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Citation
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Judgment date
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| May 2003 |
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Defences of insanity, intoxication and non-pathological incapacity rejected; accused convicted of murder with constructive intent.
Criminal law — Murder — Defences of insanity, diminished responsibility and non-pathological criminal incapacity — Psychiatric evidence; credibility and fabrication of intoxication; burden of proof on accused.
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22 May 2003 |
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Unconsciousness delayed accrual of the cause of action; claim not prescribed and special plea dismissed.
Prescription Act [Chapter 8:11] – commencement of prescription – s16(1) and s16(3) – accrual of cause of action – unconsciousness/hospitalisation delays commencement – extinctive prescription.
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21 May 2003 |
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Bail refused where applicant’s attempted flight across the border established a real risk of abscondment.
Bail — risk of abscondment — attempted flight across border and resistance to arrest — defence concession — presumption of innocence considered but outweighed.
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21 May 2003 |
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Convictions quashed where trial court failed to assess material witness credibility and apply law on reasonable force in arrest.
Criminal law – arrest – use of reasonable force under section 42(1) – resisting arrest; Criminal procedure – judgment composition – duty to assess credibility and state reasons; Appeal – conviction unsafe due to gross irregularity in judgment.
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21 May 2003 |
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An excessive cumulative sentence for multiple rape counts was reduced on review to an effective 18-year term.
Criminal law — Sentencing — Multiple counts — Cumulative sentences — Excessive aggregate sentence — Globular sentence vs individual sentences with palliatives — Concurrency — Review of sentence for misdirection.
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21 May 2003 |
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Court upheld movement restriction on bail for security reasons but reduced reporting to once weekly.
Bail variation — reporting obligations — movement restriction — Public Order and Security Act — balancing individual liberty and state security — change of circumstances.
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21 May 2003 |
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Non-shareholder creditor lacked standing and urgency to obtain freezing and interdictory relief; action required.
Company law — Locus standi of non-shareholder creditor/participant — Interim freezing/interdictory relief — Urgency and irreparable harm — Signatory to company account does not confer ownership — Proper remedy by action.
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14 May 2003 |
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Conviction for indecent assault of a ten-year-old upheld; sentence reduced to a fine and suspended imprisonment.
Criminal law – indecent assault of a child – credibility findings of trial court accorded deference – prosecutorial shortcomings vs complainant’s evidence – sentence manifestly excessive; substitution with fine and suspended imprisonment.
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7 May 2003 |