The accused, Julies, was convicted in the Paarl magistrates’ court of dealing in drugs after being found in possession of three metakwaloon (Mandrax) tablets, an undesirable dependence‑producing substance under the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act 140 of 1992. The conviction relied on section 21(1)(a)(iii) of the Act, which created a presumption that a person found in possession of such a substance was dealing in drugs unless the contrary was proved. The Cape Provincial Division of the High Court referred the matter to the Constitutional Court because it had exclusive jurisdiction to declare parliamentary legislation unconstitutional.
Section 21(1)(a)(iii) of the Drugs and Drug Trafficking Act 140 of 1992 was declared unconstitutional, invalid and of no force with effect from the date of judgment. The declaration applied to cases where convictions occurred after the commencement of the Interim Constitution and where an appeal or review was pending or could still be noted. The matter was remitted to the Cape Provincial Division of the High Court for disposal in accordance with the judgment.
The case confirmed and extended the Constitutional Court’s jurisprudence on unconstitutional statutory presumptions in criminal law. It reinforced the centrality of the presumption of innocence and the right to silence in South African constitutional criminal procedure and clarified the retrospective reach of declarations of invalidity in pending cases.