Special court may be set up for looters

As the wave of violent looting and rioting that has been sweeping across parts of South Africa since last week finally begins to subside, the country’s already overburdened and under-resourced justice system is now faced with the mammoth task of bringing those involved in the anarchy to book.

This could require a special court. In response to questions, justice department spokesperson Chrispin Phiri yesterday indicated a court to try these cases on a separate roll “may be established where this is necessary and expedient”.

Deputy Police Minister Cassel Mathale, who yesterday appeared before the portfolio committee on police to brief members on the recent violence, revealed that since it first erupted on 7 July, a total of 238 related dockets had already been sent to court: 176 in KwaZulu-Natal, the hardest hit province, and 62 in Gauteng, where areas were also decimated.

And with a total of 1 197 dockets having been registered – 949 in KZN and 248 in Gauteng – this number should climb drastically over the coming days and weeks.

The sheer volume of new cases the unrest has given rise to poses a challenge for the court system, which is already stretched thin and suffering from a perpetual state of backlog.

In May, Deputy Minister of Justice John Jeffery told parliament there was a 48.87% backlog in the regional courts and it was 14.4% in the district courts.

Phiri yesterday indicated there were special measures being put in place for cases arising from the unrest, providing for them to be placed on a priority roll or a completely separate roll.

He added: “Appropriate measures must be considered for the expeditious hearing of cases on a separate roll, including the allocation of dedicated judicial officers and court personnel.”

He indicated that cases on a separate roll might be tried outside the district or subdistrict in which the alleged offence occurred. But he said the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) could fix admission of guilt fines for less serious offences.

A senior member of the NPA in KZN, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the biggest challenge would be whether there was strong enough evidence to successfully prosecute those arrested, as witnesses in public violence cases were often weak.

Gareth Newham, of the Institute for Security Studies, said special courts were not necessarily needed.

“It just means enrolling them on the court’s roll quickly and making sure they’re allocated to experienced prosecutors and detectives.”