Thanks to the combined efforts of the Wits Justice Project, human rights attorney Egon Oswald, advocate Carol Steinberg and wrongfully convicted co-accused Thembekile Molaudzi, two men have left prison carrying little else besides a heavy burden of betrayal by the criminal justice system.
After 3 years of investigation by senior WJP journalist Carolyn Raphaely, Thembekile’s story was featured in several prominent newspapers around the country. Read Carolyn’s groundbreaking accounts of Thembekile’s lengthy battle below:
“I’m innocent” is a refrain prison warders hear with such monotonous regularity, they mostly don’t listen. Zonderwater warder Levi Maphakane proved the exception to the rule. He not only listened to repeated protestations of innocence by inmate Thembekile Molaudzi – sentenced to life imprisonment on four counts including murder and robbery more than a decade ago – he contacted the Wits Justice Project (WJP) for help. Last week, the Constitutional Court reversed its own ruling regarding Molaudzi and ordered his immediate release. CAROLYN RAPHAELY reports.
Were it not for a prison warder, Thembekile Molaudzi would still be behind bars, writes Carolyn Raphaely.
Senior Journalist, Carolyn Raphaely, details the story of Thembekile Molaudzi, who spent 11 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. Between shoddy investigations, missing court transcripts and unsuccessful appeals Molaudzi was caught in a system that has been criticized for being punitive to the poor. The Wits Justice Project pursued Thembekile’s case for 3 years, helping him to find his transcripts and facilitating legal assistance, for a man Carolyn Raphaely was convinced was innocent.
Read the article as it appeared on the Daily Maverick, here, and as it appeared in The Star, here.
