PART I
GENERAL PROVISIONS

CHAPTER VI
PUNISHMENTS

25. Kinds of punishments

The following punishments may be inflicted by a court–

(a) death ;
(b) imprisonment ;
(c) corporal punishment ;
(d) fine ;
(e) forfeiture ;
(f) payment of compensation ;
(g) finding security to keep the peace and be of good behaviour or to come up for judgment ;
(h) any other punishment provided by this Code or by any other law.

26. Sentence of death Acts Nos. 55 of 1963 6th Sch. ; 31 of 1997 Sch. ; 9 of 2002 Sch.

(1) When a person is sentenced to death, the sentence shall direct that he shall suffer death by hanging :

Provided that, if a woman convicted of an offence punishable with death is alleged to be pregnant, the court shall inquire into the fact and, if it is proved to the satisfaction of the court that she is pregnant the sentence to be passed on her shall be a sentence of imprisonment for life instead of a sentence of death.

(2) The sentence, of death shall not be pronounced on or recorded against any person who at the time of the commission of the offence was under eighteen years of age, but in, lieu of the sentence of death, the court shall sentence that person to be detained during the President's pleasure, and if so sentenced he shall be liable to be detained in such place and under such conditions as the Minister for the time being responsible for legal affair may direct, and whilst so detained shall be deemed to be in legal custody.

(3) When a person has been sentenced to be detained during the President's pleasure under subsection (2), the presiding judge shall forward to the Minister for the time being responsible for legal affairs a copy of the notes of evidence taken at the trial, with a report in writing signed by him containing Such recommendation or observation on the case as he may think fit to make.

(4) The superintendent of a prison or other place in which a person under the age of eighteen years is detained by a direction of the Minister under subsection (2), shall make a report in writing to the Minister of the condition, history and character of such person at the expiration of a period of ten years from the period of the Minister's direction.

(5) Upon receipt and consideration of the report under subsection (4), the Minister may order that a person under the age of eighteen years be discharged or otherwise dealt with on such conditions as to his remaining under the supervision in any place or by any person and to such other conditions for ensuring the safety and welfare of the said person and the public as the Minister shall think fit.

27. Imprisonment

(1) [Omitted by virtue of s. 30 of Cap. 357.]

(2) A person liable to imprisonment may be sentenced to pay a fine in addition to, or instead of, imprisonment, or where the court so determines under the Community Service Act, to community service under a community service order.

28. Corporal punishment Cap.90 Cap.17 Cap.11 6th Sch.

Subject to the provisions of the Minimum Sentences Act, where in this Code it is provided that any person shall be liable to undergo corporal punishment, such punishment shall, if awarded, be inflicted in accordance with the provisions of the Corporal Punishment Act.

29. Fines Act No. 13 of 1972 Sch

Where a fine is imposed under any law, in the absence of express provisions relating to the fine in that law the following provisions shall apply–

(a) where no sum is expressed to which the fine may extend, the amount of the fine which may be imposed is unlimited but shall not be excessive ;

(b) in the case of an offence punishable with a fine or a term of imprisonment, the imposition of a fine or a term of imprisonment shall be a matter for the discretion of the court ;

(c) in the case of an offence punishable with imprisonment as well as a fine in which the Offender is sentenced to a fine with or without imprisonment and in every case of an offence punishable with a fine only in which the offender is sentenced to a fine, the court passing sentence may, in its discretion–
(i) direct by its sentence that in default of payment of the fine the offender shall suffer imprisonment for a certain term, which imprisonment shall be in addition to any other imprisonment to which he
may have been sentenced or to which he may be liable under a commutation of sentence ; and
(ii) issue a warrant for the levy of the amount on the immovable and movable property of the offender
by distress and sale under warrant :

Provided that if the sentence directs that in default of payment of the fine the offender shall be imprisoned, and if such offender has undergone the whole of such imprisonment in default, no court shall issue a distress warrant unless for special reasons to be recorded in writing it considers it necessary to do so ;

(d) the term of imprisonment ordered by a court in respect of money adjudged to be paid upon conviction or in respect of the default of a sufficient distress to satisfy any such sum shall be such term as in the opinion of the court will satisfy the justice of the case, but shall not exceed in any case the maximum fixed by the following scale :–

Not exceeding Shs. 5,000/- 14 days
Exceeding Shs. 5,000/- but not exceeding Shs.50,000/= 2 months
Exceeding Shs. 50,000/- but not exceeding Shs.100,000/= 6 months
Exceeding Shs. 100,000/- but not exceeding 500,000/- 12 months
Exceeding shs. 500,000/- 24 months

(e) the imprisonment which is imposed in default of payment of a fine shall terminate when the fine is either paid or levied by process of law.

30. Forfeiture R.L. Cap. 400 s. 15; R.L. Cap. 500 s. 12

When a person is convicted of an offence under section 111 or 112, the court may, in addition to or in lieu of, any penalty which may be imposed, order the forfeiture to the Republic of any property which has passed in connection with the commission of the offence, or if the property cannot be forfeited or cannot be found, of such sum as the court shall assess as the value of the property and Payment of any sum so ordered to be forfeited may be enforced in the same manner and subject to the same incidents as in the case of the payment of a fine.


31. Compensation Cap.20

In accordance with the provisions of section 348 of the Criminal Procedure Act, any person who is convicted of an offence may be adjudged to make compensation to any person injured by his offence and the compensation may be either in addition to or in substitution for any other punishment.

32. Costs

Subject to the limitations imposed by section 345 of the Criminal Procedure Act, a court may order any person convicted of an offence to pay the costs of and incidental to the whole or part of the prosecution.

33. Security for keeping the peace

A person convicted of an offence not punishable with death may, instead of, or in addition to, any punishment to which he is liable, be ordered to enter into his own recognisance, with or without sureties, in such amount as the court thinks fit, requiring him to keep the peace and be of good behaviour for a time to be fixed by the court, and may be ordered to be imprisoned until such recognisance, with sureties, if so directed, is entered into ; but so that the imprisonment for not entering into the recognisance shall not extend for a term longer than one year, and shall not, together with the fixed term of imprisonment, if any, extend for a term longer than the longest term for which he might be sentenced to be imprisoned without fine.

34. Repealed

35. General punishment for offences where penalty not prescribed

When in this Code no punishment is expressly provided for any offence, it shall be punishable with imprisonment for a term not exceeding two years or with a fine or with both.

36. Sentences cumulative unless otherwise ordered

Where a person after conviction for an offence is convicted of another offence, either before sentence is passed upon him under the first conviction or before the expiration of that sentence any sentence, other than a sentence of death or of corporal punishment which is passed upon him under the subsequent conviction shall be executed after the expiration of the former sentence unless the court directs that it shall be executed concurrently with the former sentence or any part of that sentence :

Provided that a court shall not direct that a sentence of imprisonment in default of payment of a fine be executed concurrently with a former sentence under section 29(c)(i) or with any part of that a sentence.

37. Escaped convicts to serve unexpired sentences when recaptured

When sentence is passed under this Code on an escaped convict the sentence, if of death, fine or corporal punishment shall, subject to the provisions of this Code, take effect immediately and, if of imprisonment, shall take effect according to the following rules, that is to say–

(a) if the new sentence is severer than the sentence which the convict was undergoing when he escaped, the new sentence shall take effect immediately and he shall serve any period of imprisonment in respect of his former sentence which remained unexpired at the time of his escape after he has completed serving his new sentence ;
(b) when the new sentence is not severer than the sentence the convict was undergoing when he escaped, the new sentence shall take effect after he has served imprisonment for a further period equal to that part of his former sentence which remained unexpired at the time of his escape.

38. Absolute and conditional discharge Ord. No. 5 of 1961

(1) Where a court by or before which a person is convicted of an offence is of opinion, having regard to the circumstances including the nature of the offence and the character of the offender, that it is inexpedient to inflict punishment and that a probation order is not appropriate, the court may make an order discharging him absolutely or, if the court thinks fit, discharging him subject to the condition that he commits no offence during such period, not exceeding twelve months from the date of the order, as may be specified in the order.

(2) An order discharging a person subject to the condition referred to in subsection (1) is hereinafter referred to as "an order for conditional discharge" and the period specified in any order as "the period of conditional discharge".

(3) Before making an order for conditional discharge the court shall explain to the offender in ordinary language that if he commits another offence during the period of conditional discharge he will be liable to be sentenced for the original offence.

(4) Where an order discharging an offender is made under this section the court may order him to pay any compensation adjudged under section 31 or any costs ordered under section 32 of this Code.

38A. Commission of further offence Ord. No. 5 of 1961 s. 3

(1) If it appears to a judge or a magistrate that a person in respect of whom an order for conditional discharge has been made has been convicted of an offence committed during the period of conditional discharge he may, upon information in writing and on oath, issue a summons requiring that person to appear at the place and time specified therein or may issue a warrant for his arrest ;

(2) A summons or warrant issued under this section shall direct the person so convicted to appear or to be brought before the court by which the order for conditional discharge was made.

(3) Where a person is respect of whom an order for conditional discharge has been made is convicted by a magistrate of an offence committed during the period of conditional discharge, the magistrate may commit him to custody or release him on bail, with or without sureties, until he can be brought or appear before the court by which the order for conditional discharge was made.

(4) Where it is proved to the satisfaction of the court by which the order for conditional discharge was made that the person in respect of whom the order was made has been convicted of an offence committed during the period of conditional discharge, the court may pass any sentence upon him which it could pass if he had just been convicted by that court of the original offence.

(5) Where a person in respect of whom an order for conditional discharge has been made by a magistrate is convicted by the High Court of an offence committed during the period of conditional discharge, the High Court may pass any sentence upon him which the court made the order for conditional discharge could pass as if he had just been convicted by that court of the original offence.
(6) Where under the provisions of this section a person who has been conditionally discharged is sentenced for the offence in respect of which the order for conditional discharge was made, that order shall cease to have effect.

38B. Effect of conviction and discharge

(1) Subject to the provisions of subsection (2), where a person is convicted of an offence and discharged either absolutely or conditionally under the provisions of section 38, his conviction for that offence shall be deemed not to be a conviction for any purpose other than the purposes of the proceedings in which the order is made and of any subsequent proceedings which may be taken against him under the provisions of section 38A :

Provided that where a person who has been conditionally discharged is subsequently sentenced under section 38A for the offence in respect of which the order for conditional discharge was made, this section shall cease to apply in respect of that offence and he shall be deemed to have been convicted on the date of the sentence.

(2) Nothing in this section shall affect–

(a) the right of any person who has been convicted and discharged either absolutely or conditionally to appeal against his conviction or to rely thereon in bar of any subsequent proceedings for the same offence ; or
(b) the revesting or restoration of any property in consequence of the conviction of that person.