By: Haddy Touray
The High Court in Banjul on Tuesday overruled the State’s objection to the admissibility of an audio recording of a conversation between Mama Jabbi and Ousainou Bojang, along with its English transcription, and admitted both into evidence.
Justice Jaiteh delivered the ruling after Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) A.M. Yusuf objected to the tendering of a flash drive containing the audio, arguing that the accompanying certificate of computer-generated evidence did not meet the requirements of Section 22 of the Evidence Act, 1994.
Defence Counsel A. Sillah, relying on Section 3 of the Act, had applied for the admission of the flash drive and the transcription, insisting that the evidence was relevant and did not fall under the category of material requiring certification.
In his ruling, Justice Jaiteh clarified the scope of “computer-generated evidence” under Section 22, noting that the provision applies to information produced by computational processes such as calculations, comparisons, algorithmic derivations or analytical outputs.
He held that “not all materials that pass through or are stored in a computer constitute computer-generated evidence,” adding that mere storage of a recording on a flash drive does not transform it into material requiring a Section 22 certificate.
Applying this interpretation, Justice Jaiteh stated that the disputed audio was not an algorithmic or computational product but a simple recording later transcribed into English through human effort. He stressed that “the law does not elevate form above substance,” and that the probative value lies in the content and accuracy of the transcription rather than in the certificate attached to it.
The judge described the State’s objection as “purely technical” and ruled that the alleged non-compliance had no bearing on the admissibility of the evidence. He concluded that the flash drive and transcription were relevant under Section 3 of the Evidence Act and ordered their admission as Exhibit D38.
Justice Jaiteh said the weight and credibility of the evidence would be determined in the course of the proceedings.
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By: Haddy Touray The High Court in Banjul on Tuesday overruled the State’s objection to the admissibility of an audio…
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