CAN I SAY IT WAS NOT ME BECAUSE ‘ I WAS NOT THERE’ ?.

 

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Danilo works as a waiter at one of the big bars from 7 pm to 3 am and with his salary, he pays his university tuition. So it is not usual to see him running to catch a taxi at 6pm or entering the home he rents at about 5am. Last week, on his way from work, a police patrol car stopped him and arrested him because ‘a thief wearing black jeans and a black shirt with white shoes’ had run away after stealing from a nearby house about 2 hours before. Danilo tried explaining, but he was thrown in a cell, and now he has to face court to prove he is not a thief. What should he tell the court.

 

WHAT DOES THE LAW SAY?

 

By law, when a person is accused of committing a crime, the prosecution (the side which proves a case against a person) must show that the person was at the scene of the crime. This means that if you are accused of stealing something from a place, they must show that you were within or at the place where the theft occurred. For example, if a theft was in Makindye, then the prosecutors must show that the thief was in Makindye at the time the theft took place.

 

If you are accused of stealing or committing a crime in a place, the easiest way to defend yourself against this accusation is to say that you were somewhere else at the time of the crime. This is called ‘having an alibi’

 

With the defence of alibi you are telling court that you did not actually commit the offense because you were not present when the crime was committed. However, you must show that you were somewhere else during the time of committing the offence. So you cannot just deny, but you show where you were. For example, Danilo can show that he was at work at the time of the theft by showing the attendance sheet with his signature or having someone at work say he was with that person at work.

Source: BarefootLawyers.