Most prosecutors this year took to court serious and good cases that could be handled with respect up to the end but some suspects turned it nasty, confusing and complex when it was their turn to speak.
Some complainants also turned out to be rude, combative and abusive, making the legal process tiresome and to lack direction.
For instance, some of the suspects brought to court were mentally ill or drunk to a point they couldn’t stand trial.
In other cases, the complainants and suspects shouted and raised their hands to the surprise of the magistrates, advocates, clerks and other court attendants. Some actually almost fought in the courtroom.
TOO DRUNK
In August, some suspects were brought to a Kibera law court too drunkard to even walk.
Some had even peed on themselves.
“I am the pastor here and I am in this court to heal my colleague, help me with the Bible,” one drunk suspect said as he tried to wake his colleague up, who was dead asleep in the court premises.
The prison department denied being behind the availability of the drunk suspects in court.
RAILA LOOK-ALIKE
Another criminal case that turned out to be a joke was one involving a woman charged with manslaughter in Kibera.
Everyone was shocked when Sevelina Mwikali admitted to the court that she was behind the death of her baby and when asked by why she committed the offence, she said she was disappointed as the baby looked like opposition chief Raila Odinga.
Mwihaki had been accused of causing the death of her baby while at her employer’s place in Riverside in Nairobi on February 19.
Kibera senior resident magistrate Jane Kamau denied her bond and ordered a mental assessment before she could enter a plea.
The prosecution said she was a frequent bhang user, who even smoked during pregnancy and after giving birth.
The prosecution said after killing her daughter, Mwikali hid her for some time before the neighbours noticed the girl was missing and reported to Kilimani police station.
Mwikali said she was financially unstable and wanted the court to help her get some cash. She said their home was in Nyeri and asked why her case was taking so long.
STEALING TISSUE PAPER
Another funny case in Kibera involved a man who was charged with stealing tissue paper from Strathmore University.
The suspect admitted the accusation.
Benard Kibet was charged with stealing the rolls of toilet paper valued at Sh300 on August 29.
Kibet was arrested and charged after Strathmore through the security controller Christian Angwenyi made the complaint to the police.
Appearing before chief magistrate Joyce Gandani, Kibet admitted to committing the offence.
In his defense, he said he was not aware that it was a crime to take the toilet paper.
He was fined Sh5000 or a jail term of one month.
ABUSIVE
Other suspects misbehaved in court, sometimes became abusive.
For instance, a case in which a man is accused of stealing a gun from his employer in Karen turned abusive after the accused asked why he was blamed for the offense.
Complainant Francis Njoroge angrily roared at Samuel Mwangi, dismissing his greetings with insults, prompting the presiding magistrate to call for order.
Njoroge blamed Mwangi for his tribulations with the authorities over the alleged stolen gun.
“Stop playing around with my mind. I was given this machine even before your mother was born. That is a stupid question without an answer!” Njoroge responded when asked to confirm that Mwangi was the thief.
Njoroge said he woke up early on March 24 last year and left for work. At around 9 am, the house help called informing him that all the houses in his compound had been broken into and some items were stolen.
“I hurriedly left to go check and found my house and the servants quarter all broken into. My pistol, clothes and other items were missing,” he told the court.
“I proceeded to Hardy police station and reported the matter. I informed the police that the main suspect would be the accused, Mwangi, who worked as my gardener.”
Police launched an investigation in which Mwangi was implicated in the theft.
He was arrested in Narok and charged on November 18, 2018, with stealing items valued at Sh310,000.
Mwangi denied the charges before Kibera senior principal magistrate Barbara Ojoo and was granted Sh100,000 cash bail.
LOVE MAKING IN THE PARK
In Milimani court, a man was charged in May for having sex at Uhuru Park in Nairobi.
Kinara Maina pleaded guilty before chief magistrate Joseline Onga’yo.
Maina was having sex with a girl identified as Wanjiku who went missing. He was sentenced to one month in jail or he pays a fine of Sh15,000.
In Makadara, a 27-year-old man was charged with kissing a 7-year-old girl’s private parts in his house ‘accidentally’.
Alphonse Musoni was accused of unlawfully and intentionally committing the act on November 9, 2019, in Kayole Estate, Nairobi.
Musoni is said to have called the minor while returning from a shop to see his young baby who was sleeping in the house.
He later requested the minor to sleep on his bed where he allegedly undressed her before he committed the act.
The minor did not tell her parents and only mentioned it to her friends a few days later. The friends then informed her parents.
The suspect denied the charges before chief magistrate Heston Nyaga, and said he is not aware of the reason for his arrest.
Lastly, a case involving a man and his wife was dismissed at a Kibera court after the man waved and smiled to his wife who responded positively with a smile.
The magistrate noted and acquitted him and advised him to go home and solve the matter with the wife.
“You people are just wasting our time. Go home and solve your case,” the magistrate said.