Kuwait Court Acquits Kuwaiti Convicted of Assaulting Home Delivery Worker

KUWAIT CITY, Jun 23: The Court of Appeals has overturned a lower court ruling that sentenced a Kuwaiti citizen to three months in prison with hard labor after convicting him of assaulting a delivery worker. The appeals court acquitted the defendant, citing insufficient evidence and doubts over the procedures used to identify him.

In its ruling, the court affirmed its authority to re-examine the case, review the evidence, and assess whether the conviction was supported by sufficient and convincing proof. It stressed that criminal convictions must be based on certainty, and that any doubt must be interpreted in favor of the accused.

The court noted that the original judgment relied on the investigation’s finding that the victim had identified the defendant from a photograph. However, the case file did not contain evidence that the photograph had been attached to the investigation report, making it impossible to verify the validity of the identification procedure.

Lawyer Hamad Al-Roumi, who represented the defendant, said the ruling reinforces a fundamental principle of criminal justice: that no person may be convicted unless the evidence is complete, conclusive, and free of doubt.

Al-Roumi added that the appeals court found the evidence insufficient to prove the charge against his client. He also pointed out that the investigations did not include questioning the accused, confronting him with the victim, or presenting his personal photograph in a verifiable manner.