Awaiting a Fair Trial

Long-Term Remand Detention and Legal Representation

Authors

Keywords:

prison population, South Africa, long-term remand detention, lengthy trials, injustices

Abstract

Between 1995 and 2003, a number of legislative reforms made it more difficult for accused persons in South Africa to be released on bail. As a result, roughly one-third of South Africa’s total prison population is comprised of those held in remand detention. Drawing on 22 months of ethnographic research in regional courtrooms in the Thohoyandou area, this article contends that those who are held in long-term remand detention are more likely to dismiss their state-sponsored legal counsel in order to defend themselves in court. By tracing the connections between long-term remand detention, lengthy trials and self-representation, I argue for expanding how we understand the injustices associated with remand detention.

Author Biography

Sonia Rupcic, Brown University

Sonia Rupcic, Brown University

Sonia Rupcic is a legal and medical anthropologist with public health training. She is currently an Advanced Postdoctoral Fellow at the Center for Health Equity and Research Promotion at the Veterans Affairs Pittsburgh Healthcare System. Her research focuses on the intersection between gendered violence, clinical care and the law in South Africa and the United States. She is grateful for research support provided by the American Council of Learned Societies, the Mellon Foundation, the Wenner-Gren Foundation, the Social Science Research Council, the National Science Foundation, the Fulbright Program, and the University of Michigan. 

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Published

2026-10-16

How to Cite

Rupcic, S. (2026). Awaiting a Fair Trial : Long-Term Remand Detention and Legal Representation. South African Crime Quarterly, (72), 17–26. Retrieved from https://unisapressjournals.co.za/index.php/SACQ/article/view/23715

Issue

No. 72 (2023)

Section

Research Articles