Lawyer Assa Nyakundi is yet to be charged with the murder of his son after the High Court adjourned the hearing of an application seeking to so charge him.
The DPP had moved the court to allow him to charge Nyakundi with murder but defence lawyers argued that the manslaughter charge is still active at Kiambu law courts.
The lawyer is said to have shot dead his son Joseph Bogonko on March 17.
The case was supposed to proceed yesterday before Justice James Wakiaga but Nyakundi’s lead lawyer John Khaminwa asked for an adjournment saying he had to travel out of town to give a lecture.
He told court a school in Mombasa had already booked him for the lecture but he forgot to tell the court on Thursday when they picked yesterday's date.
State Counsel Catherine Mwaniki opposed the application saying that Nyakundi has many lawyers who could handle the case on Khaminwa's behalf.
Judge Wakiaga allowed the application as the prosecution will not suffer any prejudice if the case is adjourned.
“The accused is yet to take plea. No prejudice shall be suffered if we give them time to file their notice of motion on the case, “ the judge ruled.
Nyakundi, who is charged with manslaughter in Kiambu, is seeking to block the DPP from charging him with murder.
He was arrested on Wednesday and arraigned in court on Thursday to be charged with murder but the defence told the court that the case in Kiambu is still open.
Lawyer Danstan Omari told the court that the accused’s wife and children are also opposed to the new charges as they had not been given notice. They were not informed by the DPP of the new course of action.
Mwaniki maintained that the DPP has the power to institute any charge against an accused person even though there may be another pending matter in court.
She said that when Nyakundi takes the plea at the High Court the manslaughter charge at the magistrate's court will automatically be obsolete.
Nyakundi has a pending case seeking to bar the DPP and the police from preferring murder charges against him. His wife and children have applied to be victims in the matter.
The lawyer is out on bail issued by the Kiambu court.
