Access to Legal Aid for Accused Persons with Disabilities in Kenya’s Criminal Justice System

In order for accused persons with disabilities to be able to access justice on an equal basis with others, equality of outcomes is important. However, in the past century, the limited approach to legal aid which focuses on processes has continually been applied by criminal justice system actors in response to legal aid challenges faced by accused persons with disabilities in Kenya. The major dilemma facing this approach is its emphasis on steps to be taken as opposed to the end result or goal. This paper seeks to explain that a shift towards an outcomes approach to legal aid for accused persons with disabilities has the potential of supporting innovation in Kenya’s criminal justice system and help close access to justice gaps that may exist. To achieve this paradigm shift, the African Disability Protocol has been employed as it promotes an integral development of legal aid justice that requires states parties to put in place specific outcomes-based laws for promoting the rights of accused persons in access to justice

Criminal justice · Criminology · Dilemma · Economic Justice · Political science · Sociology · Disability Rights and Representation · Healthcare Decision-Making and Restraints · Law