•But High Court judge Grace Nzioka defended the courts, saying that the police, DPP and Ipoa were not presenting cogent cases before the judges.
Image: SHABAN OMAR
Human rights activists have complained of the time courts take to hear and determine cases of extrajudicial killings.
The activists say lengthy litigation sets up cases of police abuse for failure, as witnesses often forget their accounts after waiting too long to testify.
In a report launched last week, the lobbies through Missing Voices said, "Court delays weaken cases because most witnesses recall the incident from memory. The longer the cases take, the more witnesses forget the critical aspects of the case-location, time, and the exact sequence of the incident."
The group said it had recorded 219 cases of extrajudicial killings and enforced disappearances in 2021.
They claim Pangani police station takes the lead in misconduct, misuse of force, harassment and killings.
The report primes the murder case of human rights lawyer Willy Kimani, which has been running for six years now.
Kimani was murdered alongside his client Josephat Mwenda and taxi driver Joseph Muiruri.
The progress of the Mavoko three trial has been incredibly slow despite it being a high-profile case with wide media coverage, the report says.
"Since its start in November 2016, 44 prosecution witnesses have testified, but the defence has employed numerous tactics to delay the case."
"Besides the delays because of the Covid-19 pandemic, this case has been postponed and adjourned at least 15 times because of the defence's machinations. These adjournments breed uncertainty at best, and foreboding at worst."
The delays work in favour of the perpetrators of impunity, brutality and executions, the report says.
But High Court judge Grace Nzioka defended the courts, saying the police, DPP and Ipoa were not presenting cogent cases before the judges.
She said the evidence adduced before them in most of the cases has glaring holes that defence lawyers easily take advantage of to delay and derail them.
In some cases, the report says, the accused police officers or their associates continue serving within the victim's or witness' community, making them insecure and vulnerable to threats and even inducements.
It also says that the long trial periods makes it hard for the victims and their families to get closure and heal, as their wounds are continuously reopened with every court date.
"Many of the victims and survivors of police killings and enforced disappearances are people from modest economic backgrounds. Constant court adjournments and postponements can deplete their limited resources."
It says the import of all the impediments is that the victims, survivors and their families develop cynicism about the criminal justice system. They can in turn take the law into their own hands.
"All these combined defeat the cause of justice, and its net result is that victims’ families, survivors of police killings and enforced disappearances, grow cynical of criminal justice. Delayed justice equals justice denied," the report reads.