Nigerian lawyer and human rights activist Femi Falana has recalled how his first case as a young lawyer in 1982 nearly led to his arrest after he secured the release of 12 students.
Speaking in an exclusive interview with TheLagacySeries, Falana detailed the events that followed his call to the bar.
He became a lawyer in 1982 and, during his National Youth Service, took on his first matter involving students charged with attempted murder of their vice chancellor.
He went to court and successfully secured the freedom of all 12 accused students. However, the state, as he described it, was displeased with the outcome.
The judge who delivered the ruling had his case file seized for allegedly embarrassing the government and the police.
The judgment had declared the students’ detention illegal and unconstitutional, prompting a strong reaction from authorities.
Falana disclosed that he was subsequently marked for arrest, forcing him to take evasive action. He stated that he chose to run, but legally, navigating the situation to avoid detention while remaining within the bounds of the law.
His words: “I became a lawyer in 1982. During my youth service, the first case I handled, I ran into trouble. Some students were charged with attempted murder of their vice chancellor. Twelve students. I went to court. I was able to have them freed. The state, the neo-colonial state, didn’t like it. I was going to be arrested in Ibadan. So I ran, but legally. The file of the judge that decided the case was seized for embarrassing the government, for embarrassing the police, for giving a judgment that the detention of the students was illegal and unconstitutional.”
... BREAKING: I Became a Lawyer in 1982. The First Case I Handled, I Ran Into Trouble Freeing 12 Students – Falana ... Sportify Post.