Nobody in South Africa is safe from violent crime and violence against women and children, those who are more vulnerable, is on the increase. According to the latest crime statistics, a rape is reported every 12 minutes, and more than 10 women are killed every day. Do these statistics influence the amount of force that can be expected from a woman when she is attacked and what legal ramifications could she face in a situation where she defends herself against a lesser armed attacker.
Sarah, a 21-year-old woman from Pretoria was walking toward her car after a late-night shift at her work when she was approached by a man. The man, who was much larger and stronger than Sarah, advanced on Sarah and from his comments it was clear that his intent was to rape and to cause grievous bodily harm.
Sarah recently passed a firearm training course and was carrying a licensed 9mm pistol. Realising that her life was in danger, she reached for her pistol, trained it on her attacker and shouted at him to leave her alone. Instead of fleeing, the attacker’s anger seemed to escalate and he stormed at her. Sarah fired two shots , fatally wounding the attacker .
What legal ramifications could Sarah face, given that her attacker was unarmed?
Our expert in criminal law Dr. Llewelyn Curlewis advises:
The answer to this question in our law is actually trite. It is not an easy assessment, due to the fact that each and every scenario must be considered on its own merits, but nonetheless, it is a legal question that features often in our courts. In short, it is clear that Sarah will rely on self-defence as her possible defence against a charge of murder or any competent verdict on the assumption that the State decides to prosecute her. If successfully raised, the court will find that she did not act unlawfully. It must be noted that she probably will also deny mens rea (the intention or knowledge of wrongdoing , as opposed to the action or conduct of the accused), being also one of the other required elements of the crime before a conviction may follow.
That being said, ultimately the court will objectively assess whether Sarah complied with the requirements in law setting the parameters for self-defence and one of the questions to be answered is obviously whether her life was in imminent danger, and if other less drastic options were available to her at the time. Once again, giving Sarah the benefit of the doubt in the times we live in and where South Africa is actually facing its own war against crime, with proper legal assistance-, she should walk out scot-free. This is exactly why firearm owners need the assistance that Firearms Guardian offers.
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