When a person is being arrested he/she has a right to be informed of the reason for the arrest in a language they easily understand whether English, Kiswahili or their mother tongue. The person conducting the arrest must identify him/herself to the person being arrested. After they understand what they are being charged for they also have a right to remain silent, therefore the police in charge of the arrest should not force the arrested person to confess or admit to the crime they are being arrested for just yet.
An arrested person has a right to immediately call his/her advocate, a family member, a relative, a friend or any other person whose assistance they may need. One also has a right not to be compelled to make any admission in the police station. As a matter of fact any confession made in the police station will not be taken into account by the court if it was not done in the presence of an officer of the rank of an Inspector and in the presence of a witness called in by the arrested person. Otherwise, the Court only takes into account confessions made in the presence of a Magistrate or a judge.
When arrested, one has a right to be brought before a Court as soon as possible but not later than 24hours i.e. after an arrest one should be taken to Court in the first day of arrest. But if the arrest is made during a holiday or over the weekend one should be taken to Court on the first working day of the Court after the holiday.
The arrested person has right to fair hearing and this includes a right to have an advocate assigned to them by the state at the state expense. Therefore, any accused person has a right to legal aid.
The rights of arrested persons are recognized and guaranteed in Article 49 of the Constitution of Kenya 2010.