KENYA: DEATH PENALTY OVERTURNED FOR TWO ROBBERY CONVICTS

April 4, 2012: In Kenya, the sentence of two men twice convicted of violent robbery has been overturned by the High Court.
But Pius Kibwayi and Daniel Kiriambei, who were sentenced to death for violently robbing a couple of their mobile phones two years ago, will not be set free but will be tried afresh.
Justices Muga Apondi and James Makau ruled that it was wrong for the magistrate to impose the death sentence twice on each of the men.
Kibwayi and Kiriambei should only have been sentenced on one count of violent robbery and the second count left in abeyance.
“Where there is more than one count attracting the death penalty on conviction, the trial court shall sentence the accused to death once and keep the other sentences in abeyance,” said Justice Apondi.
The two men will now be tried by a different magistrate because there seems to be substantial evidence against them.
The two had appealed against a decision by a magistrate in Tigania to sentence them to death after convicting them of violently robbing a couple of their mobile phones on November 21, 2009 at Kathithini market in Tigania East District.
The judges also ruled that there was a mistrial because the proceedings were conducted in Kiswahili and were never translated into Kimeru for the benefit of the two.
When the two first appeared in court on November 26, 2009 the charges were read out and explained to them in Kimeru, the language which they understood. (Sources: nation.co.ke, 04/04/2012)