Magistrate criticises Prosecution for pleas without suspects present

Chief Magistrate Dolphina Alego during a court session on December 9, 2025/EZEKIEL AMING'A

A Milimani court session on Tuesday saw heightened tensions after Chief Magistrate Dolphina Alego expressed frustration with the prosecution over repeated instances of presenting plea files without the suspects in court.

Magistrate Alego described the practice as a misuse of judicial time that contributes to case backlogs.

The exchange occurred during a plea hearing in an alleged fraud case.

When the matter was called, the prosecution informed the court that the suspects were not present despite being summoned by the investigating officer.

The State requested that the court issue summonses to compel the suspects’ attendance for plea-taking, clarifying that it was not seeking arrest warrants at this stage.

Magistrate Alego approved the request and scheduled the matter for mention on Tuesday, December 10.

However, the magistrate’s patience was tested when two more consecutive pleas also proceeded without the suspects present.

She expressed her frustration, stating, “We can’t have all these pleas with no people. Mchezo wa Taon!”

“Withdraw these matters. We are spending a lot of judicial time—where are they?”

The prosecution maintained that court summonses, rather than warrants, were appropriate for the absent suspects, a stance that appeared to further irritate the magistrate.

“Why are they being read without warrants? Courts should not be used as a rubber stamp,” she said.

Magistrate Alego cautioned that the court would not continue processing incomplete or improperly prepared matters, noting that such cases exacerbate backlogs.

She directed prosecution counsel to step aside and confer internally, giving them 10 minutes to determine the way forward.

Tensions continued during another plea involving land fraud charges, in which the accused was present and pleaded not guilty.

During submissions, defence counsel raised concerns over sub judice, noting that the dispute was already the subject of a 2021 civil case pending before the Environment and Land Court (ELC), with a recent hearing held on Tuesday, December 9.

Magistrate Alego questioned why the prosecution had proceeded with the criminal plea while a related civil case remained active in another court.

She highlighted that her court had halted proceedings in a separate matter the previous day after a higher court issued a stay.

“This is how backlogs pile up,” the magistrate said, expressing frustration at what she described as inadequate preparedness.

She urged the prosecution to implement measures to address recurring lapses and prevent further strain on the court’s time and resources.