$ = R 7.92
£ = R 12.64
€ = R 11.01
Oil = $ 111.99
Gold = $ 1701.05
Last Update:
22:02 25 Oct 11
SPONSORED LINKS ›
Cars Online
Property Search
Online Dating
Local sleepovers
Book flights online!
Work money smarter
Wine of the Week
Win the Lottery
Go shopping!
Cezanne Visser, dubbed 'Advocate Barbie'. Sapa
Barbie 'self-controlled'
Wed, 07 Oct 2009 12:00
Former advocate Cezanne Visser, also known as "Advocate Barbie",
was not under anyone's power or control when she participated in
the sexual abuse of young girls and women, a High Court Judge ruled
in Pretoria on Wednesday.
Acting Judge Chris Eksteen convicted Visser on 11 charges of
defrauding a children's home, soliciting a 15-year-old girl to
commit indecent acts, indecently assaulting girls aged 11 and 14,
indecently assaulting two young adult women, being a beneficiary to
the indecent assault of another young woman, as well as the
manufacturing and possession of child pornography.
The Judge rejected Visser's defence that she was a "battered
woman" who "had no will of her own" because of her former lover,
Dirk Prinsloo's coercive control.
"Prinsloo probably strived to eventually dominate her, but
there's no indication that she was totally under his power and
control during the commission of the crimes."
The diagnosis (of a clinical psychologist) that she suffered
from battered woman syndrome was mainly based on what she and her
mother told the psychologist, without reference to the background
of the charges.
"There's no basis for a finding that during the commission of
the crimes her ability to distinguish between right and wrong had
been had been so diluted as she and her mother made out to the
court.
"It can not in any manner be regarded as grounds for
justification (of her actions)," he said.
The Judge referred to numerous discrepancies in Visser's
evidence and said he was particularly struck by Visser's tendency
to give others, such as her father and Prinsloo, the blame for her
actions.
He said it would be interesting to hear what Prinsloo had to say
about all of the accusations against him.
He also repeatedly referred to the evidence of Prinsloo's former
personal assistant, Laurie Pieters, who testified that Visser had
repeatedly told her that sex with Prinsloo was amazing, that he
gave her what no other man could and that she loved him.
"The court finds that the accused now wants to hide behind
Prinsloo's activities for convenience sake to justify her own
conduct and deeds.
"It cannot be said that she had been incapable of making her own
decisions and acted involuntarily.
"...She was fully aware of Prinsloo's liberal views about sex
and had reconciled herself with it. She enjoyed being made over by
him to become an international idol.
"Her fear for him only manifested after their arrest. She
already started trimming her sails to the wind in the police cells
when she indicated that Prinsloo had manipulated her.
"She was probably fully aware of the unlawfulness of their
actions. Her attitude is so typical of people - it's not me, it's
him," the Judge added.
Judge Eksteen found that Visser had been aware of and had
reconciled herself with and actively participated in Prinsloo's
sexual preferences and activities after moving in with him.
She had gone along with enlarging her breasts and getting
intimate tattoos and piercings because she wanted to become an
international model, he said.
"She had pretended to children's homes that she was a married
woman and wanted to help children. She took the initiative to
approach children's homes to get young girls for sexual abuse.
"...Her conduct and that of Prinsloo were aimed throughout at
sexually abusing children and women for the gratification of their
own sexual preferences.
"She had rejected all help and chances to get away from
Prinsloo," he said.
The Judge found that Visser had, amongst others, exposed herself
to children, offered to have a child's private parts waxed and
pierced, demonstrated oral sex and a vibrator to children and had
sex with Prinsloo in front of some of the six victims with the
purpose of enticing them to commit indecent acts.
She had also personally indecently assaulted one of the children
and two of the women and lied under oath about a third woman, who
was forced to have oral sex with Prinsloo.
She had also posed naked for photos with two unknown young black
girls while committing explicit sexual acts with the children. As a
trained advocate, she must have known that at least one of the
children was visibly very young.
The atmosphere in her and Prinsloo's house, the presence of
pornography and sex toys and the sexual elements of their whole
line of conduct had been aimed at creating the type of atmosphere
to entice victims, the Judge concluded.
He said Visser had been well aware that Prinsloo used so-called
date rape drugs to sexually abuse women, children and even her own
mother, had participated in these actions and had reconciled
herself with it by taking young victims and children to their
house, where they fell prey to Prinsloo's sexual abuse.
Pieters afterwards told reporters she was satisfied that Visser
got what she deserved, because it was "disgusting" how young some
of her victims were.
She felt Visser should be sent to jail for her actions.
Visser's mother, Susan, took her to the bathroom after the
judgment, from where she emerged with red eyes some time later.
She was flanked by her legal representative, her mother and
stepfather when she left court, but did not want to talk to any of
the reporters and photographers who pursued her down the road.
Sentencing proceedings will commence on December 8.