This archive report was first published on 28 July 2020.
On July 28, 2020, the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) issued new guidelines for prosecutors to decide whether to charge suspects in corruption and other criminal cases.
The guidelines outline the thresholds that prosecutors must check to see if the potential case passes the evidence test, the public interest test, or both.
Under the evidence test, prosecutors will have to ascertain the strength of the evidence and only pursue cases with realistic prospects of conviction.
Under the public interest test, they will consider the culpability of the suspect, as well as the impact or harm to the community, the suspect’s age at the time of the offence, and whether prosecution is a proportionate response.
Chief Justice David Maraga said the guidelines provide a basis and gauge against which the legitimacy of decisions taken can be measured.
“The guidelines provide a basis and gauge against which the legitimacy of decisions taken can be measured,” said Mr Maraga.
While noting that the decision to charge is the most significant a prosecutor makes in the handling of criminal cases, DPP Noordin Haji said it entails considerable discretion on the part of the prosecutor and the decision, therefore, must be founded in law.
“It also must serve the public interest, ingrain fair administration of justice, and avoid abuse of the legal process,” he said.
Interior Cabinet Secretary Fred Matiang’i called on the National Police Service to keenly study the guidelines, noting that a working judicial system is vital to the work done by officers in his ministry.
Also launched was the country’s first digital case management system dubbed “Uadilifu”.
The system, which has already been integrated with the judiciary’s e-filing system, promises to eliminate long-standing problems in the justice system, including missing files, delays, lack of accountability, and lack of transparency.
