A Travesty of Justice: Non-Compliance with the Automatic Review Mechanism for Sentences in Malawi

Abstract Section 15 of the Criminal Procedure and Evidence Code provides a fascinating automatic review mechanism. It requires the automatic review of sentences which exceed certain thresholds by the High Court and prohibits the continued detention of prisoners once the period of automatic review has lapsed. Due to delays in the review process, most sentences that are subject to automatic review are not reviewed timeously. However, the Malawi Prison Service does not release the offenders concerned as required by law, resulting in the unlawful detention of offenders whose sentences have technically expired. The Judiciary also fails to rectify this problem by reviewing sentences outside the automatic review period. This article examines the proper interpretation of section 15 and its consequences for the revisionary powers of the High Court with a view to highlight the incorrectness of the current approach.