provided by crime, particularly property crime. Greater profits from employment are ensured by higher levels of education, making it more desirable than crime.

For children under the age of 13, having parents with poor levels of education (i.e., parents without college degrees) has also been linked to an increased risk of future crime. Success in education lessens the financial rewards of crime and, hence, the motivations for criminal behavior.

1. LEVEL OF ECONOMY

Unemployment, relative wealth (disparity), and poverty (deprivation) are all economic elements that affect criminal behavior. A link between disparity and violent crime is suggested by the weight of the evidence. Although there is disagreement over the strength of this association, worldwide data reveals that a relationship remains even after adjusting for other characteristics.

According to evidence, certain types of criminal behavior are linked to deprivation. Even after adjusting for parental, individual, school, and peer characteristics, the Christchurch Health and Development Study’s^[30] analysis contends that socioeconomic disadvantage is linked to both self-reported crimes and officially documented convictions.

4. SOCIAL MEDIA

Since the advent of smartphones and the internet, we have always spent most of our time on the phone chatting with friends, playing games, surfing the internet, and having access to unsolicited websites. On some of these websites, are training, groups and organizations educating some of their audiences on how to carry out some criminal activities.

Also, some movies and symposiums are basically for mind training and supporting individuals to join their criminal course and they will be paid for it and some other benefits.

CONCLUSION

We live in a world filled with a lot of criminal activities. Truth be told, everyone is capable of carrying out different criminal acts. However, some people are so determined that no matter what, even if Jupiter will fall, they will never be involved in any criminal activity. Those that are now involved in criminal activities, if truth be told are not acting with their right senses. They are either brainwashed, manipulated, or coerced as discussed earlier.

It is however pertinent that each government of the states of the world set up a Wellbeing Institution. What will this Institution be responsible for? This institution will be responsible for identifying individuals that have this criminal psychology, accommodating and not arresting them with the option that they are free to go back into society of their freewill if they do not like being in the institution but if they are found exhibiting the criminal psychology traits they exhibited that got them into the institution, they will now be arrested and prosecuted. Those that decide to stay back at the institution should be educated, fed, medically treat, train in different entrepreneurial skills, empowered, and released back into society to start life afresh as a different person. However, the individuals released back into the and closely monitored to see that all they have been taught in the institution is dully put into practice.

Why did I recommend this method? I believe that if most of these persons with criminal psychology have the right and appropriate person(s) to be connected with, they will surely and quickly snap out of their mystery.

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^[1]. A. V. Adeleye Puzzle Law Firm, Durban Street, Off Ademola Adetokunbo Crescent, Wuse 2, Abuja. adeleyebola93@gmail.com 08108173996

^[2] Franz Joseph. Gall and Phrenology. Retrieved from https://study.com/academy/lesson/franz-joseph-gall-phrenology-theory-definition-lesson-quiz.html

^[3] H.M.S.O. London (1913).

^[4] Richard Dougdale. The Jukes: A Study of Crime, Pauperism, Disease, and Heredity. Retrieved from https://readingroom.law.gsu.edu/buckvbell/1/

^[5] Arthur H. Estabrook and Charles Davenport. The Nam Family: A Study in Cacogenics. Retrieved from https://core.ac.uk/download/pdf/46955637.pdf

^[6] Henry H. Goddard. The Kallikak Family. Retrieved from https://embryo.asu.edu/pages/kallikak-family-study-heredity-feeble-mindedness-1912-henry-herbert-goddard

^[7] Nigel Walker. (1965). Crime and Punishment in Britain. 47.

^[8] Op. cit. Supra n 5, at 230.

^[9] Op. cit. Supra n. 20, at 48. Also, see infra, n. 92.

^[10] Id., at 48-49.

^[11] Id., at 50.

^[12] Id., at 50-51.

^[13] Id., at 51.

^[14] Schlapp and Smith. The New Criminology. Retrieved from https://books.google.com.ng/books/about/The_New_Criminology.html?id=37w1AAAAIAAJ&redir_esc=y

^[15] Armstrong and Turner. (1965). Special Problem Groups in McGrath (Ed.). Crime and Its Treatment in Canada. 462.

^[16] Stafford-Clark. (1963). Psychiatry Today (2nd Ed.).

^[17] Op, cit. Supra, n. 20, at 63

^[18] Id., at 62.

^[19] Id., at 246

^[20] (1967), 1 C.C.C. 346 (Sask. C.A.).

^[21] Robinson v. California (1962) 370 U.S. 660, 666; Driver v. Hinnant (1966) 356F.2d761 (4th Cir.); Easter v. District of Columbia (1966) 361 F. 2d 50 (D.C. Cir.).

^[22] Government Liquor Act, R.S.B.C. 1960, c. 166, s. 68: The Liquor Control Act, 1958, R.S.A. 1958, c. 37. s. 87: The Liquor Act, R.S.S. 1965, c. 382, s. 105 (1): The Liquor Control Act, R.S.M. 1956, c. 40, s. 169 (3).

^[23] Criminal Code of Canada, Supra, n. 36, s. 213. A successful suicide is an example of Dr. William’s ‘unenforceable crime.’

^[24] R. v. Hilborn [1946) O.R. 552; 2 C.R. 129; 86 C.C.C. 406 (Ont. C.A.)

^[25] Barbara Wooton. (1959). Social Science and Social Pathology.

^[26] Op. cit. Supra, n. 20, at 59

^[27] H. Bourne. (1965). Protophrenia: A Study of Perverted Recruing and Mental Dwarfism. 11.

^[28] Guttmacher and Weihofen. (1952). Psychiatry and the Law, 172. New York.

^[29] See the movie Monster produced by Tonya Lewis Lee, Nikki Silver, Aaron L. Gilbert, Mike Jackson, and Edward Tyler Nahem 2018.

^[30] University of Otago, Christchurch. Christchurch Health and Development Study. Retrieved from https://www.otago.ac.nz/christchurch/research/healthdevelopment/

GENITAL THEFT: Cultural Syndrome, Myth or Reality? Position of the Law | AROME ABU ESQ

by Legalnaija | Oct 12, 2023 | Blawg

The public space has been inundated with so much kerfuffle surrounding alleged organ theft, shrinkage or disappearance. This development has thrown most residents of the FCT, Kogi, Nasarawa and other Northern States where these allegations have been reported into fear of genital loss.

Different views have been expressed by different schools of thought on this subject. First, is the School of Thought that posits that the idea of genital disappearance or shrinkage is a ridiculous hoax. The second school of thought hold the view that fetish practices form part of the African system, hence human organs can be mysteriously stolen without physical severance. The third school of thought, which can be likened to the biblical character Thomas, hold the view which can be summarized as “Unless I see and confirm with my “naked eyes” I will not believe”.

Daily Trust Newspaper reported an incident of a missing genital at Sabon- Tasha motor park area in Abaji FCT on September 14, 2023, where a man identified as Godwin, a commercial bus driver, was reported to have allegedly stolen another man’s male organ, identified as Sadiq. The victim claimed that the suspect, who was travelling with passengers from Zuba to Edo State, stopped over at Abaji, where he had a handshake and asked him where he could buy drinks. Shortly after that, the victim raised an alarm that his genital organ had disappeared, which led to the arrest of the driver by some people around the motor park, where he was beaten by a mob and later rescued to the police area command.

The driver was said to have been freed by the police after the victim, who was taken to the hospital, later confirmed that his male organ had returned

In another video which circulated on social media, a man who appeared to have been severely beaten was seen assuring a victim that his reproductive organ will be restored before 4:30pm “by the grace of God”.

Also, three persons, including a commercial cyclist, were said to have raised the alarm that their male organ got missing at Anguwar Gede in Kuje Area Council of the FCT on September 15, 2023.

On 20th September 2023, one Usman Muhammed, an 18-year-old scavenger residing in Gwagwalada area of FCT alleged that one Abba who shook his hand, stole his manhood. According to Usman:

“…he extended his hand towards me for a handshake; I extended mine too. Immediately after he left my hand, I felt very uncomfortable. It felt like I was in a trance with some kind of shock in my body, and my private part was missing. Immediately, they started moving away; Abba pushed me and they drove away,”

The Commissioner of Police, CP Haruna Garba, disclosed at the FCT Command’s headquarters, while addressing journalists at a press briefing on 3rd October 2023 thus:

“Fourteen suspects who claimed that their male organs have disappeared were taken to the hospital where the medical doctor confirmed that their male organs are intact and active. Consequently, they were charged to court for giving false information and inciting public disturbance. I wish to seize this opportunity to appeal to the residents of FCT to warn their wards and children to desist from raising false alarm.”

On 10th October 2023, Vanguard Newspaper online, reported that at the Federal Secretariat a woman, alleged that her private part was stolen. However, the FCT Police Command dispelled the allegation as false and disclosed that the woman will be charged to court for raising false alarm.

From the versions reported in print and social media, the alleged disappearances or shrinking took place the moment there was physical contact between the culprit and victim.

POSITION OF THE LAW

The subject of genital theft is not new to the Nigerian system. Cases of organ theft have been recorded, albeit in a different form. The common reports pertain to ritual sacrifices whereby the victim’s members of the victim is severed from his/her body. The Courts have also recognized and acknowledged the existence of ritual sacrifices in our system.

In Fatai V. State [2013] 10 NWLR Part 1361, the Supreme Court observed that:

“Not only is the appellant and his gang a group of morally depraved brutes, their behaviour portrayed them as wild animals in human form. The offences of raping and slaughtering the women folk appear to be on the increase and so also is the heinous crime of killing women for ritual purposes.”

Also in Aiwuyor V. State [2022] 13 NWLR (Part 1846) at 89, the Court observed thus

“Being a child of only three years of age at the material time and the circumstances as revealed by the evidence of PW1, PW4 as well as DW1 and DW2, the presumption that she was/is dead is cogent and compelling in the absence of explanations from the appellant and her co-conspirators of where they took and what happened to the helpless child victim, she wanted for rituals to enhance her luck in life.”

The most proximate Judicial and statutory allusions to the subject under discourse relate to statutory provisions and judicial pronouncements on use of charms, witchcraft and superstition.

Section 213 of the Criminal Code Act provides that:

“Criminal charms

Any person who‐

(a) makes, sells or keeps for sale or for hire or reward, any fetish or charm which is pretended or reputed to possess power to protect burglars, robbers, thieves or other malefactors, or to aid or assist in any way in the perpetration of any burglary, housebreaking, robbery or theft, or in the perpetration of any offence whatsoever, or to prevent, hinder or delay the detection of or conviction for any offence whatsoever; or [Underlining mine for emphasis]

(b) is found having in his possession without lawful and reasonable excuse (the proof of which excuse shall lie on such person) any such fetish or charm as aforesaid,

is guilty of a felony and is liable to imprisonment for five years.

On its part, the Penal Code provides as follows:

“216. Whoever-

(a) by his statements or actions represents himself to be a witch or to have the power of witchcraft; or

(b) accuses or threatens to accuse a person with being a witch or with having the power of witchcraft; or

(c) makes or sells or uses, or has in his possession or represents himself to be in possession of any juju, drug or charm which is intended to be used or reported to possess the power to prevent or delay a person from doing an act which that person has a legal right to do, or to compel a person to do an act which that person has a legal right to refrain from doing, or which is alleged or reported to possess the power of causing a natural phenomenon or a disease or an epidemic; or

(d) presides at or is present at or takes part in the worship or invocation of any juju which has been declared unlawful under the provisions of section 215 of this Penal Code; or

(e) is in possession of or has control over any human remains which are used or are intended to be used in connection with the worship or invocation of any juju; or (f) makes or uses or assists in making or using, or has in his possession anything whatsoever the making, use or possession of which has been declared unlawful under the provisions of section 215 of this Penal Code, shall be punished with imprisonment which may extend to two years or with fine or with both.

(f) makes or uses or assists in making or using, or has in his possession anything whatsoever the making, use or possession of which has been prohibited by an order as being or believed to be associated with human sacrifice or other unlawful practice,

For judicial pronouncements, in the recent case of State v. Ibanga [2021] 5 NWLR Part 1769 253

“On Ingredients of offence of placing charm –

To prove an offence of placing charm, the prosecution needs to establish the following:

(a) that the accused person has placed the charm;

(b) that the charm was intended to be used or isr eported to possess the power to prevent or delay the person from doing an act which he has legal right to do or to compel him to do an act which he has a legal right to refrain from doing;

(c) that the charm possesses the power of causing any natural phenomenon or adverse consequences. [Underlining is mine for emphasis]

As noted above, the laws highlighted are the most proximate allusions to the discourse and do not squarely fit into the subject under scrutiny. Clearly, our laws recognize the existence of fetish practices, although, the possibility of genital theft by fetish means has never been submitting to the judiciary for determination. In the case of physically genital severance culprit are charged for “causing grievous hurt” or other kindred offences.

Whilst fetish practices and use of juju may be considered abstract, they remain common in Africa and cannot be ignored, hence their recognition under our Criminal Laws.

From the information available in the public space, there is no single victim of a purported genital theft whose genital has been confirmed missing by a certified medical practitioner, although this is not an attempt to dismiss the claims made by alleged victims especially as fetish practices, use of juju and witchcraft have been characteristic of the African system.

Hence, It is this author’s view that where there is expression of contrition and admission by the culprit to the use of fetish means to tamper with a person’s genital, same should be liturgically investigated and submitted to court for determination. In the interim, members of the public are enjoined to refrain from participating in any forms of Jungle justice as that in itself is an offence.

Arome Abu is the Managing Partner of TCLP.

CAVEAT: Note that this information is provided for general enlightenment purposes and is not intended to be any form of legal advice.

Obscure Legal Facts is an exclusive publication of THE COUNSEL L-P. ABUJA, FCT

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ASSESSING THE IMPACT OF DIRECTOR’S ROLE IN PROVIDING CREDIBLE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

by Legalnaija | Oct 2, 2023 | Blawg

1.0 THE FUNDAMENTALS OF FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Financial statements are crucial reports which provide information about a company’s financial results, its financial position, and cash flow. They provide essential accounting information that help businesses track financial activities, assist potential and existing investors in making investment decisions and government regulators make fiscal assessments.

To this intent, this article shall examine the liability of directors’ breach of duty of care, skill, and diligence, arising from presenting misleading financial statements, which could amount to either fraudulent or negligent misrepresentation, and the extent to which directors can rely on the advice of professionals such as independent auditors, the company’s audit committee and executive officers of the company.

Due to the transnational nature of corporate law, judicial decisions of the English and Australian jurisdictions are considered in establishing liabilities connected to a person discharging managerial responsibility who makes disclosures in financial statements which are not only untrue thereby capable of reasonably influencing users of financial information place reliance on them.

2.0 ISSUES ARISING FROM RELIANCE ON FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

The Companies & Allied Matters Act 2020 confers responsibility of preparing financial statement on directors of both private and public limited liability companies on an annual basis (also quarterly for public companies) and further provides for the type of accounting information directors are expected to include when preparing financial statements . These information are usually retrieved from a company’s financial activities and performance, providing an invaluable resource for assessing the financial liquidity, and capacity of a company to maximise shareholders’ value. It is also used by directors of a company to evaluate financing, investment, and taxation objectives. While auditors are to provide expert advice to directors, statutory provisions, and judicial decisions maintain that directors are primarily responsible for preparing accurate financial statements. On the other hand, the Chief Executive Officer, Chief Financial Officer or persons providing similar functions are responsible for certifying audited financials and are further mandated to discharge this corporate responsibility in accordance with specified standards.

For instance, the accountant certifying the financial statement complies with accounting standards i.e International Financing Reporting Standards (IFRS) for public companies and in the case of a private company, Accounting Standard for Private Enterprises (ASPE). Failure to discharge this duty accordingly amounts to a conviction specified in the CAC Regulation.

In the business world, buying, keeping, and selling company shares entail enormous risk taken by local and foreign investors because of the high degree of reliance made on financial statements which may sometimes be inaccurate. Global events are replete with instances where companies present false trajectories on liquidity, dividend and bonus shares pay out in order to attract users of financial statements i.e investors, financial institutions. The outcomes of such failings are usually tied to directors’ duty of care and diligence, poor corporate governance practices which could lead to the removal of any director found wanting.

In a recent Autonomy and HP litigation, ACL Netherlands BV & Ors v Lynch & Anor , The High Court found two executive directors, Mike Lynch and Sushovan Tareque Hussain, liable for making false financial statements in Autonomy’s annual report. The court held these directors responsible for providing false information regarding the company’s financial performance on its software product known as IDOL. They claimed that Autonomy was solely a software company, but in reality, Autonomy engaged in reselling computer hardware to generate more revenue. By combining the sales of hardware and software in Autonomy’s quarterly and annual reports, the directors created a false impression that Autonomy was a very successful technology UK start-up. Based on these presentations, the claimants acquired Autonomy, and purchased it at an overpriced value. On discovery of the true facts, they commenced an action I damages against the directors of autonomy and amongst other relief sought for their removal.

On the issues of fraudulent information, the court ruled that for the financial representation of the defendants to qualify as a misleading statement, it is sufficient that the misleading statements “has an impact on the mind” which led the claimants into making an investment decision . The court also held that in establishing liability connected with damages associated with a misleading statement, a person discharging managerial responsibility in this case a director, must have been aware that the statement is untrue at the time it was made or appreciate that relevant information was not being disclosed. Additionally, the court emphasized that the company’s auditors cannot be considered as the ultimate test or a safe guarantee for matters that fall under the directors’ responsibility .

On the issue of relying on negligent misrepresentation, the director duty of care, skill and diligence is essential in assessing the liability of the director. In Australian Securities and Investments Commission v Healey also referred to as the Centro case, the court considered the issue of whether an omission made by the director would give rise to liability in damages against such director.

Here, the directors of Centro Property Group (CNP) and Centro Retail Group (CER) classified current liabilities incorrectly as non-current liabilities. CNP also provided guarantees to an associated company which amounted to US$1.75 billion after the balance date, without disclosing this material post balance date as required by accounting standards. In one of the reliefs sought against the directors, the claimant maintained that the directors were in breach of sections 180 and 344 of the Corporations Act 2001. While Section 344 mandates directors to take “all reasonable steps to comply with, or secure compliance with sections 296 and 297”. Section 296 requires financial reports to follow applicable accounting standards, while section 297 stipulates that financial statements present a true and fair view of the company’s financial position and performance, and section 180 requires directors to exercise their duties with care and diligence. The claimant, thereafter, sought a declaration that the directors had contravened sections 180 and 344 and claimed damages and further sought an order disqualifying the directors.

Although the directors maintained that it was unrealistic to expect them to review voluminous board papers alongside the draft financial statements and they claimed that they were unaware of the specific pages containing CER’s debt, the court held that the directors could have prevented the information overload and held them responsible for not identifying the errors in the financial statements or seeking clarification from management and auditors. Consequently, the directors were liable to the breach pursuant to sections 180 and 344.

We also note that the court held that while directors can rely on expert advice, they cannot abdicate their own fundamental responsibility to review and approve the company’s financial statement.

From the foregoing cases, the courts consistently require directors to exercise care, skill, and diligence when preparing financial statements, regardless of whether any misleading statements were occasioned by fraudulent misrepresentation or mistakes arising from negligent misrepresentation. This position was also emphasised by the Court of Appeal in our jurisdiction, as demonstrated in the case of Okeke v. SEC & ORS where the Court of Appeal held that “the provisions of Sections 331 – 333 of the CAMA 1990 impose a duty upon a company to keep proper and accurate records of accounts and the penalties for non-compliance therewith. Likewise, Sections 334 – 337 impose a duty upon Directors of the Company to prepare annual accounts. Sections 345 – 348 of the Act have equally imposed a duty on Directors to deliver financial statements, and the penalties for non-compliance therewith”.

From the judicial decisions and statutory provisions cited, there’s a mandatory requirement by law imposed on directors of companies to prepare accurate financial statements, which is connected to their duties of care and skill. Failure to comply inevitably incurs penalties, extending from damages to removal of such director from office.

3.0 KEY LESSONS

Having established the fact that directors are personally liable for preparing financial statements, it also projects the corporate governance practices of such organisation which invariable leads to corporate reputational damage, loss of shareholders’ capital which could plummet into insolvency and the eventual job losses.

Despite the passage of Nigerian Code of Corporate Governance 2018 and the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020, multinational and indigenous companies’ board and management are still found wanting when exercising their corporate responsibilities in this regard. In 2021, the World Bank refrained from executing any contract with nine Nigerian individuals and firms due to bad corporate governance practices, extending to fraud, and collusive practices. This implies that there is a huge demand for recruiting reputable and competent directors where the goal is not only to build profitable organisations but enduring ones. Statutes and judicial decisions are also consistent in qualifying the standards required by directors in discharging their corporate responsibilities when preparing financial statements: that they should act professionally at all times, possess the requisite knowledge of accounting practice and concepts in assessing financial books and preparing accurate statements, develop the right disciplines for their roles, balance the need for sufficient information from management, whilst carefully and diligently reviewing all of the financial information presented in annual reports including asking management and the auditors the right questions.

Ultimately, shareholders are also statutorily empowered to exercise their powers at general meetings to remove a director liable for making misleading statements to protect the company from further financial and/or reputational loss.

Author: Adeola Osifeko

Bio: Adeola is an IP lawyer, transactional and corporate governance practitioner with local expertise and global outlook. She curates corporate commercial contents on legal advisory and regulatory compliance needs for start-ups, SMEs and corporate entities seeking to establish, run and scale their businesses in Nigeria. She can be reached by sending an email to adeola@aeolawpractice.com

Join The Famsville Immigration Roundtable

by Legalnaija | Sep 18, 2023 | Blawg

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