- Criminal Procedure Act - Chapter 80
- Chapter I. Preliminary, Arrests, Bail and Preventive, Justices
- Chapter 2. Provisions Relating in General to all Criminal Trials and Inquiries
- Chapter 3
- Chapter 4
- Chapter 5
- Chapter 6. Proceedings after an Accused has been committed by a Magistrate to the High Court for Trial
- Chapter 7. Provision Relating to Sentences of Death, Imprisonment, Caning and Fine
- Chapter 8. Detention during the Pleasure of President and Deportation
- Chapter 9. Juvenile Offenders and Probation
- Chapter 10. Assessors and Inquiries by Direction of the Attorney-General
- Chapter 11. Miscellaneous
- Chapter 12
Criminal Procedure Act
Chapter 80
Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990
An Act to make provision for the procedure to be followed in criminal cases in the High Court and Magistrates' Courts
1st June, 1945
Chapter I
Preliminary, Arrests, Bail and Preventive, Justices
Part 1
Preliminary
1. (1) This Act may be cited as the Criminal Procedure Act.
(2) Chapter 12 of this Act shall apply to the Federation of Nigeria.
2. (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires-
"adult" means a person who has attained the age of seventeen years or over;
"charge" means the statement of offence or statement of offences with which an accused is charged in a summary trial before a court;
"Chief Judge" means the Chief Judge of the High Court;
"child" means any person who has not attained the age of fourteen years;
"complainant" includes any informant or prosecutor in any case relating to a summary conviction offence;
"complaint" means the allegation that any named person has committed an offence made before a magistrate for the purpose of moving him to issue process under this Act;
"court" includes the High Court and a magistrate's court;
"defendant" means any person against whom a complaint is made;
"district" means a district into which a State is divided for the purposes of any Law under which a magistrate's court is established;
"division" means a judicial division of the High Court;
Federal law" means any Act enacted by the National Assembly having effect with respect to the Federation and any Ordinance enacted prior to 1st October, 1960 which under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria has effect with respect to the Federation;
"felony" means an offence on conviction for which a person can, without proof of his having been previously convicted of an offence, be sentenced to death or to imprisonment for three years or more, or which is declared by law to be a felony;
"fine" includes any pecuniary penalty or pecuniary forfeiture or pecuniary compensation payable under a conviction;
"future enactment" means any enactment passed after the commencement of this Act;
"guardian" in relation to a child or young person means the parent or other person having lawful custody of such child or young person, and includes any person who, in the opinion of the court having cognisance of any case in which such child or young person is concerned, has for the time being the custody, control over, or charge of such child or young person;
"High Court" means the High Court of the State or the Federal High Court;
"indictable offence" means any offence-
(a) which on conviction may be punished by a term of imprisonment exceeding two years, or
(b) which on conviction may be punished by imposition of a fine exceeding four hundred naira;
not being an offence declared by the law creating it to be punishable on summary conviction;
"indicted" means the filing of an information against a person who is committed for trial to the High Court after preliminary inquiry by a magistrate;
"infant" means a person who has not attained the age of seven years;
"Judge" means a Judge of the High Court;
"justice of the peace" means a person appointed to be a justice of the peace under the law of a State;
"juvenile offender" means an offender who has not attained the age of seventeen years;
"law officer" has the meaning assigned thereto in the Criminal Code;
"law of a State" means any written law in force in a State which is not a Federal law;
"legal guardian" in relation to an infant, child, young person, or juvenile offender, means a person appointed, according to law, to be his guardian by deed or will, or by order of a court of competent jurisdiction;
"magistrate" means a magistrate appointed in accordance with the law of a State;
"magistrate's court" means a magistrate's court established under the law of a State;
"offence" means an offence against any enactment in force in, a State;
"officer in charge of a police station" includes, when the officer in charge of the police station is absent from the station building or unable for any reason to perform his duties, the police officer present at the station building who is next in seniority to, or who in the absence of such officer in charge performs the duty of, such officer;
"open court" means any room or place in which any court shall be sitting to hear and determine any matters within its jurisdiction and to which room or place the public may have access so far as the same can conveniently contain them;
"order" includes any conviction in respect of a summary conviction offence;
"penalty" includes any pecuniary fine, forfeiture, costs, or compensation recoverable or payable under an order;
"place of safety" includes any suitable place, the occupier of which is willing temporarily to receive an infant, child, or young person;
"police officer" includes any member of the police force established by the Police Act;
"preliminary inquiry" means an investigation of a criminal charge held by a magistrate's court with a view to the committal of an accused person for trial before the High Court;
"prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under the authority of this Act;
"registrar" includes the Chief Registrar and a registrar of the High Court and of a magistrate's court;
"rules" or "the rules" means rules of court relating to the practice and procedure of the High Court or of the magistrates' courts in the exercise of their criminal jurisdiction;
"sentenced to imprisonment" shall include cases where imprisonment is imposed by a court on any person either with or without the option of a fine, or in respect of the non-payment of any sum of money, or for failing to do or abstaining from doing any act or thing required to be done or left undone, and the expression "sentence of imprisonment" shall be construed accordingly;
"sheriff" means a sheriff within the meaning of the Sheriffs and Civil Process Act and includes a deputy sheriff and any person authorised by the sheriff or a deputy sheriff to execute process of a court;
"summary conviction offence" means any offence punishable by a magistrate's court on summary conviction, and includes any matter in respect of which a magistrate's court can make an order in the exercise of its summary jurisdiction;
"summary court" means unless the same is expressly or by necessary implication qualified-
(a) a Judge of the High Court when sitting in court and presiding over a summary trial, and