Baby Christina abuse trial postponed again
The Baby Christina* abuse trial has once again been delayed after her father failed to arrive at court.
|||Johannesburg - The Baby Christina* abuse trial has once again been delayed after her father - alleged to be responsible for the abuse - failed to arrive at court on Tuesday morning.
Christina’s parents, June* and Theuns*, who cannot be identified to protect the child, are on trial for allegedly trying to shake the life out of baby Christina, hanging her out of a window of their apartment, suffocating her with a pillow and almost drowning her in a bathtub of water.
The alleged abuse in 2013 resulted in broken legs, ribs and a fracture in the baby’s skull, leaving her with vision problems (septo-optic dysplasia) that she may never recover from.
On Tuesday, when the trial was meant to proceed at the Germiston Magistrate’s Court, Theuns’s lawyer, Mandla Ntsuntshe, said his client was held up in Cape Town on business, and thus could not appear in court.
A letter from Theuns and his employer was presented to court, though the reason for the hold-up was not revealed.
The court ruled that a warrant of arrest be issued for Theuns, though it was held over until March 17, the date when the father will have to explain himself or face contempt of court.
Last year, it was June who had failed to arrive, citing medical reasons for her absence. The warrant of arrest issued for her from that date was withdrawn after she arrived yesterday morning.
The delays have caused further problems for the almost three-year-old case, after the initial prosecutor was replaced with a high court advocate following serious issues with the investigating officer and evidence going missing.
Christina, now two years old, is in the care of her grandparents.
*Not their real names
shain.germaner@inl.co.za
The Star