Murderer’s sentence nearly doubled after State appeals
A man’s 10-year prison sentence for murder was increased to 18 years behind bars after a High Court judge ruled the original sentence “shockingly lenient”.
High Court judge Philanda Christiaan delivered her ruling last Friday in an appeal brought by the State against the 10-year sentence handed down in January following the conviction of Hans Jaartze (27). She found the original punishment did not reflect the severity of the crime.
The judge set aside the 10-year term and imposed 18 years’ imprisonment, suspending three years for five years on condition that the accused is not convicted of murder during that period.
Jaartze, who was 20 at the time of the murder, was arrested and charged for fatally stabbing 39-year-old Jaco Kruger in the neck during an unprovoked attack in Keetmanshoop nearly eight years ago.
He pleaded guilty in the Keetmanshoop Regional Court to murder with intent under dolus eventualis, meaning he foresaw the possibility of causing death but went ahead regardless.
In January this year, the court sentenced Jaartze to 10 years’ imprisonment, with three years suspended.
His original sentence amounted to an effective seven-year term, while the new sentence increases this to an effective 15 years – if he does not breach the conditions of the suspended sentence.
Magistrate Sunsley Sizengwe cited the accused's youth at the time of the offence – 20 years old – his first-offender status, intoxication and the protracted seven-year delay in finalising the matter as mitigating factors.
Sanctity of life
Prosecutor general Martha Imalwa lodged an appeal, arguing that the original sentence trivialised the gravity of the offence and accorded disproportionate weight to Jaartze’s personal circumstances.
The prosecution also contended that the punishment failed to adequately address the unprovoked nature of the attack, the use of a deadly weapon in a public place, and the prevalence of knife-related killings in Namibia.
Christiaan, with acting judge Makapa Simasiku concurring, agreed that the lower court had misdirected itself by underplaying aggravating factors and societal interests.
“The sentence did not sufficiently reflect the sanctity of life or the need to deter similar conduct,” the court found.
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High Court judge Philanda Christiaan delivered her ruling last Friday in an appeal brought by the State against the 10-year sentence handed down in January following the conviction of Hans Jaartze (27). She found the original punishment did not reflect the severity of the crime.
The judge set aside the 10-year term and imposed 18 years’ imprisonment, suspending three years for five years on condition that the accused is not convicted of murder during that period.
Jaartze, who was 20 at the time of the murder, was arrested and charged for fatally stabbing 39-year-old Jaco Kruger in the neck during an unprovoked attack in Keetmanshoop nearly eight years ago.
He pleaded guilty in the Keetmanshoop Regional Court to murder with intent under dolus eventualis, meaning he foresaw the possibility of causing death but went ahead regardless.
In January this year, the court sentenced Jaartze to 10 years’ imprisonment, with three years suspended.
His original sentence amounted to an effective seven-year term, while the new sentence increases this to an effective 15 years – if he does not breach the conditions of the suspended sentence.
Magistrate Sunsley Sizengwe cited the accused's youth at the time of the offence – 20 years old – his first-offender status, intoxication and the protracted seven-year delay in finalising the matter as mitigating factors.
Sanctity of life
Prosecutor general Martha Imalwa lodged an appeal, arguing that the original sentence trivialised the gravity of the offence and accorded disproportionate weight to Jaartze’s personal circumstances.
The prosecution also contended that the punishment failed to adequately address the unprovoked nature of the attack, the use of a deadly weapon in a public place, and the prevalence of knife-related killings in Namibia.
Christiaan, with acting judge Makapa Simasiku concurring, agreed that the lower court had misdirected itself by underplaying aggravating factors and societal interests.
“The sentence did not sufficiently reflect the sanctity of life or the need to deter similar conduct,” the court found.
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