LECTURE 1: OUTLINE

CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
LAW 208
Lecturer: DR. CHARLES A. KHAMALA
Department: LAW
Term: May-August 2020
Email: ckhamala@anu.ac.ke
Credit: INTRODUCTION TO CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
Phone: 0718895858
Pre-requisite: CRIMINAL LAW 1 AND II
Office: Offering: Distance Learning
I. Lecture Purpose: To contextualize criminal procedure laws which entail a framework of
laws and rules that govern the administration of justice in cases involving individuals suspected
or accused of committing crimes in Kenya as compared to other countries.

II. Learning Outcomes: As a result of this lecture students should:

1. Critically discuss the process which a person accused of having committed an offence is
taken through in Kenya, so as to establish his guilt or innocence.
2. Identify various major stages in the entire criminal procedural process from the time a
crime is committed, the rights and disabilities of suspects and accused persons, the
powers of the police, to the investigative stage, to the prosecution, pre-trial procedure,
detention, bail, charges, the conduct of trials, verdicts, sentencing, appeals and reviews
and the exercise of the prerogatives of pardon and mercy.
3. Understand all antecedents and special roles that take place during criminal trials such as
roles of victims, witnesses, persons of unsound mind and children.

III. Class Experiences: A discussion shall be made of the historical, socio-economic, ethical
and politico-cultural phenomenon of procedural criminal law. Notes shall be availed on faculty
portal. Students are expected to participate in class discussion, read the prescribed books, distill
their own notes, and make brief responses.

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IV. Teaching Methodologies: A combination of seminar discussion, video viewing, interactive
class presentations, writing, library research, and report writing will be used.

V. Required Reading:
John Griffiths, “Ideology in Criminal Procedure or A Third ‘Model’ of the Criminal Process”
(January 1970) The Yale Law Journal, Volume 79, Number 3.

“Criminal Justice” Patricia Kamere-Mbote and Migai Aketch, Kenya: Justice Sector and the
Rule of Law (The Open Society, 2011) Chapter 6, 5-18.

“Governance, Peace and Security” Kenya Bureau of Statistics, Kenya Economic Survey (2020)
301-319.

“Underpinning the Criminal Justice System” in Criminal Procedure Bench Book (February
2018) 1-17.
“Jurisdiction in Criminal Matters” in Criminal Procedure Bench Book (February 2018) 19-22.

“Crime Control in a Constitutional Democracy” in Joel Samaha, Criminal Procedure (USA:

Eighth Edition, Wadsworth Cengage learning, 2012) 2-23.

Legal Resources Centre, Criminal Justice System in Kenya: An Audit Understanding Pre-Trial
Detention in Respect to Case Flow Management and Conditions of Detention (National Council
on the Administration of Justice, 2016) 3.
http://www.lrf-kenya.or.ke/wp-content/uploads/2018/04/cjs-Report-Book.pdf

VI. Responsibilities:
1. Class attendance and Responsiveness (½ % of the final grade): Each week,
students will read the prescribed text and will prepare for the class lecture. Advance preparation
is necessary for the lecture forums. Students will post their personal, subjective questions in the
forum, consisting of 50 to 100 words (1 page, Times New Roman size 12 font, 1.5. line spacing).
Marks will be earned for posing and responding to the lecturer’s and colleagues’ questions.

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 2. Reading, Creative Writing Forum and Class Discussion (1.2 % of the final grade):
Students will read the above assigned textbook according to the class calendar. The online
asynchronous discussions each week will be based upon the week’s assigned reading. The
critical analysis may not be completed without reading the week’s assigned reading although the
response principally subjective. Evidence should be supplied to support claims.
Each week, the lecturer will raise some questions in the discussion board. Students will
read the assigned reading for the week and respond to the questions raised in the discussion
forum. Students are to make their submission in the Faculty Portal. The answer posts should
consist of no more than 1,500 words (3 pages, Times New Roman size 12 font, 1.5. line spacing)
in total and should be posted by Tuesday at midnight. The answer posts shall be graded and
returned to students before the subsequent week. The discussion rubric below will provide a
better understanding of the grading of the posts in the discussion forum.

VII. Discussion Questions (12 MARKS) Submission by midnight Tuesday 19th May 2020.

Do NOT rely on substantially the same material content as the class lecture notes. Your
essays must NOT exceed a combined 1,500 WORDS (INCLUDING FOOTNOTES) and
make reference to a minimum of three different books which should not only be cited as
footnotes but also be listed at the end of your essay as a list of references. When reading a
book, quote only selected sentences, not exceeding THREE, at any one stretch. For each
source of information you must ACKNOWLEDGE its author, book or article title, place,
publisher, year and page number, by way of footnotes. CANDIDATES ARE WARNED
THAT ANY SUBSTANTIAL OR UNREFERENCED REPRODUCTION OF PASSAGES
(CUT AND PASTE) FROM WORK OF OTHERS WILL BE STRICTLY PENALIZED.

1. What does it mean to say the Bill of Rights is “a code of criminal procedure”? Identify and
define the major articles in the Bill of Rights from which all criminal procedure stems. Explain
the significance of the quote: “During states of emergencies the Bill of Rights is suspended.” (4
marks) (500 words)

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2. Describe the two elements of balancing ends and means in criminal procedure. Why is it said
that “Criminal law’s ultimate ends are dual and conflicting”? How does balancing ends and
means create an uncomfortable tension for those trying to enforce the law? (4 marks) (500
words)

3. Describe the pendulum swings in Kenyan history of criminal procedure from independence to
the present day. Identify and describe two emergencies that have tested the balance between
community security and individual autonomy. Explain the importance of empirical and social
scientific research in balancing the values at the core of criminal procedure. (4 marks) (500
words)