There was drama in a virtual Court proceeding on Wednesday, March 15, 2022, when a man showed up while half-naked.
Appearing before Lilian Mutende of the High Court Criminal Division, the man only identified as Maina stunned the virtual court session after he logged into the proceeding while half naked for the mention of a murder-related matter.
The man’s conduct and mode of dressing prompted several lawyers who were in the Judiciary Teams Virtual Platform to express shock at his behaviour and asked the judicial officer to compel him to dress properly as the court ethics demand of the dressing code of lawyers and other litigants who appear in court.
Consequently, Justice Mutende demanded to know whether the half-naked man was a lawyer or a litigant. The man who never had a vest or a shirt muttered inaudible words prompting the judge to switch off his camera completely throughout the court session.
The judge condemned the action and urged litigants to observe court etiquette and respect. She directed that those appearing before her should always dress appropriately.
The judge further said that cases being conducted virtually is not a lee-way to be shaggy and unreasonable.
The incident caused a furore amongst those who had logged into the court session including journalists who were waiting for the murder case against Safari Rally driver Maxine Wahome.
The Wednesday dramatic scene is not the first as others litigants and lawyers have been in the past asked by judicial officers (magistrates and judges) to dress properly before logging into virtual court proceedings.
In some instances, lawyers and accused persons have been seen only dressed properly on the upper part of their bodies.
A case in point is where some lawyers put on a shirt, tie and blazer as their top part dressing but wear a pair of shorts and sweat pants contrary to code dress ethics.
Last year a female lawyer logged into a virtual court session when she was in bed with her man beside her.
This happened before Milimani High Court Commercial Division.
