SA Crime Quarterly

This edition of the SA Crime Quarterly examines the implementation of the Child Justice Bill, the role of probation officers, the decentralization of firearm destruction by the SAPS, and the functions of the SAPS Investigative Psychology Unit (IPU). It highlights the influence of civil society on child justice legislation and the operational challenges facing specialized police units following a 2006 reorganization.

• The Child Justice Bill, passed by the National Assembly on 25 June 2008 and the National Council of Provinces on 5 September 2008, establishes a separate criminal justice system for children. Key features include raising the minimum age of criminal capacity from seven to ten years, introducing a preliminary inquiry process, and providing a legislative framework for the assessment of all children and for diversion. While all children can be considered for diversion, those charged with more serious offences are only diverted in "exceptional circumstances".
• Despite the general protections for children, the Child Justice Bill contains provisions that allow for severe sentencing. Children aged 16 and 17 may still be subject to minimum sentences, including life imprisonment. Additionally, the Bill allows courts to impose imprisonment of up to 25 years on a child, even for less serious offences, provided there are "substantial compelling reasons".
• Civil society, primarily through the Child Justice Alliance (a collaboration of NGOs, CBOs, academics, and individuals), played a significant role in shaping the Child Justice Bill. Their advocacy focused on ensuring the Bill remained a child-rights based approach rather than a punitive one. They successfully lobbied against a 2007 version of the Bill that would have excluded children over 14 charged with serious offences from the new system's protections.
• The South African Police Service (SAPS) has shifted toward a decentralized model for the destruction of confiscated and forfeited firearms. Under this model, firearms are destroyed in the provinces where they are found using fragmentation or melting, provided commercial infrastructure is available. This approach reduces transportation risks, lowers costs for the SAPS, and allows for greater public oversight at the provincial level.
• The SAPS Investigative Psychology Unit (IPU), led by Professor Gerard Labuschagne, specializes in "psychologically motivated crimes" that lack external financial motives, such as serial murder, serial rape, and child abductions. The unit provides offender profiling, risk assessments, and investigative guidance, and it conducts training for detectives. Between 1998 and 2007, the IPU opened between 20 and 174 enquiry files annually.
• A 2006 SAPS reorganization process negatively impacted the IPU's operational efficiency by decentralizing specialist units (SVC and FCS). This redistribution of members to various police stations increased the bureaucratic effort required to mobilize task teams, as it now requires negotiation with multiple station commissioners. It also disrupted the cohesive teamwork of specialist members and initially left vacancies in provincial coordinator roles.
• Probation officers in South Africa are central to the administration of child justice, particularly regarding assessments and sentencing, but they have historically been implementers of policy rather than generators of it. There is an argument that the child justice system should be aligned with a developmental approach to maximize crime prevention and recidivism reduction among young offenders.
• The IPU's work on the case of Sipho Dube, the "Johannesburg Mine Dump serial killer", illustrates that while profiling can predict behavioral escalation (such as the shift from rape to murder), it does not solve cases on its own. The suspect was eventually apprehended by a victim's uncle, though the IPU's profile and subsequent evidence were important for the investigation and court proceedings.

APA

Skelton, A., Gallinetti, J., Gxubane, T., Muntingh, L., Coetzee, B., Stott, N., & Omar, B. (2008). SA Crime Quarterly. Institute for Security Studies. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CQ25FULL.pdf

Chicago

Skelton, Ann, Jacqui Gallinetti, Thulane Gxubane, Lukas Muntingh, Ben Coetzee, Noel Stott, and Bilkis Omar. SA Crime Quarterly. Institute for Security Studies, 2008. https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CQ25FULL.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Skelton |first1=Ann |last2=Gallinetti |first2=Jacqui |last3=Gxubane |first3=Thulane |last4=Muntingh |first4=Lukas |last5=Coetzee |first5=Ben |last6=Stott |first6=Noel |last7=Omar |first7=Bilkis |title=SA Crime Quarterly |publisher=Institute for Security Studies |date=September 2008 |url=https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CQ25FULL.pdf |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{skelton2008crime, author = {Skelton, Ann and Gallinetti, Jacqui and Gxubane, Thulane and Muntingh, Lukas and Coetzee, Ben and Stott, Noel and Omar, Bilkis}, title = {{SA Crime Quarterly}}, institution = {Institute for Security Studies}, year = {2008}, month = sep, url = {https://issafrica.s3.amazonaws.com/site/uploads/CQ25FULL.pdf}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }