Criminal
The Penal Code with constitutionalised criminal procedure since 2010
The Penal Code (Cap 63) remains the principal offence-creating statute, but the 2010 constitution transformed procedure: article 49 fixes arrested persons' rights, article 50 guarantees a fair trial, and the Supreme Court held the mandatory death sentence for murder unconstitutional in Muruatetu (2017).
Key rules
- Jurisdiction — Magistrates' courts try most offences; the High Court has original jurisdiction over murder and hears appeals; the Court of Appeal and Supreme Court sit above it.
- Deadline — Arrested person brought before court: within 24 hours, or the next court day
- Deadline — Bail: a constitutional right under article 49(1)(h) unless compelling reasons exist
Governing law
- Penal CodeCap 63
- Criminal Procedure CodeCap 75
- Sexual Offences Act, 2006No. 3 of 2006
In practice
Kenyan criminal law shows the 2010 constitution operating as a filter over inherited colonial statutes rather than replacing them. The Penal Code's text is largely unchanged, but the mandatory death penalty, the treatment of bail and the admissibility of confessions have all been reshaped by constitutional litigation — Muruatetu being the clearest example, where the Supreme Court struck down the mandatory sentence while leaving the offence intact.