Confusion hinders prosecution of street children arrested last week

Nairobi County police Commander Japheth Koome in the past. PHOTO | EVANS HABIL | NATION MEDIA GROUP

What you need to know:

  • The civil division of the High Court maintains that the children’s case should be handled by the City County court since the alleged offence concerns Nairobi City by-laws.
  • Nairobi County Commander Japheth Koome said police in the city have arrested prostitutes, drunks and disorderly people and street families, among others, in ongoing operations.

Thirty street children arrested in a crackdown last week are yet to be charged as the civil division of the High Court and City Hall engage in ping-pong on which court should hear the case.

The civil division of the High Court on Monday maintained that the children’s case should be handled by the City County court since the alleged offence concerns Nairobi City by-laws.

However, the county court insists that the case should be handled at the Milimani Law Courts.

Ironically, this happened on a day Chief Justice David Maraga launched Children’s Service Week to focus on cases involving children.

The children spent most of the day in a police pick-up truck as they were shuttled between City Hall and the Milimani Law Courts while the confusion played out.

The drama started on Friday, when the police took the children from the Central Police Station to the Milimani Law Courts, only to be turned away and told to take them to City Hall.

But on arrival at City Hall, they were again turned away on the basis that it did not have a magistrate to handle such cases.

Prosecutor Paul Nyamweya raised concern at how the case was being handled, saying the children needed special care and deserved justice.

“We have 30 children still in the police Land Cruiser waiting to be received at City Hall courts but we cannot [proceed] as we do not have a gazetted children’s court here,” said Mr Nyamweya.

He told Nation.co.ke that the children later left with the arresting police and did not know where they were taken.

He added that the Milimani magistrate who referred the case to City Hall did not issue an official written directive but only verbally communicated it to the police officers.

Nairobi County Commander Japheth Koome said police in the city have arrested prostitutes, drunks and disorderly people and street families, among others, in ongoing operations.

“This is a normal daily operation where we have a multi-agency team within the children['s] department, the Nairobi County government and social services that deal with the cases of children arrested,” said Mr Koome.

Lawyer Enrica Dulo, however, blamed the police, arguing that the officers should not have left the Milimani Law Courts without a written directive showing that they were referred to the City Hall Court.

The children, Nairobi Central Police OCPD Paul Wanjama said, would be taken back into custody and presented in court on Tuesday.