Read the latest legal news, updates and commentary from the offices of Simon Dippenaar & Associates.
Know your rights around these seasonal hurdles As predictable as tourists in Cape Town, roadblocks are a festive season feature. Recently, an email has made the rounds advising recipients to check their traffic fines and pay them to avoid being arrested in a roadblock. There is a lot of misinformation in circulation about this topic, […]
Can a parent be held criminally liable for their child’s crime in South Africa? Earlier this year, Jennifer and James Crumbley became the first parents in US history to be convicted of involuntary manslaughter for a mass shooting committed by their child. They were each sentenced to 10–15 years in prison, the maximum penalty for […]
We came across an interesting case recently where the punishment most definitely did not fit the crime. A petty criminal received an unduly harsh sentence. Furthermore, there were minor children involved who might have been left without their caregiver if the sentence had been carried out. An accused appeared before a magistrates court for the […]
Reconciliation vs. retribution Globally, conventional criminal justice systems, based on punishing people for their crimes through incarceration and instilling fear of imprisonment as a deterrent, seem to have limited success. Prisons are overcrowded and rehabilitation is largely failing. Instead, restorative justice methodology, with its focus on resolving crimes by holding offenders accountable for their actions, is […]
Few things are more traumatic or humiliating than being arrested – you can find yourself in a situation you are totally unprepared for; and if the arrest is unlawful, the distress is even greater. The following information tells you what to expect and how to handle the process, if you are unfortunate enough to find […]
