OWN CORRESPONDENT, Cape Town | Thursday
SPEEDING magistrates are in a special class of their own, the Knysna Magistrates’ Court decided this week – finding a magistrate not guilty because he was speeding to get to court.
According to a report in the Cape Argus, regional magistrate Marius Fourie was trapped at 129km/h in an 80km/h zone, but Knysna magistrate Abe Marais found Fourie was delayed by unforeseeable domestic circumstances, and had acted to the benefit of the state by hurrying to get to court on time.
Under these circumstances it could not be said that he had acted against the legal convictions of the community, Marais said in his ruling.
The office of the Western Cape director for public prosecutions intends appealing the acquittal.
According to the Argus report, Fourie lives in George and has to drive to Knysna regularly to preside over the town’s circuit court.
On 3 March he was trapped at 9.05am – five minutes after the official court starting time – in a speedtrap between Knysna and George.
He told the court that he was an experienced and safe driver, he created no danger for other motorists and that he could bring his car to a stop with no trouble at all.
A court source told the Argus that no local prosecutor wanted to tackle Fourie’s case and the state was forced to brief an advocate, Jan Theron, to prosecute.
At Fourie’s trial, Theron said that a magistrate had no obligation towards the state other than to see that justice was being done, which in practice meant to decide on the guilt or innocence of an accused person.
He said a magistrate would be expected to keep to the speed limit – to set an example. The state and “any other person in the service of the state” was bound by the Road Traffic Act.