UK University hands over copy of Dedan Kimathi’s case file to Kenya
Kenyan judiciary has received a copy of the original trial of freedom fighter Dedan Kimathi and the appellate file.
Officials from Kenya’s judiciary received the file from the Senate House Library of the University of London last week.
The file relates to the 1956 trial and conviction of Maumau leader Dedan Kimathi in Nyeri and the subsequent appeal against the death sentence imposed on him.
The file was handed to the library as a donation from a private collection of the late Ralph Millner, the lawyer who represented Dedan Kimathi.
Field marshal Kimathi was charged with unlawful possession of a firearm, contrary to Regulation 8A (1) of the Emergency Regulations, 1952. He faced a second count of unlawful possession of ammunition.
He was sentenced to death for the first count and seven years imprisonment with hard labour for the second.
“The file will be among rare exhibits in the new Judicial Museum of Kenya which will open soon at the Supreme Court Building.
“The Museum will feature information and collections covering key epochs in the evolution of the Kenyan Judiciary, notably traditional African justice systems, Judiciary during the colonial era, post-Independence Judiciary and the Modern Judiciary,” Chief Justice Willy Mutunga said in a statement on Tuesday.
