Sad Story of Sunday Jackson who was sentenced to death for disarming and killing a herdsman in Adamawa

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Mr. Sunday Jackson, a 29-year-old farmer and student from Dong Community, Demsa LGA, Adamawa State, was condemned to death by hanging for defending himself against a violent herdsman attack in a case that has rocked the country’s confidence in its legal system.

According to court documents, a Fulani herdsman named Buba Ardo Bawuro allegedly brought his cattle into Jackson’s acreage in 2015 in Kodomti Community, Numan LGA, so they could graze on his crops.

Bawuro allegedly attacked Jackson with a knife and stabbed him twice when he objected. Jackson overpowered his attacker, disarmed him, then stabbed him in self-defense despite his wounds. Later, Bawuro’s injuries claimed his life.

Jackson was accused by the police of culpable homicide, which carries a death sentence under Section 211 of the Penal Code. He claimed self-defense, but a Yola High Court found him guilty and sentenced him to death by hanging.

On March 7, 2025, the Supreme Court upheld the lower court’s decision after dismissing his pleas to the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court.

The decision has been denounced by legal experts and human rights organizations as a “dangerous precedent” that jeopardizes the right to self-defense and exposes structural inequality and insufficient legal representation in Nigeria’s judicial system.

According to Funke Adeoye, the founder of Hope Behind Bars Africa, which offered Jackson legal assistance, one of the judges first rejected the allegations, but Jackson was finally found guilty based on a confessional statement that was written without legal representation—a blatant breach of due process.

The level of public indignation has kept rising. More than 56,999 people have signed a Change.org petition demanding a presidential pardon, indicating growing public pressure on authorities to reexamine the case.

Sunday Jackson’s destiny is now in jeopardy as voices rise against what many see to be a miscarriage of justice; this serves as a sobering reminder of the serious problems with Nigeria’s legal system and the mounting demand for reform.

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