The Supreme Court has awarded GH¢800,000 in compensation to Yaw Appiah, a bar owner who was wrongfully convicted and spent nearly 19 years in prison for robbery, in a landmark ruling on miscarriage of justice.
The apex court, presided over by Justice Avril Lovelace-Johnson, according to a Joynews report delivered the decision on February 10, 2026. The five-member panel, which included Justice Prof. Henrietta Mensa-Bonsu, Justice Samuel Asiedu, Justice Yaw Darko Asare, and Justice Kweku Tawiah Ackaah-Boafo, found that Appiah had suffered a serious miscarriage of justice.
Yaw Appiah, who operated a drinking bar, was arrested in 2006 at the age of 29 and spent five years on remand before his conviction in 2011. He was sentenced to 45 years in prison for robbery and served about 19 years at the Nsawam Prison.
In March 2025, the Court of Appeal acquitted and discharged him, describing the conviction as a “tragedy.” His acquittal paved the way for a formal application for compensation at the Supreme Court.
Appiah’s lawyers, Augustine Obour and Claudia Coleman, filed the application under Article 14(5) and (7) of the 1992 Constitution, initially seeking GH¢2,020,800. The State, represented by Principal State Attorney Nana Adoma Osei, proposed a much lower amount of between GH¢75,000 and GH¢100,000.
After reviewing submissions from both sides and drawing guidance from the Dodzi Sabbah case, the Supreme Court settled on GH¢800,000 as appropriate compensation.
The ruling is grounded in Article 14 of the 1992 Constitution, which entitles individuals who are unlawfully arrested or detained to compensation. Article 14(7) specifically empowers the Supreme Court to award compensation when an appellate court or the apex court itself overturns a conviction.
