The Director of Criminal Investigations (DCI) George Kinoti and Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinnet could be jailed for continuously publishing suspects’ photos to social media despite court order. In his application before Nairobi High Court, Bunge La Mwananchi chairman Henry Shitanda seeks to institute contempt proceedings against the duo for breach of the court order issued on December 7, 2018.
“Joseph Boinett and George Kinoti are committed to civil jail for a term of six months for contempt of court for deliberate breach of the court orders issued by this court on the December 7 2018,”he said. Shitanda argues both Kinoti and Boinnet have continued to show no regard to the dignity and the court’s authority through actions he said flies on the face of the court order.
“The acts of the defendants directly and through their agents and employees have displayed outright arrogance of the court orders made by the court and this warrants urgent citing them for committal to civil jail,” he went on. This comes barely 24 hours after the DCI through their Twitter handle, posted images of Nyeri senior principal magistrate, Pauline Omungala for allegedly killing her husband.
Through the orders obtained in December 2018, city lawyer Dennis Kirwa submitted that parading suspects negates the presumption of innocence which states everyone is innocent till proven guilty. According to Kirwa the majority of those whose images are shared online are young whose current or future employment may be at stake once they are acquitted. “What happens to you job or future employment once you are acquitted and your booking photos are all over the internet?” he posed.