City court convicts two teachers for negligence
The teachers of Acorn International School in Court. Monitor photo
KAMPALA- City Hall Court yesterday held that the two teachers of Acorn International School acted in negligent manner when a toddler under their care was left to wander and drown in the school swimming pool.
Magistrate Moses Nabende convicted teachers Deborah Akado and Florence Awor for being “criminally liable” for the death of two-year-old Sunshine Mitchell Baraza, a pupil of the school in 2012.
“These two teachers of the deceased toddler until today [Wednesday] have never offered us any sufficient explanation on how that child left their presence to drown in a pool,” magistrate Nabende held.
“Though the duo denied doing a negligent act, they admitted having been teachers to the toddler.
Letting a child go to the swimming pool unsupervised is a sign that her death was caused by rush and negligence.”
They convicts were charged alongside Mr Hassan Wagogo, a physical education teacher, and Ms Edith Nsasira of top class whom court acquitted as the prosecution evidence was not directly linking them to the offence.
In his testimony, Mr Wagogo pinned the crime on the duo: “Upon hearing from some teachers that some toddler had been seen near the pool area, I rushed to baby class to ask Akado if any child was missing in class. Her response was that she did not know of any child missing in class.”
The failed rescue
However, when he approached the pool area, he saw Baraza single-handedly fighting for breath. He then dived into the water and retrieved her body from the water before giving her first aid.
“This testimony shows that Akado and her assistant Awor never acted responsibly. Evidence from the eight witnesses also proved that the duo were solely entrusted with the duty of taking care of Baraza by the school administration,” Mr Nabende said.
The defence lawyers earlier reasoned that the school should as well be held liable for the offence. However, the magistrate explained that there is no way court can link the school to the offences since the Director of Public Prosecution in his wisdom withdrew the charges against it.
Prosecution stated that on September 3, 2012, at Acorn International School in Bukoto, Kampala suburb, the convicts in a manner so negligent, caused the death of Baraza, when they carelessly left her to go to the swimming pool, unsupervised.
Dr Sam Karungi, a pathologist from Mulago National Referral Hospital said he carried out some tests on the body of the toddler and they all showed that no proper first aid was given to her. She died due to lack of oxygen.
“At the time I examined her body on September 3, 2012, a lot of blood was flowing out of her heart. Though she had some bruises on the back, her body was well-nourished, a sign that she was not suffering from any other illness,” Dr Karungi said in his testimony.
The postmortem report indicates that Baby Sunshine might have been in the swimming pool for half an hour before she was removed. Court records show that the pool in question lacked protective barriers that could stop a child from falling into it. At the time of the tragedy, it was not operational though ready for use.
The teachers will be sentenced today in the presence of their lawyers.
