http://www.dailynews.co.za/index.php?fArticleId=5252356
Bail delayed for sixth time
Prayer meeting in support of detained Kennedy Road 13
November 19, 2009 Edition 2
SLINDILE MALULEKA
THERE is still no decision on whether bail will be granted to the 13 people accused of the murder of two people living in the Kennedy Road informal settlement.
Yesterday magistrate B Mbulawa of the Durban Regional Court adjourned the matter to next week for an identity parade to be held, and to give judgment.
She has been expected to give judgment on five previous occasions. However, each time Mbulawa has said she has not been in a position to do so since she did not have sufficient evidence on which to base her decision.
Before the court proceedings, the Diakonia Council of Churches held a prayer meeting outside court, led by Anglican Bishop Rubin Phillip, in support of the accused.
Defence advocate Terence Seery said it was not fair on the accused because they had been remanded since September. The bail application, he said, was urgent.
“The court has had enough time to investigate the matter. The investigation must be a fair process and in this case, it has not been so,” he said.
Mbulawa said an ID parade was necessary because not all the accused were facing the same charges, and this would help clarify what charge each accused faced.
“I asked for the ID parade to be conducted to know which accused did what,” Mbulawa said. She said the matter was still under investigation and the ID parade would be a part of the process. “This is a highly sensitive matter,” she said.
According to the state, ethnic issues had contributed and some accused belonged to a safety forum.
However, Seery objected to the way the ID parade was going to be conducted.
He questioned why the suspects could not be granted bail before these were held, and emphasised that they should be done in a procedurally correct manner. These should be done in a facility equipped with one-way glass.
Prosecutor Blackie Swart said the police should be given a further opportunity to hold the ID parade because it was impossible for the court to make a decision.
“The ID parade would help to identify specific suspects accused in the case. From there it would be clear how the bail application would be granted,” he said.
The suspects would remain in custody at the Sydenham Police Station.