Read the full judgment text of CACC 000019/1996 on BabelCite. This Court of Appeal judgment was delivered on 6 August 1996.
1. At the time of the charge, the applicant was 77. He suffered from asthma and lung emphysema. He was charged with murdering his wife. The applicant told the judge that he was defending himself and that he did not deliberately kill his wife. Because of his mental condition, his plea to manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility was accepted by the court. The matter that remained to be resolved was the sentence to be passed on the applicant.