HARARE
–
The
High
Court
has
ordered
the
Zimbabwe
Republic
Police
and
the
Ministry
of
Home
Affairs
to
compensate
a
grieving
mother
US$42,000
after
officers’
reckless
actions
triggered
a
rush-hour
accident
that
killed
her
one-year-old
son
in
central
Harare.
Justice
Regis
Dembure
said
the
violent
conduct
of
three
traffic
officers
in
April
2017,
throwing
spikes
and
smashing
windscreens
on
Chinhoyi
Street,
was
directly
responsible
for
the
death
of
Lesley
Chitanda,
who
was
crushed
to
death
in
his
mother’s
arms.
Lesley’s
mother,
Patricia
Dengezi,
was
vending
outside
Flexmart
supermarket
when
chaos
erupted.
Police
had
targeted
commuter
omnibuses
by
hurling
spikes
into
the
road
and
smashing
windscreens
in
an
attempt
to
force
drivers
to
stop.
Panic
set
in.
Around
six
kombis
fled
the
wrong
way
down
the
one-way
street.
A
lawful
driver,
trying
to
avoid
a
head-on
collision,
swerved
onto
the
pavement,
ploughing
into
Dengezi
and
her
baby.
Lesley
died
instantly.
His
mother
was
seriously
injured.
Through
tears,
she
later
told
the
court:
“If
the
police
had
not
thrown
spikes,
my
son
would
still
be
alive.”
Instead
of
accepting
responsibility,
the
police
downplayed
their
role.
Their
lawyers
argued
it
was
not
unlawful
to
use
spikes
and
claimed
the
kombi
driver
bore
sole
responsibility.
“It
is
regrettable
that
the
life
of
an
innocent
child
was
lost
but
this
cannot
be
blamed
on
the
police,”
lawyers
representing
the
police
said
during
trial.
Dembure
dismissed
this
argument,
ruling
that
the
officers’
conduct
was
both
unlawful
and
reckless.
“The
use
of
spikes
coupled
with
the
violent
shattering
of
windscreens
during
peak
hour
in
a
crowded
street
was
clearly
wrong
and
unlawful,”
he
said.
What
followed
compounded
the
tragedy.
The
kombi
driver
was
initially
charged
with
culpable
homicide,
but
police
destroyed
the
docket—including
accident
reports
and
witness
statements—while
a
warrant
of
arrest
was
still
outstanding.
The
judge
condemned
the
move
as
a
blatant
attempt
to
shield
officers
from
accountability:
“This
bizarre
act,
defeating
the
ends
of
justice
as
it
does,
could
not
be
shown
to
be
based
on
any
standing
orders
of
the
police.”
Eyewitnesses
even
testified
that
the
traffic
officers
attempted
to
slip
away
from
the
scene
once
they
realised
the
devastation
their
actions
had
caused.
After
years
of
procedural
delays—including
a
referral
to
the
Constitutional
Court
and
a
change
of
presiding
judge—the
High
Court
ruled
squarely
against
the
police.
Justice
Dembure
said
the
state
could
not
absolve
itself
by
shifting
blame
to
a
fleeing
kombi
driver
when
the
danger
had
been
created
by
the
officers
themselves.
The
violent,
indiscriminate
smashing
of
commuter
omnibuses
and
the
use
of
spike
in
crowded
streets
during
peak
hours
can
never
be
justified.
“Such
cases
are
inimical
to
modern-day
policing
standards,”
said
the
judge.
He
added,
“Anyone
in
that
street
at
that
time,
when
the
chaos
engulfed
the
area
triggered
by
the
violent
and
unlawful
police
conduct,
would
be
at
risk
of
harm.”
He
declared
the
police
and
the
Ministry
of
Home
Affairs
liable
for
Lesley’s
death
and
ordered
them
to
compensate
Dengezi
with
US$42,000
in
damages.
For
Dengezi,
the
ruling
brings
some
relief
after
an
eight-year
wait
filled
with
anguish
and
court
delays.
Yet
the
kombi
driver
remains
at
large,
and
the
destroyed
docket
means
he
may
never
face
justice.