S v CHIKWASHIRA 2014 (2) ZLR 10 (H)

Flynote

Criminal procedure — plea — change of plea — change of plea from guilty to not guilty — what accused must show — must give reasonable explanation as to why he pleaded guilty — court not entitled to refuse to change plea unless satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that explanation is false

Headnote

The appellant, who was unrepresented at his trial at the magistrates court, pleaded guilty to a charge of stock theft. After conviction, but before sentencing, he applied to change his plea to one of not guilty. The magistrate rejected the application and sentenced him to the mandatory minimum sentence of nine years' imprisonment. On appeal: Held, that in terms of s 272 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Act [Chapter 9:07], the court is required to record a plea of not guilty if any of three situations become apparent at any stage before sentence is pronounced: (a) when the court, for any reason, entertains doubt that the accused is in law guilty of any offence to which he has pleaded guilty; (b) where the court is not satisfied that the accused has correctly admitted all the essential elements of the offence or all the acts or omissions on which the charge is based; or (c) if the court is not satisfied that the accused has no valid defence to the charge. Where the accused makes an application after verdict to alter his plea to one of not guilty, all that he is required to do is to give a reasonable explanation of why he pleaded guilty to the offence charged in the first place. It is only when the court is satisfied that the explanation tendered by the accused is beyond reasonable doubtfalse that the court can refuse to alter the guilty plea to one of not guilty. The court is not required to delve into the merits of the accused's case in order to determine whether his application for a change of plea ought to succeed. The question is not whether the accused's case carries with it any prospects of success. The issue is whether he has put forward an explanation for the guilty plea which, in the circumstances, is beyond reasonable doubt false.