High Court pardons 41 inmates from Lang’ata correctional facility

                                     Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu (courtesy)

NAIROBI—On Thursday, the High Court released 41 inmates at the Lang’ata women  maximum Prison after reviewing their ruling.

This announcement came yesterday when the Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu (pictured) accompanied by other legal professionals visited the prison to celebrate Madaraka Day.

“38 left the discplinary facility on Friday while the other 3 will remain briefly and leave after completing their reduced jail terms,” said the Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu.

She said the same process will be carried out in other prisons in due course. “It is only fair to pardon some of the inmates, criteria used was based on the behaviour of the inmates and the sentences they were serving.”

Those who were pardoned include a Tanzanian and two Burundian immigrants who were jailed specifically for being in the country illegally with orders to be repatriated or serve a jail term before the repatriating.

Both the foreigners were in confinement after the courts ordered them to at least pay fines so that can be given jail terms before the repatriation.

But judges who reviewed their sentences recommended they be released and repatriated immediately instead of staying in the prison and considered the duration each of them spent in pre-trial detention.

They also looked ayt the period the inmates have spent behind bars as convicts and their post -conviction behaviour as recorded by the correctional facility, among other factors to determine those be pardoned.

Mwilu said this will decongest the prison and give the inmates opportunity to regain the freedom to enjoy their lives.