In the High Court of Kiribati
Criminal Jurisdiction
Held at Betio
Republic of Kiribati

High Court Criminal Case 20 of 2002

The Republic

vs

Bouatoa Kaokia & Terake Taake

For the Republic: Ms Pole Tebao
For the 1st Accused: Ms Batitea Tekanito
For the 2nd Accused: Mr Aomoro Amten

Date of Hearing: 11 September 2002

SENTENCE

Bouatoa Kaokia: you have been found guilty of manslaughter.

You and Timon, the deceased and Terake Taake got drunk on the morning of last 17 March. You started drinking about eight o’clock in the morning and stopped, you say, between ten and eleven o’clock. You then went to sleep. When you woke up between three and four in the afternoon Timon was in your house making a thorough nuisance of himself to your family. You used force to get him out of the house. If the incident had stopped there I doubt whether you would have been guilty of any offence. A person is entitled to use sufficient force to put another out of the house, but no more force than is sufficient. With Taake’s help you had put Timon out.

You followed him outside and hit him again. You hit him on the forehead. This blow partly dislocated his neck. He crawled away. Within a few minutes the dislocation became full and he died. It was most unfortunate as you had, Ms Tekanito told me and I accept, no intention of causing death.

Manslaughter is a crime which can vary from most serious, nearly murder, to something much less serious. Your case is one of the less serious. Nevertheless it does require a sentence of imprisonment.

You are in your 60’s and for most of your life, since you were injured during the War when only a child, have been partly crippled. You have four grown up children. You do not work and depend for support on an adopted son. You have no previous convictions. You are sentenced to six months’ imprisonment but the sentence will be suspended on your entering into a bond to be of good behaviour for two years.

This means that if in the next two years you do not commit another offence you will not have to go to gaol. If you do commit another offence for which you could be imprisoned you will be liable to go to goal for it and also to serve this six months.

Do you understand?

Do you agree?

Dated the 18th day of September 2002

The Hon Robin Millhouse QC
Chief Justice