15 July 2022 – 15: 32
Recommend Malesela Teffo in court. Upright consultants are questioning his behaviour within the Senzo Meyiwa trial, with one suggesting he modified into in some situations in contempt of court. File photo.
Image: Thulani Mbele
Unethical: that is how advocate Malesela Teffo’s dramatic withdrawal from the Senzo Meyiwa raze trial has been described by of us within the ethical fraternity.
“I am inquisitive about his behavior from a strictly personal level of look,” acknowledged rules skilled Dr Llewellyn Curlewis.
“It appears to be unethical. It appears to be he modified into no longer equipped to bear what he is doing on criminal draw. He might maybe maybe be guilty of contempt of court in loads of situations.”
Earlier this week, within the guts of court complaints, Teffo determined to withdraw as defence counsel for four of 5 men accused of killing Meyiwa, the soccer star who modified into gunned down in October 2014.
After giving the settle on a part of his tips within the Pretoria excessive court, Teffo, a cop-grew to alter into-advocate who modified into known in ethical circles as a labour lawyer who in overall took on cases of his ancient police colleagues, packed his belongings and strutted out of court.
His cross did no longer handiest jog away the court gallery haunted however his customers as effectively.
Teffo withdrew from the case shortly after settle on Tshifhiwa Maumela refused to entertain a complaint about penal complex prerequisites by opinion to be one of his customers.
“I will no longer continue in this court fixed with the harassment I am receiving, both from the articulate and from the court,” Teffo acknowledged.
He acknowledged he modified into being prevented from being segment of the trial because he modified into opinion to be a problematic advocate, at the side of that his arrest in April in court had been segment of a opinion hatched in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s achieve of job to utilize him from representing the accused.
His arrest modified into fixed with a separate case via which Teffo modified into an accused. After his public arrest Teffo did no longer mention Ramaphosa however as one more acknowledged police minister Bheki Cele modified into the mastermind within the aid of it. Cele and Ramaphosa bear both denied his claims.
Signalling his exit from court, Teffo this week suggested Maumela: “The reason I will no longer be capable to be in court and face you is that there are excessive allegations here where it’s possible you’ll maybe maybe be accused quantity one.”
This modified into no longer the first time Teffo had acted out of the abnormal in a court of rules.
Earlier this year, the Sunday Times reported on how one settle on had stumbled on his court behavior unbearable. The settle on, Winston Msimeki, labelled Teffo “disrespectful, unprofessional and contemptuous”.
Things had allegedly acquired so harmful within the subject earlier than Msimeki, via which Teffo modified into representing two men charged alongside Czech fugitive, Radovan Krejcir, that Msimeki penned a judgment on March 22 this year officially throwing him off the case.
Msimeki’s 23-page judgment made perfect-attempting revelations about how Teffo has disrespected him in court, even going as a long way as telling Msimeki he modified into “no longer a sober settle on” and modified into “73 years faded and must bear retired at 70 as one more of final in court carrying a political mandate with out a case”.
List a differ of other allegations — at the side of when Teffo neglected court dates because he modified into in penal complex, threatening the prosecutor in court and addressing Msimeki by his surname as one more of “your lordship” — Msimeki acknowledged: “I, in my whole profession as a settle on or criminal authentic, never skilled nor noticed what Mr Teffo modified into doing in court.”
As within the Meyiwa trial, Teffo had in a roundabout diagram maybe been of the impact the articulate modified into gunning for him, with Msimeki asserting: “[Teffo] acknowledged the gloves bear been off between him and the articulate and that the relationship between them had broken down irretrievably.”
Now that he has withdrawn, confidently new counsel who know the rules and procedures will familiarise themselves with the case and defend the accused Upright skilled Dr Llewellyn Curlewis
Corresponding to the fight he has assign up within the Meyiwa case, Teffo had tried to petition for his customers to be moved from one penal complex to one nearer to where their case modified into being heard, asserting they bear been “no longer youth” and bear been being strained by the trips from Zonderwater and Modderbee prisons.
Msimeki additional alleged Teffo had acknowledged the settle on might maybe maybe chronicle him to whomever he wished and nothing would happen to him.
“What Mr Teffo additional acknowledged merely confirmed he is disrespectful, unprofessional and contemptuous,” Msimeki acknowledged.
Relating to Teffo’s behavior within the Meyiwa trial, Curlewis acknowledged someone who modified into unhappy with Teffo might maybe maybe refer a complaint to the Upright Say Council (LPC) to study. The LPC can not start its contain investigation into his behavior.
Curlewis acknowledged Teffo’s interplay with his colleagues within the Meyiwa trial modified into unacceptable in a court of rules.
He acknowledged the code of behavior for ethical practitioners modified into strict on how one interacted with colleagues. The code, gazetted in 2019, states that ethical practitioners shall take care of the judicial officer, court workers and all other persons in court with civility and respect.
Curlewis acknowledged he modified into taken aback the settle on had no longer stopped a pair of of the applications brought by Teffo while the choice counsel modified into conducting her substandard-examination.
“I am taken aback the settle on allowed him to train irregular and unheard-of applications earlier than the court. Now that he has withdrawn, confidently new counsel who know the rules and procedures will familiarise themselves with the case and defend the accused.”
Yet any other ethical skilled, Zola Majavu, acknowledged it modified into extraordinarily habitual for defence counsel to withdraw within the trend Teffo had.
Speaking to eNCA earlier within the week, Majavu acknowledged it modified into no longer habitual for defence advocates to withdraw attributable to the breakdown within the relationship of trust between a consumer and advocate or for causes of ethical concerns.
“It sounds to me like someone who is no longer well schooled within the rules of draw or who simply can not bring collectively that as lawyers selections bear no longer necessarily jog our customers’ approach,” Majavu acknowledged.
What my colleague did modified into unacceptable, inexcusable and no longer in our title as defence counsel. There modified into no foundation for the rant that we noticed Upright skilled Zola Majavu
Majavu acknowledged accusing a sitting settle on of being an accused No 1 in some undefined conspiracy conception modified into in unhappy taste.
“What my colleague did modified into unacceptable, inexcusable and no longer in our title as defence counsel. There modified into no foundation for the rant that we noticed,” Majavu acknowledged.
Various ethical practitioners bear additionally expressed whine at Teffo’s behavior.
Recommend Gerrie Nel, who has a observing short for some contributors of the Meyiwa household, acknowledged in an interview it had been unbearable to sit down via complaints while Teffo addressed the court.
“What came about in court irritated me to such an extent I had to jog away,” Nel acknowledged, at the side of that he had chosen to rather prepare the complaints via the media.
He acknowledged he believed within the decorum of the court and in showing respect to judges and hoped that society did no longer win into the conception that such scenes performed out within the courts most frequently.
Taking to his Twitter account after Tuesday’s complaints, Teffo summed up his court drama with the message: “Yowl our loved nation … our justice scheme is variety of a circus.”
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