Drink And Drive, So Long As You Can Navigate well.

Drunk driving in Kenya is not an offense as long as you are still in control of the vehicle, a court in Kiambu county ruled. The Kiambu Senior Resident Magistrate Bryan Khaemba ruled following a case where a one Michael Ngolobe Mugo a driver was charged with drunk driving.

The accused was charged with the offense of driving a motor vehicle under the influence of alcohol contrary to section 44 (1) of the Traffic Act, 

The magistrate failed to comprehend whether Mr. Mugo was drunk while driving or whether he was driving under the influence. Additionally, Khaemba needed to know whether as a result of the drinking, the driver was incapable of having control of the vehicle.

The police claimed that the accused did not have proper control of the vehicle he was driving under the influence of alcohol on May 23, 2018, at 8 pm along Banana-Ruaka road in Kiambu. One of the officers who testified in the case argued that the accused overpowered him and two of his colleagues and were, therefore, unable to arrest him.

In his ruling, Khaemba noted that there was no way a drunk person would overpower three police officers during an arrest. “Such is not conduct expected from a person who is alleged to be too drunk to control a motor vehicle,” part of the ruling read.

Khaemba ruled that for a charge of driving under the influence of alcohol to stand, the prosecution has to adduce evidence that a motorist cannot control the vehicle.The court dismissed the case and added that Mr. Mugo was not affected by the alcohol, which is why the officers failed to arrest him. The court further noted that driving under the influence of alcohol, in itself, is not an offense.

 

 

 

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