BAIL AS A CONSTITUTIONAL AND HUMAN RIGHT: A CASE FOR THE ACCUSED.

INTRODUCTION

Bail is defined as the temporary or conditional release of a suspect under police custody or an accused person about to go through a trial on the condition that he will appear in the police station or the court as and when required; consequent upon the furnishing of a bail bond provided by him or a surety. Regulation 1, which is the interpretation section of the Bail Regulations Constitutional Instrument 2017, of Sierra Leone defined bail as: ‘’an agreement between a defendant, his surety, and the Court or a defendant and the Court, that the defendant will attend Court as and when required and if he fails to attend Court, in addition to the Court issuing a bench warrant, a sum of money deposited into the Court or property put up as security shall be forfeited to the Court’’
The primary purpose a bail stands to serve is to guarantee that the suspect or the accused appears on a later date to face justice and also serves to ensure temporary liberty to the suspect or accused while awaiting the processing, and determination of the charge or charges against him. 
It is a matter of right that all persons under custody are to be admitted to bail when the court or the police constable is satisfied that the surety has posted the requisite bail bond for the accused person’s release, or the accused or suspect released on his own recognizance. Though it is recognised as a matter of right to admit a person to bail, it has also been the case that it is within the discretion of the Magistrate or the Judge to grant or refuse bail to an accused person standing trial having regard to the nature and severity of the offence committed by the accused.  
In the Sierra Leone legal system, there are no set guidelines regarding how much or what should be the value of a bail bond. The Judges and Magistrates are inclined to exercise their unfettered discretion to grant or refuse bail depending on factors such as: 
• The personality of the accused. 
• The likelihood of the accused jumping bail.
• The fact that the accused is standing trial in a different court for another charge.
• The severity of the offence.
• The health of the accused. 
These above mentioned factors can influence the decision of the Judge to either grant or refuse bail to an accused. For example, a Judge is likely to grant bail to an accused person who is wealthy and influential and has never committed a crime in the past. The personality of the person being of good repute will influence a Judge or a Magistrate to admit him to bail even without a surety. When a Judge or a Magistrate is inclined to believe that an accused person is likely to Jump bail or will refuse to show up in court when required so to do, bail can be refused. Another factor could be that the accused person is a repeated offender who has had several run-ins with the law. In fact, if the person is standing trial in another court for a charge that is unrelated to the substantive charge, it is highly likely that bail will be refused.
LIST OF OFFENCES IN SIERRA LEONE FOR WHICH ONLY A JUDGE CAN GRANT BAIL
• Murder
• Treason 
Where someone is accused of having committed murder or treason which are felonious offences, section 79 (1) of the Criminal Procedure Act, 1965 instructed that only a Judge shall admit such a person to bail. However, there are felonious offences other than murder and treason such as Burglary, rape, arson, and robbery for which an accused may be granted bail by the court he is standing trial, if the court thinks fit to do so. It must be noted that an accused standing trial for any of the offences listed above or any other offence, shall be presumed innocent until the prosecution proves his guilt beyond reasonable doubt. The presumption of innocence is a fundamental human right that is guaranteed under subsection (4) of section 23 of the Constitution of Sierra Leone Act No. 6 of 1991. 

THE DUTIES OF A SURETY IN FURNISHING THE BAIL OF AN ACCUSED
Before discussing the roles of a surety seeking to secure the bail of an accused, let us define briefly who a surety is. This could be defined as an individual who undertakes to assume responsibility for an accused who has been alleged to have committed a crime and is under detention promising that he will produce him upon demand by the judicial authorities. It is always the court that determines the bail conditions and those conditions must be satisfied before bail is granted. Some bail conditions are so cumbersome that they are impossible or difficult to meet. In such a circumstance, it is not uncommon for friends, associates, and, or family members to submit themselves as sureties in order to post the required bail bond. We must remember that a Judge sets a bail bond sometimes very difficult not because he wants to punish the accused; rather it is made difficult to ensure that the accused appears before the Judge whenever the matter is ready for determination. 
The duties of a surety include the following:
• Pay the money as required by the bail bond if it is a cash bail bond.
• Put down real property if it is required by the court.
• Signs the papers for the completion of the bail formalities.
• Ensures that the accused person whose released has been secured does not jump bail.
• Ensures to provide necessary information of the accused regarding his character.
Having stated the roles of a surety in securing the release of an accused under detention, it is important to state the rights of a surety who engages in a bail transaction.
• The surety can opt to rescind his suretyship if he thinks that the accused is no longer in the position to appear before the court as and when required.
• The surety can recover from the court the cash bond deposited to secure the release of the accused when the case against him has been disposed of.
• He is also entitled to recover the bond when he ceases to be the surety.
THE DUTIES OF THE ACCUSED WHO IS UNDER BAIL CONDITIONS
Since we have mentioned the roles and duties of the surety, it is important to list a few of the duties of the accused whose liberty has been secured under the terms of a bail arrangement.
• The accused must always appear in court on every adjourned date
• He must ensure to conduct himself within the confines of his bail terms.
• He must not interfere or meddle with witnesses so as to influence their testimony
• He must not go outside of the jurisdiction of the court.
REASONS WHY A JUDGE OR A MAGISTRATE MAY REFUSE BAIL TO AN ACCUSED
It has been stated earlier that bail is a matter of right that an accused is entitled to, but subject to the discretion of the Judge. Essentially, there are a plethora of reasons that could cause a Judge to refuse the grant of bail. These reasons are considered by the Judge out of the abundance of caution when exercising his discretion in granting bail to an accused.
A judge could refuse to grant bail for the following reasons:
• It may be the case that the accused is a flight risk; meaning, when granted bail, he could flee out of the jurisdiction permanently. When an accused is a flight risk, his passport or any travel document can be submitted to the court throughout the trial of the matter.
• The accused may upon release go on to meddle with witnesses to either bribe them to change their testimony, or refuse to come to court and testify against him.
• The accused can even go on to commit another offence while under bail.
• The accused could even be killed by the victims against whom he had committed the offence for which he is standing trial.
Now that I have mentioned the reasons why a Judge may refuse the grant of bail to an accused, it is important to list and discuss briefly case laws where the court had refused to grant bail to the accused persons in Sierra Leone. 
In the case of Alfred Palo Conteh v. The State (CR. APP) 5&6 (2020), (SLCA) 10. The accused was charged with several felonious offences among them was treason for which he was not found guilty. He was rather found guilty of another lesser charge and convicted for twenty four months, (24). He instituted an appeal against his conviction to the Court of Appeal and thereupon applied for bail pending the hearing of his appeal. He relied on section 67 (2) of the Courts Act 1965 and prayed to the court that there are special circumstances in his favour which the court should consider for granting him bail while the appeal is sub judice. The Court of Appeal presided by Justice Alusine Sesay refused the grant of bail in favour of the appellant.
Furthermore, in the case of The State v. Alhaji Amadu Bah (1388 of 2022; DPP No. 2022/145,) The accused person Alhaji Amadu Bah a.k.a L.A.J was arraigned on four counts on an amended indictment for offences of Robbery contrary to section 23(2) of the Larceny Act 1916 as repealed and replaced by section 2 of the Imperial Statutes (Criminal Law) Adoption (Amendment) Act No 16 of 1971. 
Lawyers for the accused applied for bail and the Judge refused to grant bail on the basis that there was a report that the accused would interfere with witnesses and had already been done by his family members.
Meanwhile, an application for bail was also refused in the case of The State v Mohamed Kamarainba Mansaray unreported. It was reported that bail was granted but the accused could not meet the bail condition and was kept in remand throughout his trial up until when he was convicted of the five counts charges of sexual impropriety in 2023.
On the other hand, it is also worthy at this point to mention a few decided cases in Sierra Leone where the court granted bail to the accused.
Janneh v. Commissioner of Police, 1964-66 Alr S.L. 244
Attorney-General v. Lasaravitsh , Ex Parte Scott Mag. App. No. 52/58)
Finally, since the arrest and detention of persons suspected to have committed a crime dovetail with his fundamental human rights guaranteed and protected under section 17 of the Constitution of Sierra Leone Act No. 6 of 1991, keeping someone under detention for a period exceeding that which is stated in the Constitution amounts to a violation of his fundamental human right. 

                                 REFERENCES
1. Criminal Procedure Act 1965 Act No. 32
2. Courts Amendment Act 1965 Act No. 31
3. Smith and Hogan textbook on criminal law, 15th edition
4. https://www.sierralii.gov.sl
5. Bail Regulation, Constitutional Instrument of Sierra Leone, 2017