Report of Review of the Anambra State Administration of Criminal Justice Law

In 2018, eight years after passage of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL) of Anambra, NOPRIN reviewed the implementation by the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) of the ACJL with a view of determining how far the reforms introduced by the Anambra State Government have changed the landscape of criminal justice administration. Specifically, NOPRIN set out to review the implementation by NPF of aspects of the Anambra ACJL that directly impacted on NPF role during the pre-trial phase. The review was designed to identify gaps, acknowledge successes and recognize opportunities for improvement. To facilitate the review, NOPRIN designed survey and questionnaire templates and recruited, trained and deployed field staff who administered the questionnaires.

Under the supervision of NOPRIN, the field staff collected, verified, and collated data that was translated into this report. The data told the implementation story by eliciting evidence of police adherence to the principles set out in the law with respect to (i) arrest (ii) search and seizure (iii) pre-trial detention, and (iv) safeguards against torture. The ultimate objective of the project was to offer credible basis for a conversation about enhancing NPF capacity to implement the Anambra ACJL and by extension, the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015, which is a similar federal law with specific role for the police.

The targeted population for the research was drawn from among (i)Personnel of the Nigeria Police in Anambra State (ii) Magistrates in Anambra State (iii) Lawyers, and (iv) members of the public.