CRI/T/23/84

IN THE HIGH COURT OF LESOTHO

In the matter of

REX

NOTHOKILE TJONGA

JUDGMENT

Delivered by the Horu Mr Justice J L. Kheola on the 21st day of March, 1985.

The accused is charged with murder in that upon or about the 26th December, 1983 and at or near Sixondo in the district of Qutlung the said accused did unlawfully and intentionally kill one Noluslie Frans. When the charge was read to her the accused tendered a plea of guilty of culpable homicide. The Crown accepted the plea The facts of the case are as follows Prior to the 26th December, 1983 the accused and her husband had a quarrel regarding a love affair between the deceased and the accused's husband. As a result of that quarrel the accused did not sleep at her marital home on the 25th December, 1983. On the following day i e the 26th December, 1983 the accused found her husband and the deceased making love in the veld She threw stones at them and they ran away in opposite directions. She followed the deceased who ran in the direction of her home As she passed above the village the deceased saw one Nonembile Tjonga and called her Nonombile went to her and asked her what was wrong She told her that the accused was furious because she had found her with her husband in the veld. She asked Nonembile to plead with the accused on her behalf. At that stage the accused was still some distance from them Nonembile ran towards her and tried to speak to her but she ignored her and continued her chase of the deceased till they arrived at her (deceased's) home.

At the time they entered into the house Nonembile was still some good distance away. When she eventually came to the house she noticed that the deceased had already sustained a wound on the forehead and she

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was sitting down while the accused appeared to be hitting her with fists She intervened and tried to separate them, but the accused attacked her and appeared to be hitting her with fists. She got confused and went out of the house She then realised that she had been stabbed on the shoulder She never returned into the house but went to her home leaving the accused and the deceased in the house. As a result of the alarm that was raised the husband of the deceased together with other people went to the house They found that the deceased had already died. She had several stab wounds on her chest and back.

According to medical evidence the deceased died as a result of pneumothorax both sides - in the right thorax there were two stab wounds penetrating the thoracical wall, in the left thorax there was one penetrating wound The three wounds on the chest penetrated the lungs. There were other five wounds on the body I think the Crown did the right thing by accepting the plead of guilty of culpable homicide. The wronqful act or insult committed by the deceased was of such a nature as to be likely to deprive the accused of the power of self-control as it amounted to provocation as defined in Criminal Law (Homicide Amendment) Proclamation No 42 of 1959 I find the accused guilty of culpable Homicide. In passing sentence I took into account all the mitigating circumstances brought to my attention by Mr. Addy on behalf of the accused I do not agree that this is a case in which a suspended sentence would be appropriate. The accused did not come upon the infidelity of her husband by chance, they had quarreled about it and were not living together for a day or two because of this quarrel. It is very unusual for a Mosotho woman to go about armed with a knife The accused chased the deceased for a long distance and during that period her temper ought to have cooled down slightly. The law in its care for human life requires the sanctity of human life to be

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emphasised in the punishment imposed, where there is substantial moral blamewor thiness on the part of the accused (R. v Ncube, 1965 (4) S.A. 231)

Sentence Four (4) years imprisonment of which half is suspended for 3 years on condition that during the period of suspension the accused is not found guilty of any offence involving violence to another person committed during the period of suspension.

My assessor agrees.

J L KHEOLA

JUDGE

21st March, 1985

For Plaintiff Miss Nku

For Defendant Mr. Addy