[1] WILSON JAWA NDOLO had been charged with an offence of murder contrary to Section 203 and 204 of the Penal Code.
[2] In terms of Section 203 as read with Section 204 of the Penal Code the accused, upon being convicted, shall be sentenced to death.
[3] Ms. Maina represents the prosecution, while Ms. Memia represents the convict.
The matter proceeded for full hearing and he was found guilty to the offence of manslaughter contrary to section 202(1) as read with section 205 of The Penal code. The sentence is the same as that of murder.
[4] The court called for both a victim impact statement as well as a pre sentence report. The two were prepared by Mutisya Kioko a probation officer.
5. Ms Memia and Ms Maina made brief oral submissions after the reports were filled. Each side picked the parts of the reports that favored their positions.
6.Miss Maina urged the court to mete out a custodial sentence bearing in mind the restorative objective of sentencing so that the victim’s family feel that justice was served.
7. Ms Memia on her part urged the court to have mercy and to be lenient as he was a first offender, a bread winner and can be rehabilitated.
8.The court notes that this is a was a very unfortunate case between a father and son. The deceased is the accused person’s father. The pre sentence report shows that the victim had separated with the mother to the accused and the mother had relocated with the children to Miritini area when the accused was young . There was even mention of an assault case against the victim whereby the complainant was the mother to the deceased. The accused had just returned to Tsiuni village in Vanga some two months prior to the incidence. His motive for the return was to claim some inheritance from the father. This claim did not go too well with the father who was used to living alone and this is what escalated to this most unfortunate incidence.
9 .I have looked at the Judgment, the two reports and the submissions. As noted above a dispute over land led to the death of the accused person’s father. He continues to deny the offence though there was adequate evidence against him.
10. Taking all the above into consideration, I hereby sentence the accused person to a prison term of 10 years .
11.The sentence runs from when he was first arraigned in court which is the 14th day of December 2022.
12.It is so ordered
1. Dated , signed and delivered virtually this 31st day of July 2024.
Wendy Kagendo
Judge
Present
Accused person and his advocate Miss Memia
MS Maina for the state
Ms Bebora court Assistant1