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Court of AppealDismissedCriminal Application E135 of 2024· [2024] KECA 1895 (KLR)
Mugendi v Republic
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·~2 min to read original · ~4 min briefThe bottom line
#Kenya's Court of Appeal refused a prisoner's late appeal, ruling that claiming lack of money does not explain a four-year delay.
What this practically means
#Executive summary
#This is a single-judge ruling of the Court of Appeal at Nyeri (Lessit, JA) on a notice of motion dated 2 September 2024 brought under rule 40 of the Court of Appeal Rules, in which Francis Fundi Mugendi sought leave to appeal out of time against sentence only. The applicant had been sentenced to life imprisonment for defilement contrary to section 8(1) as read with section 8(2) of the Sexual Offences Act. The High Court at Nyeri (Cherere, J.), in Criminal Appeal No. 71 of 2019 delivered on 7 September 2020, upheld the conviction but substituted the life sentence with 15 years' imprisonment; the applicant complained that the period spent in remand custody was not considered. The applicant attributed the four-year delay in filing the further appeal to lack of finances to hire a lawyer. Applying the Supreme Court's test in Andrew Kiplagat Chemaringo v Paul Kipkorir Kibet, that any delay must be satisfactorily explained and that a plausible and satisfactory explanation unlocks the court's discretionary favour, the court held that four years was an inordinately long period and that lack of funds was not a plausible or reasonable explanation, taking judicial notice that many inmates file cases daily without money, often as paupers. The application was found to be an afterthought, discretion was not exercised in the applicant's favour, and the application was dismissed with no costs order made. The remand-custody complaint was not determined.
Key legal issues
#01
Extension of time - sufficiency of explanation for delay
Holding
A four-year delay explained only by lack of funds to hire a lawyer is not plausible or reasonable, and the application is an afterthought; discretion not exercised in the applicant's favour
Reasoning
The court applied the Chemaringo test that delay must be satisfactorily explained. It took judicial notice that many inmates file cases daily without money, often as paupers, so lack of finances did not excuse the four-year delay since the High Court judgment of 7 September 2020.
Legal principles established
#- An applicant for extension of time must satisfactorily explain the delay; a plausible and satisfactory explanation unlocks the court's discretionary favour
Court orders
#- 1.The application is dismissed
- On appeal from
- High Court of Kenya at Nyeri
- Criminal Appeal No. 71 of 2019
- Jurisdiction invoked
- Rule 40 of the Court of Appeal Rules (application for leave to appeal out of time)
Key timeline
#Practical implications
#Frequently asked questions
#Cite this brief
#Cite this brief
Caselaw, "Mugendi v Republic", Case Analysis (2024). Criminal Application E135 of 2024. Source: https://new.kenyalaw.org/akn/ke/judgment/keca/2024/1895/eng@2024-12-05
Suggested citation format for research notes or client memos. Always verify the original judgment before relying on any point.