Let the Court Decide

Our Mandate

The Let the Court Decide Initiative is a flagship intervention of the Human Rights Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association, Uyo Branch, established to identify and support persons who are in custodial detention awaiting trial, particularly those whose cases have not been brought before a court for determination or whose prolonged detention raises serious concerns about access to justice and due process.

The initiative is founded on a simple proposition:

If there is a case against a person, let the case be heard. If there is evidence, let it be tested. If there is a charge, let the Court determine it. If there is no lawful basis for continued detention, let the person regain their liberty.

Let the Court Decide.

Why This Initiative Matters

Every person in custody is not necessarily a convicted person.

Some people behind the walls of our custodial facilities are awaiting trial. Some have spent months or years in detention without their cases being brought to a meaningful determination. Others may have been arrested and detained without timely access to the judicial process.

For such persons, incarceration can become a punishment before guilt has been established.

The law presumes a person innocent until proven guilty. Detention before trial is not intended to become a substitute for trial.

The Human Rights Committee recognises that every person deprived of liberty remains entitled to the protection of the law, including the right to due process, access to legal representation and a determination of their case within the framework prescribed by law.

What We Seek to Do

Through this initiative, the Human Rights Committee seeks to identify cases of persons awaiting trial and examine the circumstances surrounding their continued detention.

Our intervention may include:

• identifying persons who have remained in custody awaiting trial;
• documenting relevant information concerning their cases and periods of detention;
• identifying cases where there has been prolonged or unexplained delay in bringing the matter before a court;
• facilitating appropriate legal assistance and representation, where necessary and possible;
• making appropriate referrals to lawyers, legal aid providers and relevant justice institutions;
• engaging relevant stakeholders within the justice system on cases requiring urgent attention;
• supporting appropriate applications for bail or other lawful remedies where circumstances warrant;
• monitoring cases to encourage their timely progression through the justice system; and
• advocating for systemic measures that reduce unnecessary and prolonged pre-trial detention.

We Are Not the Court

Let the Court Decide does not determine whether an accused person is guilty or innocent.

That responsibility belongs to the Court.

Our mandate is to help ensure that the person gets the opportunity to have the matter brought before the appropriate judicial authority and determined according to law.

We do not seek to replace the justice system. We seek to make the justice system accessible to those who are already within it.

Every Day in Custody Matters

For a person awaiting trial, every additional day in custody matters.

It matters to the individual. It matters to their family. It matters to their livelihood, education, health and dignity. And it matters to the integrity of the justice system.

A person should not disappear into the custodial system simply because their case has not moved. Justice delayed in bringing a person before the Court can become justice denied.

The initiative therefore seeks to shine a light on cases where delay, inaction or procedural gaps may have left people in prolonged detention without the determination contemplated by law.

The Role of the Bar

The legal profession has a critical role to play.

Through the Let the Court Decide Initiative, members of the Nigerian Bar Association are invited to contribute their professional expertise towards identifying, reviewing, referring and, where appropriate, representing persons whose cases require legal intervention.

We believe that the strength of the Bar is not measured only by the cases we win, but also by our willingness to ensure that those who have no voice within the justice system are not forgotten by it.

A Call to Partnership

This initiative is a call to action.

We invite:

• Lawyers to volunteer their professional services and expertise.
• Legal institutions and justice-sector stakeholders to collaborate in identifying and addressing cases requiring urgent attention.
• Civil society organisations to partner with us in advancing access to justice and protecting the rights of persons in detention.
• Development and justice-sector partners to support sustainable interventions aimed at reducing prolonged pre-trial detention.
• Members of the public to help bring deserving cases to the attention of the appropriate authorities and support efforts towards a fair and effective justice system.

Our Vision

We envision a justice system where no person is forgotten in custody. Where every allegation is subjected to due process. Where every accused person has an opportunity to have their case heard. Where detention does not become a substitute for trial. And where the question of guilt or innocence is determined not by the length of time a person spends behind bars, but by a competent court of law.

We do not ask the Court to convict. We do not ask the Court to acquit. We ask only that the matter be brought before the Court.

Let the Court Decide.