This archive report was first published on 13 January 2020.
On January 13, 2020, a court in Kenya made a significant ruling in the case of Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria, who was accused of assaulting a woman in December 2019.
The woman, Joyce Wanja, claimed that the MP beat her up at Royal Media studios when they met to discuss the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI).
Chief Magistrate Martha Mutuku denied the MP anticipatory bail, stating that the charges levelled against him were properly before the court.
The MP's lawyers had expressed fears that he could be rearrested, but the magistrate said that those issues would be tackled by a different court.
Ms Mutuku also said that the MP, who was to plead to the assault charge on Monday, would do so on Tuesday.
The MP's lawyers had requested the court to defer the plea-taking until their concerns were addressed, which included disobedience of the order for his release and harassment of those who camped outside Kilimani Police Station.
However, the magistrate said that those issues would be dealt with by a different court, and that the MP would not suffer any prejudice if he took the plea.
