A High Court judge took a scheduled hearing of Katanga murder case into his chambers Thursday - and locked out journalists.
Judge Isaac Muwata was hearing several cases before his open criminal court in Kampala but singled out Ms Molly Katanga's application for additional documents in pre-trial hearing for in-camera in his chambers.
"I will handle your case from the chambers. It's a pre-hearing and there are people here in court, they will not understand this," the judge said, implying journalists.
Ms Molly Katanga is charged with the murder of her husband Henry Katanga, who was found dead in their marital bedroom in November last year.
The much publicised trial has, however, hit the wrong octanes time and again, with Judge Muwata at the centre of sensational denial of bail to Ms Katanga on two occasions.
Ms Katanga, who is jointly charged with her daughters Patricia Kakwanzi and Martha Nkwanzi, has been chasing for pre-trial documents and evidence from the prosecution since March without success.
The court had set Thursday, June 27, to hear application from the accused persons and having already felt hard-done by Judge Muwata's bail two past bail rulings, the in-camera decision that saw journalists blocked from accessing the chambers raises serious concerns about the openness of the trial and the fairness of the process.
The judge only allowed the prosecution and the defence lawyers into his chambers with both parties emerging from the pre-trail date with the judge two hours later, tightlipped to their noses.
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Efforts to poke the registrar, the prosecution team or defence lawyers for what had transpired behind the closed doors were futile as none was willing to say a thing.
Judge Muwata is understood to be growing frustrated with media coverage of the Katanga murder case with intense scrutiny placed on his every decision along the way.
However, the impromptu decision to call for in-camera hearing on Thursday will not have helped his gavel any better since it left many questions weighing down the scale of justice.
There was, on the face of it, nothing confidential about the application for documents. Mrs Katanga had made a detailed application about pre-trial disclosure of evidence, claiming that she was being denied critical pieces of evidence.
It was not immediately clear if the defence got the documents they requested for or whether the prosecution opposed the application, let alone if the judge made any orders.
In a high-profile murder case such as the Katanga murder trial, the public is deeply invested and would be eager to learn every development in the judicial process.
But the pre-trial hearing in-camera has cast a shadow of doubt about its openness and fairness.
The date for the start hearing of Criminal Case No. 043 of 2023 also remains unknown to the public.
Ms Katanga is being represented in the criminal case by Kampala Associated Advocates and Tumusiime, Kabega & Co. Advocates.
