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Citation
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Judgment date
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| April 2021 |
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A suspended custodial sentence with strict restorative and supervisory conditions can be appropriate for culpable homicide where remorse and low re-offence risk are shown.
Culpable homicide — sentencing principles; remorse as mitigating factor; suspended sentence with restorative conditions; community service and reparations; State-directed psychosocial assessment for victim's family.
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28 April 2021 |
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Accused committed the act but lacked capacity to appreciate wrongfulness; detained under s77(6)(ii)(aa) and treated under s37 of the MHCA.
Criminal capacity — voluntariness and mens rea — psychiatric observation — rebutting presumption of capacity — section 77(6)(ii)(aa) disposition — interaction with Mental Health Care Act s37 (vs s33) — delay in proceedings and liberty interests.
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28 April 2021 |
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Section 174 discharge refused: State evidence, including s115 admissions, sufficed to place accused on their defence.
Criminal procedure – section 174 discharge – test is whether there is evidence upon which a reasonable court might convict; limited role of credibility attacks at discharge stage; s115 admissions relevant; formal ownership need not be proven for competent theft/receiving verdicts.
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21 April 2021 |
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Accused with intellectual disability found unfit to stand trial and released into supervised community care, not psychiatric detention.
Criminal procedure — fitness to stand trial — intellectual disability (IQ below 70) — IQ not dispositive — distinction between mental illness and intellectual disability — appropriateness of psychiatric detention — section 77(6)(dd) supervised community care order under Criminal Procedure Act — interaction with Mental Health Care Act and constitutional values (equality, dignity).
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19 April 2021 |
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State failed to prove identity beyond reasonable doubt in child sexual-assault case; accused acquitted.
Criminal law — Sexual offences against a child — Identification evidence — Application of ADVOKATE factors in assessing visual identification; section 174 CPA discharge test ('no evidence' threshold); burden of proof on State; limited consequences of accused's silence when State's case requires explanation.
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16 April 2021 |
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The accused sentenced to 16 years' imprisonment for multiple rapes, with court finding substantial and compelling circumstances.
Criminal law – Rape (multiple) – minimum sentence (s51(1) Criminal Law Amendment Act) – substantial and compelling circumstances – sentencing principles: deterrence, denunciation, proportionality and parity – collateral consequences of COVID-19 – Firearms Control Act s103 seizure – victim identity protection (s154(3) CPA) – victim support and social welfare referrals.
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16 April 2021 |
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The accuseds' lengthy prior convictions reduce entitlement to leniency, but any sentence must remain proportionate to the offence.
Criminal procedure – s114 referral for sentence where previous convictions exceed magistrate’s jurisdiction Sentencing – relevance and weight of previous convictions; proportionality principle Sentencing objectives – denunciation, general and specific deterrence, rehabilitation Property crimes – housebreaking as serious invasion of privacy, dignity and property rights
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15 April 2021 |
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Court convicted the accused of rape on credible, corroborated non‑consensual sexual acts; acquitted on the firearm count.
Criminal law – Sexual offences – Rape – Consent requires voluntary, ongoing agreement; use of threat/weapon negates consent; corroboration and consistency of complainant’s post‑event demeanour can support conviction. Evidence – Credibility assessment – Plausibility, internal and external consistency, and independent corroboration determine whether the State proved elements beyond reasonable doubt. Firearms – Pointing of firearm – State must prove the object was a firearm and the requisite unlawful conduct; acquittal where proof deficient.
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15 April 2021 |
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Court found substantial and compelling circumstances and imposed an effective 18-year sentence for rape and robbery.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Sexual offences and robbery – application of s51(2) and s51(3) Criminal Law Amendment Act 105 of 1997 – substantial and compelling circumstances (proportionality, totality, pre‑sentence custody) – intoxication and COVID‑19 collateral consequences not sufficient mitigation – concurrent sentencing for related offences.
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13 April 2021 |
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Affirmative consent is required for sexual activity; court convicted accused of two rapes and robbery despite some witness inconsistencies.
Criminal law — Sexual offences — Consent requires affirmative voluntary agreement to each sexual act; silence, passivity or submission is not consent — Assessment of credibility in sexual‑offence trials; section 174 discharge test — Robbery: theft followed by or accompanied by violence may constitute robbery even if weapon use to effect theft not proved.
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12 April 2021 |
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Accused acquitted because State failed to disprove private defence in context of imminent threat and domestic abuse.
Criminal law – Private defence – State bears onus to disprove defence beyond reasonable doubt; battered-spouse context and history of domestic violence relevant to assessment of reasonable belief and proportionality; test: subjective reasonable belief, defensive purpose, objectively reasonable response; factors: imminence, retreat, weapon, size/age/strength, proportionality; inconsistencies not necessarily fatal to defence.
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9 April 2021 |