Wambui Kabiru murder: Moses Dola loses bid to shorten prison term
Moses Dola, a former journalist who was convicted of manslaughter following the death of his wife, former NTV reporter Sarah Wambui Kabiru, at Milimani Law Courts on November 29, 2018.
What you need to know:
- Dola was sentenced to 10 years in prison on November 29, 2018, after pleading guilty to manslaughter charges following a plea bargain.
- He admitted to having unintentionally killed Kabiru, a television journalist, on May 3, 2011, at their house in Nairobi.
Former journalist Moses Dola Otieno, who is serving a jail term for the murder of his wife Sarah Wambui Kabiru, has lost his bid to have the time spent in remand be factored into his 10-year sentence.
High Court Judge Hedwig Ong’udi on October 8 dismissed his application in which he sought to have his release date from prison reviewed downwards, after the consideration of the 21 months he spent in remand before posting bail, as well as the period between his conviction and sentencing.
Dola was sentenced to 10 years in prison on November 29, 2018, after pleading guilty to manslaughter charges following a plea bargain.
He admitted to having unintentionally killed Kabiru, a television journalist, on May 3, 2011, at their house in Nairobi.
In his application filed in September 2023, Dola sought to have the court order for his release upon considering the time he spent in remand, and the time he has already served in prison together with his entitled remissions.
According to his calculation, the projected time for his release ought to have been November 2023, down from 2025.
This is after calculating the 21 months spent in remand, the four years spent in prison, and the remissions which, according to him, should be a third of his term.
His calculations showed that he had served an extra 27 days illegally at the time of filing the suit, and sought compensation.
He claimed to have been discriminated against by the trial court which had treated him differently by failing to consider the time he had spent in remand.
However, in her ruling, Justice Ong’udi found that Dola had filed similar applications before the High Court in Nairobi, seeking similar reliefs but were dismissed.
While agreeing to the submissions of the attorney-general, the judge ruled that the court lacked the jurisdiction to sit on an application that had already been determined by a court of similar stature.
According to Justice Ong’udi, Dola ought to have filed an appeal before the Court of Appeal, if he was dissatisfied with the decision of the High Court.
“Jurisdiction is everything, without it, the court has no powers to move to the next step,” ruled Justice Ong’udi.
“What the petitioner is doing while hiding behind the claim of violation of his constitutional rights is asking this court to sit on appeal over the decisions of two courts with equal jurisdiction to this one.”
The court, however, raised concerns over the increasing trend of prisoners filing similar petitions in different courts, which she said might bring about confusion when similar courts make contracting judgments.
She warned the prisoners with such tendencies to stop.
“This habit of prisoners filing similar applications and petitions from court to court must be checked and stopped to avoid contradictory judgments and orders being issued over the same matter,” stated Justice Ong’udi.
