Uwera Nsenga loses appeal, to serve 20-year term for murdering husband

COURT|MURDER|CRIME

Jacqueline Uwera Nsenga on Monday left the Court of Appeal dejected after the court dismissed her appeal to have the 20-year jail term imposed on her for the murder of her husband quashed.

Uwera was in September 2014 convicted and sentenced to 20 years imprisonment by High Court judge Duncan Gaswaga.

This was after Gaswaga found her guilty of killing her husband, Juvenal Nsenga, a wealthy city businessman, by running over him with a car on January 10, 2013 at their residence in Bugolobi, Kampala.

Dissatisfied with the judgment, Uwera hired top Kampala lawyer David Mpanga and lodged an appeal at the second highest court in the land in an attempt to regain her freedom.

At about 9:30am, Uwera clad in a kitengi dress arrived at the Court of Appeal aboard a maroon prison van. Uwera, who was visibly in a jovial mood, was led to the courtroom by three prison wardresses. Her relatives and friends were in court in big numbers.

At 11:00am, Court of Appeal assistant registrar Mary Babirye entered the courtroom with the judgment. Uwera walked to the dock hoping to regain freedom. To her dismay, the three justices led by Chief Justice designate Alfonse Owiny-Dollo upheld her conviction and sentence. Other justices on the panel included Elizabeth Musoke and Cheborion Barishaki.

Proved beyond doubt

"Our analysis has shown that the offence for which the appellant was charged was proved against her reasonable doubt.

We, therefore, conclude that any point which was wrongly decided by the trial judge did not occasion a miscarriage of justice," the justices ruled.

Mpanga wanted Uwera's conviction quashed, arguing that it was wrong for the lower court to rely on the deceased's dying declaration to prove that there was intent to murder him.

The justices dismissed Mpanga's arguments, saying the judgment must be read as a whole. Uwera's last chance to regain freedom now lies in the Supreme Court. Mpanga said they would first study the ruling before deciding on the matter.

Uwera ran over Nsenga with a Toyota Mark X car on January 10, 2013 at about 9:45pm when Nsenga came to open the gate to their home. Court was told that the two were sleeping in different bedrooms after a misunderstanding and that Uwera had threatened her husband.

In her defence, Uwera regretted what happened but maintained that it was purely an accident.