A 71-year-old Marina Da Gama man accused of murdering his wife abandoned his bail application during a brief appearance in the Muizenberg Magistrate’s Court on Monday November 9.
William Carter faces a charge of murder after his wife, Fran Carter, 66, was found dead on the kitchen floor of the couple’s home in Uitsig Road, Marina Da Gama, on Saturday, October 17 with stab wounds to her head and back.
She was declared dead at the scene. Mr Carter was found outside the house with a gunshot wound to his stomach.
He claimed they had been attacked by two men and he had been shot during a scuffle for the gun.
He was arrested on Monday October 26 after being discharged from a private hospital where he had been treated for his injury.
Mr Carter stood in the dock wearing a tracksuit top, which was inside-out, blue jeans and flip-flops.
An application brought by the media requesting to take photographs in court were was heard before the start of his bail application. The State did not oppose the application, but Mr Carter’s Legal Aid representative, Shelley Eckles, did.
She said her client was innocent until proven guilty and she wanted to prevent a “trial by media.” She said interested parties were welcome to attend the court proceedings should they wished to see what Mr Carter looked like.
However, Magistrate Crystal McKenna, approved the application saying it was in the interest of the public and due to Covid-19 restrictions, a limited number of people were allowed in the court.
Mr Carter’s bail application then proceeded with Ms Eckles telling the court that her client had instructed her to abandon his bail application. No further details were provided.
Ms McKenna asked Mr Carter to stand up and confirm what Ms Eckles had said. He responded: “yes”.
Mr Daniels said the State was awaiting the post-mortem results and witness statements.
Mr Carter’s family was not present in court but was outside the court earlier.
They left after a brief conversation with Ms Eckles before proceedings started.
The case was postponed to December for further investigation. Mr Carter will remain in custody.
