Momberg appeal bid 'fatally defective'‚ should be dismissed - State

Vicki Momberg’s prosecutor says her bid to appeal her conviction and sentence is “fatally defective” and should be dismissed.

State advocate Yusuf Baba says Momberg’s leave to appeal application is “vague” and fails to establish what exactly her basis for appeal is.

Momberg arrived in court 13 of the Randburg Magistrate’s Court in Johannesburg on Wednesday without the cornrows she wore last week.

As she walked up from the stairs‚ a member of the Born Free Alliance shouted “racist” from the public gallery.

The 49-year-old was sentenced to an effective two years behind bars for four counts of crime injuria — impairing the dignity of black police officials by repeatedly using the k-word.

Momberg’s lawyers have argued that the authenticity of the video that captured her 2016 racist rant was not established‚ effectively suggesting that the recording that went viral on social media “may have been tampered with“.

But Baba said the person who took that video was called as a witness‚ and Momberg’s previous lawyers never disputed the video’s authenticity.

Momberg’s current legal team — led by Advocate Kevin Lawlor — have also accused the Randburg Magistrate’s Court of failing to properly consider her “mens rea” or criminal intent at the time of her rant — as she was experiencing a “storm of emotion” after being the victim of a smash and grab.

Again‚ Baba said this was not properly raised by Momberg’s previous lawyers during the case‚ and they failed to show she had suffered from “temporary insanity” when she used the k-word 48 times.

- TimesLIVE