EthioBlog

Ethiopia - Final Teddy verdict in 15 days

By Muluken Yewondwossen

Late last Friday afternoon, the Appeal Court of Cassation at the Federal Supreme Court adjourned the case of Tewodros Kassahun, popularly known as Teddy Afro, to June 11, 2009, for a final verdict.

Teddy was jailed on April 16, 2008, for a charge of killing a homeless boy in a car accident and fleeing the scene. When the verdict was reached he was sentenced to six years in prison and fined 18,000 birr by the Federal High Court 8th Criminal Bench in December, 2008.

The appeal judge, Justice Dagne Melaku, at the Federal Supreme Court announced the court sustained the guilty verdict, but reduced the sentence, adjudicating that the deceased had a role in the accident that cost him his life. Because of this, the court cut the original sentence to two years and the fine to 11,000 birr in February this year.
The decision was based on the finding that the deceased was unconscious due to alcohol consumption and was sleeping in the middle of the road when the accident occurred. Due to a lack of lighting, the court reasoned it would be almost impossible for a driver to spot a person at night


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