Justice Ndewere Being Probed For Severe Backlog

The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) has recommended a tribunal to investigate whether or not High Court judge Justice Erica Ndewere was fit to hold office after discovering she was not clearing her workload in reasonable time and that she had not properly studied the file on a thief’s conviction and sentence when she set aside a jail term.

There is no suggestion of improper conduct in the commission’s recommendation, just that the judge is not up to the standard expected by not reading files properly and delaying matters way beyond permitted limits.

In the case of setting aside the jail term of a thief, Justice Ndewere reviewed the decision of a Marondera magistrate to lock up Kenneth Majecha (21) for theft and referred the case back to the lower court for re-sentencing, recommending community service for Majecha, whom she referred to as a youth and a first offender.

But she was wrong about the Majecha being a first offender.

He had three previous convictions and the court record showed this and included copies of the required certificates.

In fact, in giving reasons for the jail term, the magistrate highlighted Majecha’s three previous convictions together with their case numbers.

According to the trial record, which was also brought before the High Court for review, Majecha was convicted for housebreaking and sentenced to eight months in prison in 2016. In 2017, Majecha was sentenced to a wholly suspended two-year prison term but the same year was back in court, convicted of robbery and jailed for an effective 26 months.

The JSC contends the judge decided on the case without fully reading the record of proceedings, the trial magistrate’s reasons for sentence and the attached certificates of previous convictions.

“Had she done so, these would have dissuaded her from making the order she did,” reads JSC’s first complaint against the judge. Herald