LSK to sue IG Boinett over police brutality against CORD protesters

The Law Society of Kenya (LSK) has threatened to sue Inspector General of Police Joseph Boinett over police brutality witnessed during the opposition CORD’s anti-IEBC protests on Monday.

LSK Western Kenya Chapter says it will sue Boinett for all the damages experienced during the protests saying that it was as a result of police using excessive force.

Addressing the press in Kisumu Wednesday, LSK Western Kenya Chapter chair Francis Rayola Olel asked Boinett to brace for a fierce court battle.

Olel accused the anti-riot police officers of acting unprofessionally by applying excess force on the protesters.

Olel said they have received complaints from members of public who were injured by police or whose properties were destroyed during the confrontations.

Olel said they will offer free legal presentations to all the victims of anti-IEBC demos and ensure justice is served.

He said action will also be taken against individual police officers who will be found culpable of curtailing people’s freedoms.

On Monday, three protesters were reportedly shot dead during the confrontations.

Police spokesman Charles Owino, however, defended the officers’ action saying the officers are allowed by law to defend themselves whenever their lives are in danger.

He, however, said that action would be taken against any officer found guilty of contravening the law.

The protests in Kisumu and Siaya turned chaotic after police lobbed teargas to disperse the protesters.

The killing of the three protesters and injuring of many others has sparked criticism across board with members of the opposition Coalition for Reforms and Democracy (CORD) and human rights groups calling for the charging of the officers involved.