Nairobi — The Supreme Court has upheld mandatory minimum sentences under Sexual Offences Act, rejecting the Court of Appeal's view that it impedes judicial discretion.
This is in a case where the appellate court had earlier scaled down the sentence for Joshua Gichuki Mwangi, man accused of defiling a 15 year old minor.
In its ruling, the apex court faulted the decision by the Court of Appeal and ordered Mwangi to serve the remainder of his prison sentence.
A five judge bench at the apex court ruled that the Court of Appeal acted in contravention of the law by assuming original jurisdiction on constitutional matters not raised at the High Court.
It stated that the appellate court violated the principle of stare decisis (a legal principle of determining points in litigation according to precedent) in scaling down the sentence for the accused person by revising the 20 years sentence to 15 years.
"The Respondent who had been released should serve the remainder of his sentence from the date of conviction by the trial court, "ruled the court.
Mwangi was originally charged in March 2011 with defilement.
The charges stemmed from an incident on March 8, 2011, in Mathira West District, where Mwangi was accused of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old girl.
He would be found guilty by a Karatina court and condemned to 20 years in prison.
This conviction was upheld by the High Court, but the Court of Appeal later reduced his sentence to 15 years.
The Directorate of Public Prosecutions (DPP) appealed the Court of Appeal's decision, arguing that the appellate court had overstepped its jurisdiction and violated several legal principles, including the principle of stare decisis and the separation of powers doctrine.
The DPP sought to reinstate the original 20-year sentence, asserting that mandatory minimum sentences under the Sexual Offences Act are constitutional and do not infringe upon judicial discretion.
About The Author
