Judge Mmonoa Teffo found that former Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu and mental health director Makgabo Manemela can be held criminally liable for the deaths of some of the 144 mental healthcare users who were moved from the Life Esidimeni health facility to non-government organisations in 2016.

After an eight-year wait for justice, judgment has finally been handed down in the Life Esidimeni inquest.

Judge Mmonoa Teffo found that former Gauteng Health MEC Qedani Mahlangu and mental health director Makgabo Manemela can be held responsible for the deaths of nine Life Esidimeni patients. Due to the length of the judgment, Teffo read only the conclusion.

The purpose of the inquest, which began in July 2021, was to determine the cause of and possible liability for the deaths of 144 mental healthcare users who were moved from the Life Esidimeni health facility to unsuitable non-government organisations in 2016.

They were part of a group of more than 1,500 patients who were transferred out of Life Esidimeni when the Gauteng Department of Health terminated its long-standing contract with the service provider.

The ruling

While the inquest investigated the 144 deaths, the portion of the judge's ruling that she read on Wednesday focused on nine of those deaths where she could make a finding of criminal liability.

Teffo said: "I have come to the conclusion that the deaths of the deceased - namely Matlakala Motsoahae, Virginia Machpelah, Terence Chaba, Frans Dekker, Charity Ratsotso, Deborah Phetla, Lucky Maseko, Josiah Daniels,...