Zurenah Smit's bail bid fails due to ongoing mental health evaluation delays
Zurenah Smit's request for bail reinstatement has been rejected by the Western Cape High Court, as she continues to await a 30-day mental evaluation at Valkenberg Hospital.
Image: Chevon Booysen
With her mental evaluation still pending, Zurenah Smit’s bid for bail reinstatement was rejected by the Western Cape High Court.
Smit is currently detained in the hospital section of Pollsmoor Prison after her bail was revoked earlier this year, being being under cross-examination by the State during the trial, said that her deceased husband was fetching her when she was feeling ill during court proceedings.
Judge Derek Wille ordered that Smit’s bail be revoked while she waits to be admitted to Valkenberg Psychiatric Hospital for her 30-day evaluation to determine if she can follow court proceedings, as her position on the waiting list remains unchanged.
She is currently number five on the waiting list and will appear in court again on June 19.
On Friday, Legal Aid lawyer for Smit, Susan Kuun, argued that her client has only advanced one position on the waiting list since her bail was revoked on January 28.
Kuun said for 138 days, her client has waited for the expedited admission for evaluation but there is still uncertainty of when she will be admitted to the facility.
She argued that “at this rate, she is going to be in the correctional facility for some time before she is taken into Valkenberg” and that is the sole reason she is being detained.
Kuun further argued that, in light of Smit’s bail being withdrawn and her mental evaluation yet to happen, Section 79 of the Criminal Procedure Act (CPA) states that her client can be referred to the institution, but it does not compel a court to keep her in detention in a correctional facility.
Kuun further stated that Smit is currently “being kept in the crèche at Pollsmoor”, where she is not being observed.
State advocate Renee Uys rebutted that they could not agree that Smit’s bid was a bail appeal application.
Uys argued that the referral by Judge Wille, who presides over the trial matter, “was done in the utmost good faith”.
She further argued that the referral was necessitated due to Smit’s conduct on January 28 and highlighted that the trial was already partly heard and is currently in the defence case, where Smit is already under cross-examination.
Acting Judge Van Leeve said: “Judge Wille made an order stating (that) pending the outcome of the report in terms of Section 78 and 79 of the CPA, I’m just quoting that part… ‘pending the report’ which means Valkenberg needs to assess the report and that is his order.
“The application for reinstatement of bail, is in my opinion, premature at this stage and should be brought after the Valkenberg report. The matter is removed from the roll.”