When someone who committed a horrendous crime is found guilty, it puts us at ease, and we sleep a little better at night, knowing the world is a little bit safer.
But what happens when someone is found guilty when they have not committed the crime?
In 2011, Nolubabalo Nomsuka (23) was eight months pregnant when she started going into labour.
She called a friend for help, but by the time her friend arrived, Nolubabalo had given birth, and the baby was dead.
The neighbours came and started accusing Nolubabalo of strangling her baby, and the police were called.
In a video, Nolubabalo speaks about the abuse she received from the police, who were unwilling to hear what she had to say.
She was tortured until she confessed to the murder of her baby.
The medical examiner testified in court that there were no signs of strangulation and that the baby died of natural causes.
This testimony was disregarded by the magistrate, and the testimony of witnesses who arrived after the birth was relied on.
Nolubabalo was found guilty and sentenced to life in prison. This sentence was later reduced to 20 years because she had a two-year-old daughter.
In 2012, lawyers from Legal Aid assisted Nolubabalo in filing an appeal.
Two High Court judges unanimously ruled that the prosecution had failed to provide sufficient evidence for a guilty verdict.
Nolubabalo was acquitted and released after five years and six months in prison.
One has to wonder how many times innocent people are sent to prison.
The High Court judges criticised the trial magistrate for disregarding the medical testimony of the experienced pathologist.
While Nolubabalo was supposed to mourn the death of her son, she had to endure a second trauma of being sent to prison for his murder – almost six years of her life stolen by the system.
Nolubabalo used her time in prison to productively finish her matric and started studying towards her degree in business studies.
An emotional Nolubabalo said it was one of the most painful things she has ever experienced.
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