The UAE Federal Supreme Court has overturned an appeal court judgment that upheld the death sentence of a man convicted of murdering a woman and attempting to kill another man, ruling that the defendant’s right to defence had been compromised.
The country’s highest court referred the case back to the Court of Appeal for a fresh hearing before a different judicial panel after finding that the appellate court failed to examine and respond to key defence arguments.
According to court records, the Public Prosecution charged the defendant with three offences, including premeditated murder. Prosecutors alleged that he planned the crime, purchased a pair of sharp scissors, concealed the weapon and waited until he was alone with the victim in the stairwell leading to the rooftop of the residential building where they lived.
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He was accused of repeatedly stabbing the woman, causing injuries that proved fatal. Prosecutors also charged him with attempting to murder another man by stabbing him several times with a sharp object. The victim survived after receiving medical treatment. The third charge is related to an illicit relationship with the deceased woman, although the trial court later amended the legal description of that offence.
The Court of First Instance unanimously sentenced the defendant to death by qisas on the murder charge, life imprisonment for attempted murder and one month in jail on the third charge. It also ordered the confiscation of the scissors used in the crime, imposed court fees and ruled that the defendant be deported after serving his prison sentence.
Both the defendant and the Public Prosecution appealed the judgment.
The Court of Appeal unanimously upheld the trial court’s ruling in full, affirming the death sentence, life imprisonment, the one-month jail term, confiscation of the weapon, court fees and deportation after the custodial sentence is served.
The defendant then challenged the ruling before the Federal Supreme Court, arguing that he lacked the intention to kill. He also requested a psychiatric evaluation to determine his mental state at the time of the incident, claimed he had acted under provocation and sought to have the charges reclassified, arguing that the specific intent required for premeditated murder had not been established.
The Federal Supreme Court found that the appeal court had failed to address those requests or provide adequate reasons for rejecting them, despite their significance.
It reiterated that under Article 253 of the Criminal Procedure Law, every death sentence is automatically reviewed by the Federal Supreme Court before it can be carried out. The court stressed that safeguarding the right to defence requires judges not only to hear an accused person’s arguments but also to examine and rule on substantive requests that may affect the outcome of the case.
Finding that this standard had not been met, the Federal Supreme Court quashed the appeal court’s judgment and referred the case back to the Court of Appeal for reconsideration before a different judicial bench.
Source: Khaleej Times