Court dismisses Thulsie brothers application to overturn arrest

The attorney of Brandon-Lee and Tony-Lee Thulsie, Anneline van den Heever, filed for an urgent application to have the High Court overturn the decision by Magistrate Pieter du Plessis in the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court that the twins were arrested legally.

The bail hearing was set to start in the Johannesburg Magistrate's Court, but had to be postponed.

The accused only filed their application yesterday at the High Court, with the matter set down for today, thus not giving enough time for the State to prepare their responding affidavit.

State attorney Dawie Joubert told Judge Pieter Meyer that the affidavit the accused had filed was over 700 pages long.

Joubert also said that the attorney for the accused followed the wrong procedure in the application.

He said that, in effect, the accused wanted the High Court to review the ruling with regards to the arrest and that it could only be done by two judges.

　

Meyer agreed, saying he had no jurisdiction and that a review was not a matter for the urgent court.

　

"The Magistrate's Court made the declaration that arrest was lawful. If it must be reviewed, it must be done like an appeal, by two judges," he said.

According to the High Court, Van den Heever could have launched an urgent application immediately after the arrest was carried out, but since case had gone to court and a ruling was given, a different procedure now had to be followed.

Meyer said that he couldn't continue with the matter since Magistrate Du Plessis had been given no opportunity to give his reasons for the judgment to the High Court, the State had no opportunity to present their replying affidavit, and that he, as a single judge, couldn't review a ruling, and that the record was incomplete.

The matter was subsequently scrapped from the roll, with the applicants ordered to pay the respondent's costs.

Van den Heever indicated that they would now file an application to have the ruling given in the Magistrate's Court reviewed.

They hoped to have this done by next week Tuesday.