Magistrate Habib sentenced Kleave van Staden (35) to 10 years imprisonment for the murder of his wife, Jamillah, in the Booysens Magistrate’s Court on October 8.
When handing down the sentence, Habib said, “The accused’s three minor children are placed under the supervision of a social worker in the Gauteng Department of Social Welfare and Development for five years from now.
“The said department is to render supervisory and unification services to the children and the accused and facilitate visits by the children to the accused in prison, with a view to reunification and reintegration of the family unit.
“The accused is deemed unfit to possess a firearm. Should the accused be considered for parole, the victim’s family is informed of the right to be present and make representations to the Department of Correctional Services.”
Proceedings of the day
The day began with statements from two probation officers, one called by the defence (Martha Modise) and the other by the State (Andile Buthelezi). They both work for the Department of Social Development.
Modise first described Van Staden’s background, where he was born and his upbringing. She explained how he met his wife, Jamillah, and that they had four children. Unfortunately, one passed away.
She said they used to fight when intoxicated. They also bought a house in 2018. Van Staden worked at Standard Bank, and Jamillah was a general worker at Pikitup.
“Kleave smoked drugs and drank alcohol. However, his mother described him as a family-oriented man. Although there was a domestic violence criminal case against him in 2007, on the day Jamillah was killed, he said he was sober.
“He apologised to everyone because he didn’t kill her on purpose. They were fighting for the knife. He showed remorse. GBV is a major human rights violation. Although he pleaded not guilty, that’s not good enough because a life was lost,” she said.
Habib probed Modise on the plans to reunify the accused and his children after he is released. Modise confirmed that social workers would take care of that.
Buthelezi, who did the victim impact report, confirmed that substance abuse was a problem in the couple’s relationship.
“The deceased would usually go to her parents to tell them the accused was abusive, and she would open criminal cases. He was abusive and jealous, and he once threw her outside naked. He would threaten to kill her, which happened in the end.
“Her parents believed the murder was premeditated because he once said he would kill her. She was a pillar of strength to her family because she would help financially. The murder put a strain on the family.
The eldest son of the accused is now short-tempered and doesn’t listen. He attends a special school and is on medication. The daughter of the deceased confirmed that her mother meant the world to her.
She sometimes wished her mom would take her out and buy toys for Christmas. She said she was angry and didn’t want to see her father. She would have nightmares at times.
The last-born is asthmatic and needs constant attention. Their lives feel empty after the passing of their mother.
“How she died was brutal and made it difficult for them to bear. He robbed the children of their mother because she won’t see her children grow up,” explained Buthelezi.
He also mentioned that he would ensure a reconciliation between the grandparents.
Mitigation of sentence
Buthelezi said the accused was the sole breadwinner. The children would grow up without their mother, and the father would be in custody for a long time. A prison sentence would be suitable, and he would learn to become a good person.
“He is the only parent left for them. He can be rehabilitated and be of benefit to his children. The three minors will still need him in the future,” he said.
The accused’s mother, Lilian, took the stand and said although justice must be fair, his children need him.
“He’s always had a good heart. He is a provider and a protector of his children. I can say frustration caused the fight mostly, and, yes, we did try to intervene to help. The burden was lifted when they bought the house. They loved each other a lot,” she said.
Jamillah’s mother, Zainab, was called but didn’t attend the court proceedings on the day.
When asked by Habib, prosecutor Israel said the accused deserved 20 years imprisonment.
“In this case, the witnesses are his children, and this will stay with them for the rest of their lives. He also went to fetch them after the incident,” he said.
However, Habib said let’s put a human element to this case.
“It was established that the accused is a family man, he was not troublesome in the community, there were drugs involved by both and a history of abuse because there were previous cases of assault. There was also love in this relationship. We must also look at the best interests of the children, and we must teach them to forgive. Build a great society,” she said.
When the accused addressed the court, he apologised to both families and agreed that, in custody, the days are not the same, with some harder than others. He was remorseful and begged for a lenient sentence.
Habib said considering the severity of the offence and the personal circumstances, Van Staden needed a sentence that would rehabilitate him and deter him from doing the same thing.
“The sentence must be blended with mercy. It was a tragic case because the victim was the wife, and the children witnessed this. The other interests to consider here are the children.
“The court does not condone people doing crime and hiding it with children. The crime was serious; the victim was stabbed several times in her underwear. You also tried to kill yourself to hide the crime. I’ve seen you since 2022, and the crime has impacted you.
You’ve lost weight, and when I asked you how you feel about losing your wife, you cried. That shows the crime also affected you. Many people are affected by this crime, including both families. It is a fact that the coloured community was deprived of many things. The government is not active in empowering them.
There is the problem of drugs and alcohol in the coloured community. It’s like they want to drown their problems.
“You love your wife, but you didn’t learn to do that. If you love someone, you don’t hurt them. Love is about unselfishness, nurturing and giving. You were trying to build this family but couldn’t because anger crept into your love. I cannot find that you are an offender who is troublesome in the community; you were caught up in the situation.
Your children are the biggest victims here because their mother is gone, and you will be gone, too. Hopefully, this can be remedied and the children nurtured with love. Jamillah is gone, and everyone must heal and try to reconcile. Children have the right to the comfort of both grandparents.
These children must be saved. Even though you killed their mother, you still have a role to play to them. This is not the end of the road. You can still prove you are a good father.
“I’m not here to punish you, but I can mitigate as a first offender for murder, although there was an assault case against you more than 10 years ago where you paid a R500 fine. In August 2022, the law changed, and you were supposed to get life imprisonment.
It was six months after you killed her, so consider yourself lucky. You must be rehabilitated, especially your anger and drug problem. You must attend the programmes in prison. They will teach you life skills and how to become a better person when you come out.
The sentence will not satisfy everyone. The court is not here to please the public but to serve justice. Considering the mercy aspect, we are not here to damage a person. I have decided to deviate from the prescribed sentence of 15 to 20 years and sentence you to 10 years imprisonment,” she said.
Van Staden murdered his wife, Jamillah, on January 8, 2022, in Forest Hill.
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