Lengthy cases and load shedding to blame for Durban court delays
Judges Matter says long-running cases are one of the reasons for some delays in criminal trials at the Durban High Court.
The monitoring body has been commenting on the release of the Annual Judiciary Report.
The review, which draws attention to judicial functions and court performance, has found that high courts in the country are failing to reduce criminal case backlogs due to a number of challenges.
ALSO READ: Zondo: 83% of criminal matters between 22'/23' finalised
Delivering the 2022 and 2023 report yesterday, Chief Justice Raymond Zondo revealed that the country's criminal case backlog increased by 19%.
Mbekezeli Benjamin, who is with Judges Matter, says load shedding was a contributing factor.
"The other is because of a lack of courtrooms and judges. In the Durban High Court which deals with some of the most complex criminal cases in KZN, there are only four criminal courts available at any one time," said Benjamin.
"Some of the delays in the criminal trials in that court have been because of long-running cases involving former mayor Zandile Gumede and the others. So, that causes a number of backlogs in the criminal courts generally in that province particularly in the Durban area."
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