IT was a bittersweet moment for the family of John Frara (66) this week as he was acquitted of the 2013 murder of his popular dance teacher wife, Carolyn.
The court verdict came as a massive shock to the community, who had followed events closely from the day Frara phoned the police to report that he had stabbed his wife multiple times following an argument.
Her body was found on the kitchen floor of their Empangeni home.
As the drama unfolded, events split the community – and the relatives and friends of both John and Carolyn, down the middle.
In the midst of the heartbreak of losing her mother at the hands of her father, Vanessa Marx has stood strong despite more than three years of abuse on social media and being shunned by many for her decision to support him.
On Tuesday the acquittal brought yet another flood of vitriolic comments.
Diminished responsibility
Defence attorney Johan van der Westhuizen, citing reports by at least three psychologists, successfully argued that Frara had suffered ‘non pathological stress disorder’, which meant he was not at all aware of his actions at the time.
The State could not disprove this professional testimony and accordingly, Frara was acquitted.
On Wednesday, a day after the shock verdict was handed down in the Empangeni District Court, Vanessa spoke out for the first time since the trial began.
‘From the start I made the decision to stand by him for the sake of my daughter. She had just lost one grandparent and I did not want her to lose another,’ she told the Zululand Observer.
She was speaking at her Empangeni home where her father has lived since the tragedy that tore their family apart, physically and emotionally.
‘It was my decision to forgive him, regardless of constant criticism on social media and in public.
‘My mother’s death was not premeditated,’ Vanessa said, a belief she continues to hold.
‘From the start it has been about my family; my husband and my daughter, nothing else.
‘I have had to endure endless cross examination whenever I left the house, to the point where I stopped going out at all.’
‘We were all stunned by the judgement, to be honest. We had expected him to go to jail. He never denied what he did.’
But she had strong words for those who chose to publicly abuse her online, which led to her temporarily shutting down her Facebook account on Tuesday night.
‘What happened was not my fault, so leave my daughter and I out of it. We did nothing wrong.
‘Of course I miss my mother,’ she said. ‘She was an amazing person. Extremely fiery and passionate.
‘But I love my father, too.’
Loyal support
She says those loyal to her stood by her unconditionally through three and a half years of turmoil.
‘For those who accepted us and helped us, thank you. All we can ask for now is for people to respect our privacy, and allow us to deal with this without their unwanted criticism.’
Vanessa and her family have and will continue to struggle to find hope and love from within the ashes of tragedy left in the wake of Carolyn’s death.
Joy and grief will forever stay with them as they remember the mother and grandmother who is gone, and focus on enjoying the remaining years with their father and grandfather.
For Frara, now a free man, the reality of the verdict is yet to sink in.
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