| Summary: | Indecent assault consists in an unlawful and intentional indecent assault which is and is
intended to be indecent.
There is some controversy in the case law whether the indecency is committed only by acts
which are, objectively speaking indecent, against the view that even though the act is not
indecent itself, may nevertheless found a conviction of indecent assault if it was the intention
of the accused to act indecent and such intention was conveyed to the victim.
It is submitted that the last mentioned approach is to be preferred but that the following test
should be used:
1. If the act, is objectively speaking indecent and there is no doubt about the
unlawfulness as well as the indecent intention of the accused, the crime of indecent
assault was committed.
2. If the act is objectively speaking indecent but the indecent intention of the accused can
not be proven, there is a rebuttable presumption that the accused acted with an
indecent intention. Such as presumption must be rebutted b the accused himself.
3. If the act is not objectively speaking, indecent but the indecent intention of the accused
can for example be proven by the accused confession to such an intention, the act
became indecent. === Text in Afrikaans === Law === LL.M.
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