Update

GEORGE NEWS - The inquest into the death of Reshall Jimmy (33), the Johannesburg man who burnt to death in his Ford Kuga while on holiday in Wilderness in December 2015, has been postponed to 18 March in order to obtain outstanding evidence and witness statements.

The inquest will determine if Ford can be prosecuted for Jimmy's death.

According to AfriForum's legal team, the application to postpone was initiated by Ford and was done without any notice to the Jimmy family or their legal team. Neither the police nor the Jimmy family requested the postponement, therefore this delay is, according to AfriForum, only in Ford's interest.

The head of AfriForum's private prosecution unit, Adv Gerrie Nel, known as The Bulldog for his doggedness in court, appeared in the Western Cape High Court on behalf of the Jimmy family.

In a telephonic interview he told the George Herald he does not foresee that the unexpected postponement will influence his case, but he is concerned about the impact on the family.
"The postponement caused the family additional trauma and has financial implications. They are from Johannesburg and prepared to spend at least the next month in Cape Town to attend court proceedings. The postponement came as a shock to us all," Nel said.

Presiding officer, judge Robert Henney, ordered the legal teams of both Ford and the Jimmy family to submit all applications for subpoenas this week and that by next Friday all outstanding statements from witnesses have to be submitted.

A pre-trial is scheduled for 8 March after which the inquest will in all probability start 10 days later.

Adv Gerrie Nel in court on Monday.

42 witnesses and experts
Adv André Bezuidenhout, Ford's legal representative, said that some of their 14 eyewitnesses have not made statements and subpoenas to obtain certain information still have to be issued. Ford's legal team aims to call 42 witnesses and experts. The company is also looking for, among other things, Jimmy's bank records, cellphone records and CCTV footage from the cameras at the Fairy Knowe Hotel where he stayed in Wilderness.

In a press release, Andrew Leask, investigator at AfriForum's private prosecution unit, said postponement of the proceedings will not keep them from ensuring that justice prevails.
"We cannot allow big corporate companies to not accept responsibility in cases such as this. Proof points to the fire being caused by a mechanical error and we trust that this judicial inquest will bring the truth to light," he said.

If the court decides that the fire was caused by a mechanical fault, Ford could face a charge of culpable homicide.

Reshall Jimmy.

Judge's decision fair
According to Renisha Jimmy, Jimmy's sister, they accept judge Henney's decision. "Although a lot of planning went into travelling and attending this leg of court procedures, we are happy with his [Henney's] decision. It seems like a step in the right direction and we are getting on with the matter. He seems very fair," she told the George Herald.

Judge Robert Henney.

Recalled Fords
More than 80 Ford Kugas have burst into flames since Jimmy's death, the latest a Ford Kuga Ecoboost that caught alight in East London on Friday 1 February. In a 2018 article on www.businesslive.co.za, Ford Motor Company Southern Africa said in a statement it "has learned that certain derivatives of Focus, Kuga and Transit Connect and Tourneo Connect vehicles with manual gearboxes could suffer a clutch pressure plate fracture, with the risk of fire. Safety is always a top priority and we are acting quickly to address this issue."

According to the article a total of 13 430 vehicles were identified under the recall campaign.