Parole expert Julian Knight says the Supreme Court of Appeal (SCA) has clarified the conditions under which a prisoner must be released on medical parole.
The SCA on Monday upheld a High Court ruling that declared the release of former president Jacob Zuma on medical grounds as irrational, illegal and unconstitutional.
The SCA also ruled that Zuma must return to Estcourt Correctional Center because he had not lawfully served his sentence.
Knight says: “The reasons for the decision must be consistent with what was put before the commissioner. So that’s the basic statutory framework within which the Commissioner has to make a decision so that it’s a decision that can be reviewed in the future…”
“The Supreme Court of Appeal clarified the important distinction that Jacob Zuma and the Commissioner must make today that, for prisoners serving less than 24 months, the Commissioner can simply make a parole decision without satisfying himself whether there was indeed a terminal illness.” , – Knight added.
In June last year, the Constitutional Court sentenced Zuma to 15 months in prison after he breached an order to appear before the Commission of Inquiry into State Capture.
The sentence ended on the seventh day of last month.
Former President Zuma’s parole appeal dismissed with costs: