Facebook post by convicted murderer Anthony Ball raises eyebrows in road rage case
Dean Charnley was shot and killed in a road rage incident by Anthony Ball in 2022.
Image: Supplied
Anthony Ball, a 70-year-old pensioner convicted of the road rage murder of Dean Charnley in March 2022, has drawn public outrage after liking a tribute post on Facebook from Charnley's son just six days following the incident.
In response to the controversy, Ball's clinical psychologist has suggested that the like may have been accidental.
Ball was convicted in March 2025 for shooting and killing Charnley, a father of two, on the M13's Everton Road turn-off in Kloof.
Since then, the sentence proceedings have been met with delays, which at one stage prompted the Pinetown Regional Court to issue a stay of warrant of arrest.
During the ongoing sentencing proceedings on Thursday, clinical psychologist Philippa Styles maintained her opinion that Ball does not pose a risk to the community.
This stance remained unchanged even after State prosecutor Rowan Souls informed her that Ball had faced two counts of attempted murder and discharging a firearm about 16 years ago, though he was not convicted.
Souls questioned Styles about the sourcing of witnesses for her report, to which she confirmed they were provided by Ball and his legal team.
She explained that Ball’s ex-wife was unavailable for an interview due to illness.
“Is it correct that Ball and his legal team are paying you?” Souls asked.
Styles conceded this was correct and also admitted she does not possess a medical degree.
The prosecutor then asked Styles to define a person who enjoys witnessing the suffering of others. Styles described them as typically psychopaths, lacking remorse and empathy, but insisted this definition did not apply to Ball.
The introduction of the Facebook post by Charnley’s son sparked an objection from Ball’s lawyer, Advocate Gideon Scheltema SC, who argued it should have been introduced during the trial.
Souls countered that the post was relevant not to the trial but to Styles’ report, which painted Ball as a good person.
Magistrate Muntukayise Khumalo permitted the line of questioning, stating the court would later make a ruling.
Souls then revealed that the post, shared by Charnley’s son’s grandmother, was liked by Ball.
When asked if this made Ball a psychopath, Styles responded that psychopathy is determined by multiple clinical features, not a single action.
She further stated that Facebook was an unreliable app because profiles are hacked and can be deleted.
However, Souls asked her to comment on the matter at hand of Ball, liking the post where a son paid tribute to his father and expressed sadness over how he died.
Styles maintained that Facebook was unreliable: “This needs to be proved by a computer expert.”
She said Ball would have made a comment and said hypothetically, he could have pressed the like button by mistake.
“I will argue at the end that you were biased towards the State, you painted Ball as a good person, and did not even make one single negative comment about him in your report. The State brought evidence, and your opinion still did not change,” Souls said.
Styles reiterated that learning about the past firearm charge did not alter her professional opinion.
The sentence proceedings continue.