Mundolene’s stepmother Marietjie Vosloo (39) was arrested on the day of the teen’s death, after she allegedly assaulted Mundolene shortly before the teenager collapsed and died.
According to Springs criminal lawyer Katy van der Merwe (who is not involved in the case), Marietjie could be held in custody for up to a year, while the Mauritian police and prosecutors gather information and build a case against her.
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Van der Merwe says the Supreme Court in Mauritius will lean heavily on the testimony of the minor boy (Marietjie’s son) who was present at the time, as well as on the evidence in the coroner’s report.
“The police, at this point, feel that they have sufficient evidence against the accused to lodge a provisional charge of manslaughter.
“Taking into account that there was a history of fighting between the stepmother and the deceased and the evidence of the boy that the stepmother was acting aggressively the entire trip, one could presume that the court may impose a stiff sentence in this case,” she says.
She claims, should Marietjie be found guilty of manslaughter she could face up to 18 years imprisonment, less than the sentence for murder which can be up to 45 years in that country.
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The Mauritian law, Section 150A of the Criminal Code, states “Where under any enactment other than the Criminal Code, a court is empowered or required to pass a sentence of penal servitude for life, the sentence may, at the discretion of the court, be for a term of not less than three years and not exceeding 60 years.”
Should the court hand down a prison sentence the accused will probably be transferred to the Women’ Prison which became operational on May 11, 1951.
South African law
If the accused was convicted of culpable homicide (sometimes referred to as manslaughter) in South Africa, the court would be bound by certain minimum sentences, taking certain factors into account, as with the Oscar Pistorius case, where the law leans towards mitigating factors when imposing a sentence.
Other circumstances to be taken into account are the accused’s personal circumstances and the crime committed.
There are no degrees of murder in the South African law.
The only distinction made is that murder requires intention, whereas culpable homicide requires negligence.
“In SA, the woman would probably be charged with murder.
“The attorney would be faced with arguing that she didn’t intend to kill the teenager or she didn’t foresee her action would lead to the death of the teenager.”
Van der Merwe says the Mauritian authority sees the case in an extremely serious light, and would seek a harsh sentence.
“The island authorities don’t shy away from asking for life sentences for drug mules, and will probably not ask for anything less in this case,” says van der Merwe.
Extradition
The Mauritian Government is more than willing to release South African prisoners to our authorities, but the SA government must sign a prisoner transfer agreement which is governed by international and domestic law.
However, SA is one of two countries in the world that does not bring prisoners home to serve their sentences here.
Mauritius follows the general process of the Commonwealth Scheme for the Rendition of Fugitive Offenders.
“This means that since there is the absence of such a treaty in SA, there is no duty on our government to extradite,” says van der Merwe.
However, some solace can be taken from the fact that Mauritius does not apply capital punishment.
This matter was debated in March 2010, when the Mauritian prime minister announced that he was considering reintroducing the death penalty.
“The island’s sentences are therefore extremely harsh,” she says.
Van der Merwe says the law governing bail in Mauritius is very similar to British law, which means that the accused could be denied bail, should she apply for bail.
Currently the legal system is a combination of French and English systems.
*Disclaimer: This article is based on the opinion of a local criminal lawyer approached by the Springs Advertiser to explain the possible outcome of this case and how it will differ to the same case when tried in a South African court.
