{"id":796,"date":"2023-01-29T08:58:07","date_gmt":"2023-01-29T06:58:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/?p=796"},"modified":"2023-01-29T08:58:07","modified_gmt":"2023-01-29T06:58:07","slug":"how-to-open-a-criminal-case-in-south-africa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/?p=796","title":{"rendered":"How to open a criminal case in South Africa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/weslawafrica937512598.wordpress.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/black-and-white-container-cargo-blog-header-2-1.png?w=1024\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-802\" \/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Going to your nearest police station can be daunting as we know citizens don\u2019t always get the red carpet rolled out for them and sometimes situations are difficult to explain and even trickier to understand.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">To make the process go as quick as possible, we thought we would give you an idea of what to expect to gain a better understanding of the process that should be followed to safeguard yourself when you do<strong> lay a charge.&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Step 1: Contact the Police<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If it is an emergency or traumatic incident, call 10111 and tell the operator where your nearest police station is immediately. Ensure you have this police stations direct number, should 10111 take too long to respond.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If it is not a time sensitive matter, go to your nearest police station to <strong>open the criminal case. <\/strong>&nbsp;You can check all the police station details here: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.saps.gov.za\/contacts\/index.php\">https:\/\/www.saps.gov.za\/contacts\/index.php <\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Step 2: Make a Quality Statement<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">When laying a charge, you will be asked to make a statement of your version of events. Keep this short, clear and concise. Use only the facts. This is a good time to inform the police officer if you are going to be away for any amount of time, or if you are being intimidated by the accused or members of their family. A good quality statement could include:&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>descriptions or names of anyone involved or witnesses to the crime<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>the registration of any vehicles that were at the place when the crime happened, even if they were not directly involved<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>descriptions, identifying marks or serial numbers of any stolen or damaged property.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Step 3: CAS Number<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ensure that you do not leave the police station without a <strong>CAS number<\/strong> for your docket (Even if the person assisting offers to text message it to you).\u00a0 This is how you can track movements on the matter. Also write down the <strong>name and rank of the police officer<\/strong> that has assisted you.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Step 4: Investigation of the Docket&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The police have to investigate the case and prepare the docket for the public prosecutor. Your docket will be sent to the court, and a prosecutor will then decide if a further investigation is necessary. The National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) decides whether to prosecute or not. The NPA is likely not to proceed if they think the case isn\u2019t strong enough which&nbsp; is why it is imperatively important to add enough information and facts to stand as evidence in your statement.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Step 5: Court Date\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If the NPA does decide to go ahead with the prosecution, you are supposed to be notified of when the accused is appearing in court to answer to your charge. Unfortunately, this doesn\u2019t always happen accordingly as the NPA is inundated with hundreds of matters, and text messages might not reach you. This is why it is important for you to keep following up.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Patience is key<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Laying a charge in South Africa isn\u2019t a simple or quick process. Each matter will be treated according to the situation, and might take even longer depending on categorisation or if it needs specialised court assistance.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you are struggling to get any information on your matter or need strategic guidance on a specific situation, get assistance from experts who deal with these procedures everyday and work with the police stations to get an outcome.&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-buttons is-horizontal is-content-justification-center is-layout-flex wp-container-core-buttons-is-layout-a9e21a43 wp-block-buttons-is-layout-flex\">\n<div class=\"wp-block-button\"><a class=\"wp-block-button__link wp-element-button\" href=\"\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Contact Us<\/a><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Going to your nearest police station can be daunting as we know citizens don\u2019t always get the red carpet rolled out for them and sometimes situations are difficult to explain and even trickier to understand.&nbsp; To make the process go as quick as possible, we thought we would give you an idea of what to &hellip; <\/p>\n<p class=\"link-more\"><a href=\"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/?p=796\" class=\"more-link\">Read more<span class=\"screen-reader-text\"> &#8220;How to open a criminal case in South Africa&#8221;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":802,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5,1],"tags":[10,22,32,34,36,45],"class_list":["post-796","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-criminal-law","category-uncategorized","tag-bail","tag-criminal-charge","tag-law","tag-lay-a-charge","tag-litigation","tag-open-a-criminal-case"],"featured_media_urls":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/796","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=796"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/796\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=796"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=796"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/weslawafrica.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=796"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}