• Canvasses state-funded post-mortem fee in homicide cases
• Says costs of autopsies undermine prosecution

The Ondo State Attorney-General (AG) and Commissioner for Justice, Dr Olukayode Ajulo (SAN), has called for an end to the practice of requiring families of homicide victims to bear the cost of autopsies and other medical examinations needed for criminal investigations.

Ajulo said that bereaved families should not be made to shoulder the financial burden of establishing the cause of death where a person has died under suspicious, unnatural, or potentially criminal circumstances.

According to him, where a death is being investigated as homicide, an autopsy is a necessary component of the investigation and should not depend on the family’s ability to pay.

He said that the procedure is an important investigative process for establishing the cause and circumstances of death and obtaining evidence that may be crucial to prosecution.

The attorney-general said his position is consistent with the philosophy and objectives of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) and the applicable Administration of Criminal Justice Law (ACJL), which seek to promote an efficient, humane, and victim-sensitive criminal justice system while safeguarding the rights of accused persons.

“It is the responsibility of the relevant government and investigative authorities to ensure that the examination is conducted promptly and the medical report made available to investigators and prosecuting counsel. A citizen, who has suffered a crime, should not be required to purchase justice before the state will investigate that crime,” Ajulo said.

He noted that the absence of an autopsy or other medical evidence had, in some cases, created difficulties in the prosecution of homicide offences, saying that prosecuting counsel may diligently present a case only to encounter an evidentiary gap because the necessary examination was not conducted or the report was unavailable.

The commissioner said the responsibility for investigating suspected criminal conduct should not be transferred to bereaved families, stressing that financial circumstances must not determine whether essential medico-legal evidence is obtained.

Ajulo, therefore, called for closer coordination among the police, medical practitioners, the judiciary, and other relevant institutions to ensure that autopsies in suspected homicide cases are conducted promptly.

He also called for clear procedures covering the preservation of evidence, post-mortem examinations, and the transmission of medical reports to investigators and prosecuting counsel.

The attorney-general said the measure forms part of the broader reform of criminal justice administration contemplated by the ACJA and corresponding state legislation, noting that modern criminal justice must recognise not only the rights of defendants but also the dignity and legitimate interests of victims and their families.