Supreme Court Acquits Former Chief Justice and Three Family Members

MONROVIA – The Supreme Court of Liberia has acquitted former Chief Justice Gloria Musu Scott and three members of her family, overturning the guilty verdict handed down by a lower court in the case involving the murder of Charloe Musu, the niece of the former Chief Justice. This high-profile case, which garnered public attention, was initially ruled upon by a jury in Criminal Court ‘A’. The jury found Scott and her co-defendants guilty of allegedly using a kitchen knife to fatally stab Charloe Musu at their Brewerville residence in early February 2023.

Following the jury’s unanimous guilty verdict, Judge Roosevelt Willie swiftly sentenced the defendants to life imprisonment. However, the defense challenged the ruling and appealed to the Supreme Court, leading to a contentious legal battle that culminated in today’s acquittal.

In reading the opinion of the court, Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene G. Yuoh stated that the killing of Charloe Musu remains controversial. The critical question that determined the case was whether or not the state proved beyond a reasonable doubt that the defendants conspired to kill the deceased. The record shows that the state failed miserably to prove their case or link any of the defendants to the crimes individually.

During the Supreme Court hearings, which took place on July 16, 2024, the prosecution’s case, led by Cllr. Bobby Livingstone, was primarily based on circumstantial evidence. Livingstone admitted that the state’s case lacked direct evidence, relying instead on the inference that the defendants were guilty because they failed to identify the actual perpetrator. Despite nearly three hours of argument, the justices expressed significant concerns about the validity of the circumstantial evidence presented.

Chief Justice Sie-A-Nyene Yuoh and Associate Justice Jamesetta Howard Wolokolie rigorously questioned the prosecution on critical aspects of the case, including the plausibility of all the defendants having simultaneously committed the crime and the lack of clear identification of the weapons used. The prosecution’s inability to provide concrete answers to these questions and the absence of definitive forensic evidence, such as a conclusive DNA analysis, led to the justices’ doubts about the defendants’ guilt.

When the case was called for judgment, the state was absent without any excuse. As a result, the Solicitor General (SG) was personally fined US$100, and the Ministry of Justice (MOJ) was fined US$200, both of which must be paid within 72 hours.

The Supreme Court was filled to capacity with members of the public eager to hear the final verdict. Among those in attendance were several members of the Legislature, including Gbe-blo Brown of Maryland County, Boto Kanneh of Gbarpolu County, former Senator Cummings Wesseh, and Josephine Francis, the former representative of Montserrado County District One.

Representing the defense, impeached Associate Justice Kabineh Ja’neh argued that the state failed to establish a strong prima facie case, emphasizing the absence of eyewitnesses and highlighting inconsistencies in the forensic evidence. He also questioned the expertise of the government’s pathologist. These arguments ultimately convinced the Supreme Court that the life sentences imposed by the lower court were unwarranted, leading to the acquittal of all defendants.