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Rapist granted leave to appeal
30/04/2008 18:17 - (SA)
Johannesburg - A 60-year-old disabled man recently sentenced to 20 years in prison for raping his 13-year-old niece, was given leave to appeal against the sentence by the Grahamstown High Court on Wednesday.
The man, who is from Elliot and cannot be named in order to protect the identity of the girl, pleaded guilty last week to raping the girl at his house on January 27 last year.
Sentencing Judge Jeremy Pickering, said he would grant the application for leave to appeal against his sentence after the state 'had conceded that there were substantial and compelling circumstances present in this case, and that guidance from the Supreme Court would be helpful'.
The man's lawyer, Alan de Jager, also argued that 'an effective sentence of 20 years was shockingly inappropriate in that it was out of proportion with the accepted facts in the matter'.
De Jager told the court the incident occurred at a stage when the applicant displayed a marked degree of intoxication, following a drinking binge, during which he had consumed brandy for the first time.
Remorseful for his actions
"He not only pleaded guilty and was remorseful for his actions, he had also apologised to members of the community who caught him with the girl, and repeated that apology in his guilty plea.
De Jager pointed out that the applicant had a previous conviction for rape 27 years ago, for which he had served a two-year jail sentence. He also has four previous convictions for assault.
"Having regard to the applicant's criminal record, it is further apparent that he has led a completely blameless life for the past 21 years. It is therefore argued that his out of character behaviour, was clearly brought along by his substantial intake of brandy, when he committed the offence," said De Jager.
State advocate Hanlie Pienaar opposed the application, but conceded that substantial and compelling circumstances were present.
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