Setting the Amount of Bail under Ethiopian Federal Courts: A Case Study in Federal first Instance Court
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Date
2023-06
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AAU
Abstract
This study focuses on the determination o f the amount o f bail. To date amount o f bail has been
determined by the discretion o f judges. The right to bail is recognized under International
Human Rights Instruments to which Ethiopia is a member, propagates the application and
determination o f bail should be similar for similar cases. The amount o f bail fixed has an effect
on the attendance and non-attendance o f the suspect before court o f law. The study used both a
mixed approach o f qualitative and quantitative research approach in which case observations,
interviews and court case analyses were employed. Interviewees o f the senior Judges,
prosecutors and Advocates with the recommendation o f their respective institutions were used.
The benches in Federal First Instance courts were selected on purposive sampling because they
are largest in terms o f the number o f criminal cases brought to them. The case files from the
selected benches were taken on random sampling technique. Among the factors that judges take
in to account in determining the amount o f bail in Federal First Instance Court are the income
and conditions o f the accused, the gravity o f the crime, the counts o f the crime. Decisions on the
amount o f bail for suspect/accused at Federal First Instance Court are neither predictable nor
consistent as the study has found out. Judges do not give the similar weight for factors that are
necessary to be considered in bail decision. They appreciate the factors that are used for
determining bail amount differently and some decisions lack clarity which has resulted in
differences in the decisions. Hence, the decisions on the quantum o f bail are not uniform
depending on the conditions in which the suspects are in. Since there is no sufficient law or
directive as to what amount to decide on bail, The current inconsistency and non-uniformity in
the application o f bail right can be cured via bail schedule containing the highest and the
lowest amount and discretion o f judges within it so that it ensures the very purposes o f bail. In
addition the gap observed in the inconsistency of decisions requires training o f judges on bail
law. In doing so, Federal First Instance Courts management shall create conducive conditions
for training ofjudges on bail amount fixation.
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Keywords
Setting the Amount of Bail under, Ethiopian Federal Courts, Case Study