Lawmaker Babu Owino Proposes Legislation to Erase Criminal Records for Minor Infractions
Kenya's Criminal Procedure Code Amendment Bill: A Step Towards Second Chances
A proposed bill, the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill, 2024, is currently making its way through the Kenyan parliament. Introduced by Embakasi East MP Babu Owino, the bill aims to allow for the expungement of minor criminal records for rehabilitated offenders, a move that could significantly improve employment opportunities for reformed individuals.
The bill's inception can be traced back to a 2020 High Court ruling (Ibrahim Ngohi vs. Directorate of Criminal Investigations) that highlighted a lack of clear legal framework for expunging criminal records. The ruling urged parliament to address this issue, and MP Owino has responded by proposing a bill that could potentially fill this gap.
The bill is currently under the scrutiny of the National Assembly Justice and Legal Affairs Committee (JLAC). Committee chairperson Murugara has suggested refining the proposed law to include financial crimes such as money laundering and leadership and integrity offenses such as corruption as exemptions to the bill. Ruaraka MP T.J Kajwang has called for a provision of a grace period of one to two years for rehabilitation after which released offenders can have their criminal records expunged.
The bill, if enacted, is expected to ensure improved employment opportunities, give the youth second chances for rehabilitation, social integration, and reduced recidivism. Ol joro Orok MP Michael Muchira stated that the proposed amendment makes sense because even God is a God of a second chance.
The proposed bill refers to South Africa's model for expungement of criminal records as a potential template for Kenya. South Africa's model includes time limits tied to the seriousness of the offence, objective eligibility criteria, explicit exclusions for sexual offences, and an explicit process for applications, certificates, and regulations. However, the bill aims to exclude murderers, terrorists, and those who engage in sexual offenses such as rape, defilement, sodomy, and incest from having their records expunged.
It is worth noting that according to MP Owino, there is currently no express legal provision in Kenyan law providing for expunging of criminal records. The legislative proposal was conceived from the court's decision in the case of Ibrahim Kingori Njoki versus Directorate of Criminal Investigations, the Attorney General & the National Transport Safety Authority (Miscellaneous Petition 05 of 2020) [2023] KEHC 17924 (KLR). The case involved a petition by Ibrahim Kingori Njoki, seeking the removal of a 20-year-old conviction for creating disturbance from his police clearance certificate by the DCI.
As of August 2025, the bill remains in the drafting and parliamentary review stage, with no indication that it has been passed into law yet. The JLAC committee is now expected to give a recommendation on whether the bill will be published and subsequently approved or rejected by the House. The enactment of the law is expected to be a significant step towards ensuring that reformed individuals have a fair chance at re-entering society and leading productive lives.
- The proposed Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill, currently being scrutinized by the National Assembly Justice and Legal Affairs Committee, aims to follow South Africa's model for the expungement of criminal records, which includes provisions for certain exempted categories like financial crimes, leadership and integrity offenses, murderers, terrorists, and those who engage in sexual offenses.
- Beyond employment opportunities, the enactment of the Criminal Procedure Code (Amendment) Bill could potentially pave the way for rehabilitated offenders to experience improved social integration, reduced recidivism, and a fair chance at re-entering society and leading productive lives.
- Given the bill's focus on providing second chances for reformed individuals, it is aligned with the general principle of giving individuals a chance to repent and lead productive lives, as exemplified by the idea that even God is a God of a second chance.
