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1993
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[1993] ZASCA 151
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S v Khumalo (34/93) [1993] ZASCA 151 (29 September 1993)
Case No 34/93
IN THE SUPREME COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA APPELLATE
DIVISION
In the matter between:
SHADRACK BANGANI KHUMALO
Appellant
and
THE STATE
Respondent
CORAM
: NESTADT, VAN DEN HEEVER, JJA et NICHOLAS, AJA
HEARD
: 23 September 1993
DELIVERED
: 29 September 1993
JUDGMENT
2
NICHOLAS, AJA
The late Wessel Odendaal was a 67 year old farmer. He
lived alone on the farm Katdoringfontein in the district of Reitz O.F.S. In
the
late afternoon of Tuesday 25 February 1992 he was milking his cows in the
milking enclosure of his cattle kraal. He was assisted
by a 17 year-old youth,
Petrus Dladla. His maidservant, Anna Makgwa, was working in the kitchen of the
farmhouse. As Odendaal was
about to leave the enclosure by its wire gate, he was
confronted by two men: Shadrack Khumalo and Samuel Tshabalala. They asked for
tobacco and Odendaal told them to wait. He was then heard to cry out, "Los julle
my, ek sal vir julle geld gee". Khumalo stabbed
him twice in the chest. He fell
to the ground and Khumalo stabbed him again, and, taking a key from Odendaal's
pocket, left him lying
there. Khumalo and Tshabalala each took hold of Petrus by
an arm and forced him to accompany them to the farmhouse. They went to
the main
bedroom where a gunsafe was kept. (Anna managed to escape from the house and
3
ran off to the neighbouring farm of Petrus Odendaal to seek his assistance.)
Khumalo handed to Petrus Dladla the key which he had
taken from Wessel Odendaal
and told him to open the safe. This Petrus did, and Khumalo took from it an
airgun and a purse. He and
Tshabalala then took to their heels. When Petrus
Odendaal arrived at the scene, he found the dead body of Wessel Odendaal lying
on
the ground at the entrance to the cattle kraal.
Arising out of this incident, Khumalo and Tshabalala were charged as accused
Nos 1 and 2 respectively before a court consisting of
Hattingh J and two
assessors. Two counts were laid against them: (1) the murder of Wessel Odendaal,
and (2) robbery from Odendaal
with aggravating circumstances. They each pleaded
not guilty on both counts.
Evidence as to the occurrence itself was given by Anna Makgwa and Petrus
Dladla. Anna also told the trial court that on Friday 21
February 1992 Khumalo
arrived at the house on Katdoringfontein in which she lived with her
4
brother, saying that he had come to stay with them. He slept there that night
and left the following (Saturday) morning, but returned
in the evening when
Tshabalala also arrived. The two of them stayed there on the Saturday night and
again on the Sunday night. On
the Monday they left saying that they were going
to Qwa Qwa, but returned once more and explained that they had not been able to
get transport. They slept at her house on the Monday night. They left again on
the Tuesday morning.
Detective Constable Miya said in evidence that on the evening of Tuesday 25
February 1992 he was on duty in a patrol vehicle, when
he received a radio
message concerning a murder on the farm Katdoringfontein. He was given a
description of two suspects. He drove
along the Reitz-Qwa Qwa road where he
encountered and arrested the two accused.
Dr. J Pellisier gave evidence of his findings on post-mortem examination of
the body of the deceased. There were three stabwounds
on the chest. One passed
between the
5
3rd and 4th ribs and penetrated into the pulmonary vein just above the heart.
Another penetrated the rib-cage between the 5th and
6th ribs and caused a slight
wound in the left lung. The third penetrated only to the ribs. The cause of
death was found to be the
first stabwound and haemorrhage.
The two accused testified in their own defence, but the trial court rejected
their evidence as false beyond reasonable doubt.
Both the accused were convicted of robbery with aggravating circumstances on
count 2. On count 1 Khumalo was convicted of murder and
Tshabalala of culpable
homicide. Khumalo was sentenced to death on count 1 and to imprisonment for 12
years on count 2.
Khumalo appeals against the sentence of death. It is now for this court to
make findings as to the presence of any mitigating and
aggravating circumstances
and to consider afresh whether the death sentence is the only proper sentence.
Nevertheless the position
is so clearly and
6
correctly set out in Hattingh J's careful and comprehensive
judgment that it is convenient to quote from it.
The learned judge referred to the submissions
made
by counsel for the accused and for the State
respectively:
"Mnr. Snyman, namens beskuldigde 1, het betoog dat dit 'n strafversagtende
faktor is dat u nie voorafbeplan het om die oorledene
te dood nie, en dat die
optrede aangemerk behoort te word as impulsief, dat u ten tyde van die pleging
van die misdryf 24 jaar oud
was, en derhalwe relatief nog jonk was, en dat u ook
'n eerste oortreder is. Daarteenoor het mnr. De Klerk, namens die staat, betoog
dat die doodslag plaasgevind het in die uitvoering van 'n rooftog wat
gepaardgegaan het met berekende beplanning en dat, soos reeds
bevind, die
doodslag met direkte opset geskied het."
He went on
to say:
"Ons aanvaar ... nie dat u impulsief die daad verrig het nie, maar dat u
inteendeel op 'n listige wyse gepaardgaande met sluwe beplanning
en kille
berekendheid die rooftog op die oorledene beplan het. U was vir 'n hele aantal
dae op die plaas aanwesig gewees en moes
u besef het dat die oorledene 'n
weerlose slagoffer sou wees in die uitvoering van die rooftog op horn. Hy was
ongewapen en het vreedsaam
sy gang gegaan, die oorledene is daar en dan uitgewis
deur horn dood te steek en terselfdertyd is enige weerstand wat hy sou kon
bied
teen die rooftog geneutraliseer. Dit opself saamgeneem met beskuldigde 1 se
begeerte om homself te verryk wat gebore is uit
gierigheid ten
7
koste van die lewe van 'n bejaarde man, is laakbaar en verfoeilik. Nadat u
hom doodgemaak het, net u voortgegaan om u drang na gierigheid
en hebsug te
bevredig.
'n Verdere faktor wat oorweging verdien is of daar
berou by u aanwesig is,
berou afkomstig uit 'n
boetvaardige hart, wat nog altyd in ons regspraak,
indien dit die geval is, as strafversagtend sou
figureer. In die onderhawige geval was daar egter
algehele afwesigheid van enige berou. Ons is van
mening dat die afwesigheid van berou in die lig van
die besondere omstandighede wat u wandaad vergesel
het, ook as 'n strafverswarende faktor aangemerk
behoort te word.
Wat die persoonlike omstandighede van [beskuldigde 1] betref, is [hy] 'n
24-jarige persoon wat getroud is met een kind, en is ay hoogste
skoolastiese
kwalifikasie standerd 6. Voor die voorval het hy by 'n myn gewerk en daarna by
'n meubelfabriek. Daarbenewens is beskuldigde
1 'n eerste oortreder en was hy in
hegtenis vir bykans twee maande.
Die belange van die gemeenskap is uiteraard 'n belangrike faktor wat
oorweging verdien by die oorweging van wat 'n gepaste vonnis
behoort te wees.
Daardie belange is veelledig. In sommige gevalle tree die belang na vore wanneer
die gemeenskap teen die gedrag
van 'n bepaalde individu beskerm moet word. In
ander gevalle verdien die belang oorweging wanneer die orde en vrede in die
gemeenskap
ter sprake kom. Ook tree die belang na vore wanneer lede van die
gemeenskap afgeskrik moet word. Dat orde in die gemeenskap gehandhaaf
moet word
behoef geen betoog nie. Stellig behoef dit ook geen betoog dat daar op vele
8
terreine in die huidige samelewing hier te lande
geen orde meer is nie. Een van daardie terreine
hou verband met die lewe en eiendom van veral
bejaarde en vredeliewende mense van hierdie land,
hetsy hulle in stede of dorpe of plase woonagtig
is. Bejaardes het in die afgelope paar jare die
skyf van vele booswigte geword en geeneen kan meer
veilig voel nie, selfs nie eens wanneer die beste
voorsorgmaatreels getref word nie. Daarom moet
'n
gepaste vonnis uitdrukking verleen aan die
gevoel van verontwaardiging, weersin en afgryse wat
u
optrede by die ordentlike lede van die gemeenskap
ontketen het."
Hattingh J went on to
refer to a number of
judgments, reported and unreported, in which this court has
considered
what is the proper sentence in a case where a
murderous attack has been made
on a defenceless person,
frequently aged, living in comparative isolation in
a rural
area. There has been a disturbing increase in the number of
such cases. They are giving rise to feelings of insecurity
in the community and are causing justifiable outrage. The
judgments reveal a consensus that in these circumstances the
deterrent and retributive aspects of punishment must weigh
heavily in the determination of proper sentences.
9
The learned judge said that in determining
the
proper sentence he took into account all the
circumstances of
the case as well as the mitigating and aggravating factors.
He considered
that the possibility of rehabilitation could
not be excluded, but said that
this was outweighed by the
interests of the community and by the elements of deterrence
and retribution:
"Die moontlikheid van rehabilitasie kan sekerlik nie heeltemal in u geval
uitgeskakel word nie. Hierteenoor kom egter die belang
van die gemeenskap en die
elemente van afskrikking en vergelding by straftoemeting sterk na vore, veral
wanneer die slagoffer 'n
weerlose bejaarde op 'n afgesondere plaas in die loop
van 'n rooftog vermoor word. Sodanige optrede soos die waaraan u u skuldig
gemaak het, is iets wat vir die gemeenskap inherent verderflik is. Ek het na
diepe bepeinsing noukeurige oorweging verleen aan die
vraag of 'n lang termyn
van gevangenisstraf, selfs lewenslange gevangenisstraf, nie deur die gemeenskap
geag sal word voldoende afskrikking
vir andere, en as 'n vorm van rehabilitasie
vir u gepas sal wees nie. Egter is ek in my gemoed so oortuig dat die boosheid
van die
moord so skokkend is en so luid om vergelding roep, dat die gemeenskap
die vernietiging van u opeis as die enigste aanneemlike en
paslike straf vir die
pleging van die moord en dat die onvergelyklike uiterste straf u opgele moet
word op aanklag 1."
10
I entirely agree.
The appeal is dismissed.
H C NICHOLAS, AJA
NESTADT, JA
VAN DEN HEEVER, JA Concur