The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions (ODPP) is the National Prosecuting Authority established by the Constitution of Kenya (2010) to institute and undertake criminal proceedings against any person before any court other than a court martial in respect of any offence alleged to have been committed.
The Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) is the head of the ODPP and operates independently as stipulated under Article 157 of the Constitution. However, the DPP is required to be accountable to the public by presenting an Annual report to the President and Parliament on the performance of the ODPP. The DPP may also be required, on a need basis to present a report to Parliament on a matter of national or public interest.
The Office was previously a department in the Attorney General’s Office discharging responsibilities in the criminal jurisdiction for the Republic of Kenya on behalf of the Attorney General. The ODPP was delinked from the State Law Office in 2011 following the appointment of the Director of Public Prosecutions under the new constitutional dispensation.
The ODPP has a presence in all the 47 counties and 131 court stations across the country, with its headquarters in Nairobi, Kenya. ODPP has eight (8) regional Offices which are headed by Regional Coordinators who provide oversight and coordinate prosecution services in the counties.
Nationally, the ODPP prosecutors deal with a wide range of cases, from minor offences in the magistrates’ courts to serious cases such as murder, which are heard in the High Court. The majority of our workload is in the Magistrates’ Courts.