This archive report was first published on 17 July 2019.
On July 17, 2019, a suspect in the high-profile murder case of lawyer Willie Kimani and his client Josephat Mwendwa made an unusual request to the court.
Peter Ngugi, one of the five accused, asked Judge Jessie Lessit to allocate him a male advocate, citing dissatisfaction with the services of his current lawyer, Neilias Kinyori.
Ngugi's request was met with opposition from State counsel Nicholus Mutuku and the victims' lawyer, who argued that the accused should accept any lawyer allocated by the State.
However, Judge Lessit ruled that the issue of changing advocates is a constitutional right, allowing Ngugi to pursue his request.
The case was delayed due to the absence of lawyer Cliff Ombeta, who was representing four other suspects. Ombeta's representative, Lawyer Samson Nyamberi, informed the court that Ombeta was unwell and had been advised to take three days of bed rest.
