A young woman who was charged with physically abusing her two minor children, one of whom is a toddler, had the charge against her withdrawn because, after a month, the investigating officer had still not provided the state with the required witness statement.

Despite the state’s objections to the withdrawal, on the grounds that the children’s safety was at risk, the court on the KZN South Coast found that a case cannot stay on the court roll indefinitely because the police were not prepared to do their jobs.

At a previous hearing, the father of the toddler had made an impassioned plea to be granted custody of his child as he alleged that his former girlfriend had a drug problem and was prone to violent temper outbursts.

The court advised him to take his custody application to the children’s court as criminal courts had no jurisdiction in such matters.