De Klerk v Minister of Police (329 of 2017) [2018] ZASCA 45 (28 March 2018)

Damages claim – unlawful arrest and detention – award not commensurate with damages suffered – failure of trial court to consider facts and circumstances of case – mechanical approach adopted by following trend in the North West Division of the High Court to award damages in the amount of R15000 a day – principles of determining appropriate award – restated – amount substituted

Delict – judicial detention – damages – inadmissible confession
induced by assault extracted by police from accused – whether police liable
for the appellants’ incarceration subsequent to first court appearance.

Criminal law and procedure – delict – unlawful arrest and detention – arrest, without a warrant, on a charge of assault GBH - s 40(1)(b) of the Criminal Procedure Act 51 of 1977 – whether arresting officer held a reasonable suspicion that appellants had committed an offence listed in Schedule 1 to the Act - assault, when a dangerous wound is inflicted – what constitutes a dangerous wound.

Delict – claim for damages for malicious prosecution, defamation and
wrongful arrest and detention – whether animus iniuriandi and absence of reasonable
and probable cause for malicious prosecution proved – whether animus iniuriandi for
defamation proved – whether defendant’s failure to testify reasonable