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Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Indecent Assault (Incl. aggravated) |
Sentence: |
15 years |
Years Imprisoned: |
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Year Crime: |
2002 |
Year Convicted: |
2010 |
Year Cleared: |
2015 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
South Africa |
County or Region of Crime: |
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City of Crime: |
Umhlanga |
Result: |
Judicially Exonerated Released |
Summary of Case: |
"Stewart Graham Hewitt was wrongly convicted in December 2010 of indecent assault in Durban, South Africa. Hewitt, a businessman who lived in Umhlanga, was prosecuted for allegedly assaulting the daughter of a family friend as late as 2004 when she was 12 Although the alleged victim was 18 at the time of Hewitt's trial, legally an adult, and available to testify, the judge allowed an intermediary to provide hearsay testimony about what the woman said happened -- instead of the woman testifying herself. After his conviction following a bench trial, Hewitt was sentenced on November 25, 2011 to 15 years in prison by Durban Regional Court magistrate, Delia Turner, even though he had fired his lawyer prior to the sentencing hearing, during which he was unrepresented. Stewart Hewitt was allowed to remain free on R150,000 (abt US$10,700) bail pending the outcome of his appeal. On February 19, 2015 the Pietermaritzburg High Court overturned Hewitt's conviction on the basis of pervasive judicial bias by Turner against Hewitt during the trial, and that Turner sentenced Hewitt even though he had no legal representation during the hearing. Hewitt was freed by the Court which did not order his retrial, stating: "An accused person is entitled to have his trial completed within a reasonable time." Because his conviction was overturned on those grounds, the appeals court judges didn't have to decide the additional issue that the judge erred by allowing an intermediary to provide hearsay testimony as if the alleged victim was still a juvenile (under 18 years old), and not an adult woman." |
Conviction Caused By: |
Hearsay testimony by a single witness. |
Innocence Proved By: |
"On February 19, 2015 the Pietermaritzburg High Court overturned Hewitt's conviction on the basis of pervasive judicial bias by Turner against Hewitt during the trial, and that Turner sentenced Hewitt even though he had no legal representation during the hearing. Hewitt as freed by the Court which did not order his retrial." |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Compensation Awarded: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Male |
Skin/Ethnicity: |
White |
Information Source 1: |
"Intermediaries ruling overturned, By Tania Broughton, The Mercury, November 18 2015 " |
Information Location 1: |
http://www.iol.co.za/news/crime-courts/intermediaries-ruling-overturned-1.1947337#.Vk4KZfsS29U |
Information Source 2: |
"Hewitt fires lawyer before sentencing, By Rizwana Sheik Umar, Daily News, November 28 2011" |
Information Location 2: |
http://www.iol.co.za/dailynews/news/hewitt-fires-lawyer-before-sentencing-1.1187738#.Vk4L-fsS29U |
Information Source 3: |
"Businessman’s assault conviction scrapped, By Sharika Regchand, The Mercury, February 20 2015" |
Information Location 3: |
http://www.iol.co.za/news/crime-courts/businessman-s-assault-conviction-scrapped-1.1821417#.Vk4R9vsS29U |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org