Supreme Court quashes 2020 arrest warrant against Kelvin Taylor

Ghana’s Supreme Court has overturned a long-standing arrest warrant for US-based Ghanaian social commentator Kevin Ekow Taylor, citing a violation of his fundamental rights.

In a majority decision delivered on Tuesday, July 22, 2025, four out of five justices agreed that the warrant—issued over five years ago—was granted without affording Taylor the opportunity to defend himself, breaching the principles of natural justice.

The panel, led by Justice Issifu Omoro Tanko Amadu and supported by Justices Senyo Dzamefe, Gbiel Simon Suurbaareh, and Philip Bright Mensah, ruled in favour of quashing the bench warrant. Justice Ernest Yao Gaewu dissented.

The warrant stemmed from a contempt case initiated in January 2020 by Justice Eric Kyei Baffour, then a High Court judge, following a Facebook video in which Taylor criticized the judge’s handling of a high-profile embezzlement case involving officials of the National Communications Authority (NCA). Taylor had alleged that Justice Kyei Baffour’s promotion to the Court of Appeal was politically motivated and linked to his role in the trial.

In response to the video, Justice Kyei Baffour described Taylor’s comments as an attack on judicial integrity and issued a warrant directing police and security agencies to arrest Taylor and bring him before the court to explain why he should not be jailed for contempt. Although Taylor was never arrested, the warrant remained active until the Supreme Court's ruling this week.

The judgment marks the end of a five-year legal impasse and underscores the importance of due process and the right to be heard, even in contempt matters involving the judiciary.