Posted on 03/25/2006 3:22:01 PM PST by GMMAC
Lesbian couple found guilty of boy's murder
Mail & Guardian (South Africa)
23 March, 2006
A four-year-old boy died after he was brutally assaulted when he refused to call his mother's lesbian lover "Daddy", The Star newspaper reported on Thursday.
Jandre's mother, Hanelie Botha (31), and her partner Engeline de Nysschen (33) appeared in the Vereeniging Regional Court on Wednesday and were found guilty of the boy's gruesome murder.
His father, Jan, sat in court holding the hands of his fiancée, Yolanda Deysel, and listened attentively to Magistrate Rita Willemse, who in her judgement, accepted evidence that among the reasons that led to Jandre's brutal ordeal was his refusal to call De ysschen "Daddy", the paper said.
The court had heard evidence from Lydia Nkomo and her daughter Aletta Lesiba, who worked for the couple in their tuckshop, that De Nysschen had viciously assaulted Jandre while demanding that he must call her "Daddy".
Both testified that while Jandre was assaulted, his mother failed to intervene or protect him. Evidence showed he had sustained horrific injuries, including a fractured skull and brain damage, as well as broken legs, collarbone, hands and pelvis.
The court accepted the evidence of Professor Mohammed Dada, a trauma expert, who said the boy's injuries were similar to those of a person who had fallen from a double-storey building.
Delivering judgement, Willemse acknowledged there was no substantial evidence linking Hanelie to the assaults, but said she was equally guilty of murder for failing in her legal duty to protect her child against abuse and violation.
The court found she had lied to Dr Elna Gibson, one of the medical doctors who treated Jandre, by saying the boy got his injuries after he had slipped in the bath.
The doctors who had examined Jandre dismissed the pair's version that he had slipped in the bath. They said excessive force was required to inflict the kind of fatal injuries sustained by Jandre.
Convicting the two, Willemse dismissed their version and said there was substantial medical evidence before her about the nature of the injuries suffered by Jandre.
The case was postponed until June 26 for a pre-sentencing report.
.......... more detailed coverage (sorry no link)..........
Boy (4) died at hands of lesbian pair
Horrific injuries showed long-term abuse
The Mercury (South Africa)
23 March 2006
By Baldwin Ndaba
Johannesburg: Four-year-old Jandre refused to call his mother's lesbian lover "daddy" - and paid with his life.
Jandre's biological father, Jan Botha, was in the Vereeniging Regional Court's public gallery yesterday when his former wife, Hanelie Botha, 31, and her partner, Engeline de Nysschen, 33, were found guilty of the gruesome murder of his son.
He sat in court, holding his fiancee Yolanda Deysel's hands and listened attentively to Magistrate Rita Willemse who, in her judgment, accepted evidence that among the reasons that led to Jandre's brutal ordeal was his refusal to call De Nysschen "daddy".
The court heard evidence from Lydia Nkomo and her daughter, Aletta Lesiba, who worked for the couple in their tuckshop, that De Nysschen had viciously assaulted Jandre while demanding that he call her daddy.
Both testified that while Jandre was being assaulted his mother had failed to intervene or protect him.
Evidence showed he had sustained horrific injuries, including a fractured skull, brain damage, broken legs, collarbone, hands and pelvis.
The court accepted the evidence of Prof Mohammed Dada, a trauma expert, who said the boy's injuries were similar to that of a person who had fallen from a double-storey building.
Willemse acknowledged that there was not substantial evidence linking Hanelie to the assaults, but said she was equally guilty of murder for failing in her legal duty to protect her child against abuse and violation.
The court found she had lied to Dr Elna Gibson, one of the medical doctors who had treated Jandre, by saying the boy got his injuries after he had slipped in the bath. The court ruled that she had lied to protect De Nysschen.
The doctors who had examined Jandre dismissed the pair's version that he had slipped in the bath. They said excessive force was required to inflict the kind of fatal injuries sustained by Jandre.
Willemse said: "I accept the evidence of the medical personnel, who are experts in their fields. There were substantial documents placed before me.
"Most of them have medical experience which spans over a period of 15 years. All of them have dismissed the version of the accused and were unanimous that the deceased's injuries were inflicted over a period of time.
"It is unthinkable that the biological mother of the child could not have known about these fatal injuries. The deceased also had broken legs and his mother should have been aware of it."
The magistrate criticised Hanelie for failing to report Jandre's abuse at the hands of her lover to social workers who were monitoring Jandre's progress after she had gained custody of him.
The boy's father became aware of Jandre's abuse only on the day of his death on June 12 2003. De Nysschen contacted him and said Jandre had fallen earlier in the day and had died.
Willemse said Hanelie had failed to tell her ex-husband that their child had been admitted to the Vereeniging Medi-Clinic on June 3.
She criticised Hanelie's fitness to be a mother, saying Hanelie's parents, who disliked Jan Botha after the two had divorced, later approached him and gave him financial help to fight for the custody of his child.
"Even your own parents did not deem it fit for you to have custody of the deceased," Willemse said.
Rebuking her, Willemse said: "Hanelie was not helpless. She was well aware of Engeline's violent outburst. She could have called the child's biological father for help, but she failed to do so. She did nothing to protect her own child."
The magistrate called De Nysschen a liar and a hopeless witness who had contradicted herself in testimony.
De Nysschen said earlier in her plea explanation that she had hit Jandre hard once with her fist but during her testimony, changed her version and admitted to a series of beatings.
She, however, maintained that the child's injuries had been caused by him slipping in the bath. Hanelie and De Nysschen were further convicted for assault with intent to do grievous bodily harm and child neglect for failing to provide or seek treatment for Jandre's limb fractures.
The case was postponed until June 26.
So, like, say....Jeffry Dahmer wouldn't count then? Or the couple that kept the children in cages?
That is a very huge, provably false, generalization. There are creepy, weird, violent people of every stripe. For instance, a pastor's wife who just killed her husband in cold blood?
My point is only that there are legitimate reasons to argue against gay/lesbian MARRIAGE. This however, is NOT the way to do it just doesn't stand up to evidence, not to mention the fact that it is wrong to paint groups with such a broad brush.
Hildy, I don't believe you understand exactly what is going on here. The murder of a beutiful little boy by this lesbian piece of excrement is a consequence of her sin of homosexuality. This murder may have been preventable if she had ceased to live such an openly sinful life.
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