An Accra High Court has sentenced Effort Dankwa, a former teacher, to 39 years imprisonment for attempted murder.
The convict shot his seven-month-pregnant wife, Benita Dankwa, in her sleep sometime in August 2015.
She survived the mysterious shooting, but the attack left her paralysed from her waist down and incapable of passing urine or faecal matter the natural way.
Her baby was also delivered prematurely via caesarean section.
In a judgement delivered on Tuesday, March 14, Justice Mary M. E. Yanzuh noted that the crime was grave, and the punishment should be severe enough to deter men who nurse such evil against their spouses.
The judge mentioned that the offence was a first-degree felony and that punishment could range from life imprisonment to a lesser sentence.
She quickly added that though the court had the discretion to sentence, that discretion must be fair and judicial.
In arriving at her sentence, the judge said she took into account that the accused said he did not own a pistol, making the crime a premeditated one.
Also, the convict had no regard for the innocent unborn child when he shot his seven-month pregnant wife.
Justice Yanzuh further said she considered the degree of harm caused to the victim, who had lost her ability to pass urine and empty her bowels.
The parents of Benita Dankwa, who were in court to hear the sentence, told The Fourth Estate that the punishment was deterrent enough.
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