Marais v The State

The applicant, Ms Ruby Charmaine Marais, was convicted in the Western Cape High Court of premeditated murder and sentenced to life imprisonment for arranging the contract killing of her husband. She alleged that she was a battered woman who had endured years of abuse, assaults and rape at the hands of the deceased, and that this context explained her conduct. The High Court rejected her defence, finding that she was not a battered woman and that the murder was motivated by financial gain. Leave to appeal against conviction was refused by the High Court and later by the Supreme Court of Appeal. Ms Marais then applied to the Constitutional Court for leave to appeal against both conviction and sentence, alleging that her right to a fair trial under section 35 of the Constitution had been infringed.

The application for leave to appeal was dismissed. The application by Tshwaranang Legal Advocacy Centre to be admitted as amicus curiae was refused.

The case reaffirms the limits of the Constitutional Court’s jurisdiction in criminal matters, particularly that mere disputes over factual findings do not amount to constitutional issues. It clarifies that alleged misdirections in evaluating evidence, without more, do not engage the right to a fair trial. The judgment also confirms that once leave to appeal has been refused by the Supreme Court of Appeal, the Constitutional Court lacks power to reopen the case or admit further evidence.