The long-awaited murder trial of Corrine Jackson has finally started.
Jackson, 24, is accused of stabbing her ex-lover to death six years ago.
She has pleaded not guilty to charges of murder and assault.
A smiling Jackson appeared as-aan as the mother of the victim, Nadine Esterhuizen, 18, sat just metres away from her in the Mitchells Plain Regional Court as they waited for the case to be called up.
Jackson is accused of stabbing Nadine 21 times, and attempting to cut her head off in what was first believed to be a Satanic ritual.
However, this was later ruled out during her bail hearing when Jackson claimed she was acting in self-defence.
The court previously heard that Nadine had a protection order against Jackson at the time of her death.
Tuesday, a neatly-dressed Jackson, with a plaster on her cheek, stepped into the dock with a notepad and pen.
State prosecutor Graham Ferguson put it to Jackson that on September 27, 2017 in Colorado Park, Mitchells Plain, she unlawfully and intentionally killed Nadine.
He said two months before, in July, Jackson unlawfully and intentionally hit Nadine with her fists all over her body.
The magistrate explained to Jackson that the penalties for these offences ranged between 15 to 25 years in the mang, depending on previous convictions.
Jackson indicated that she understood and then pleaded not guilty to all charges.
The first witness to be called up was Lorenzo Adams, the fiancé of Nadine’s older sister, who testified that he had left the house in Colorado Park early that morning for work.
He said Nadine was fine, but it was a different story when he returned home a few hours later, at 4pm.
“I knocked on the door and screamed for Nadine but there was no answer. She was supposed to be at home after my fiancée left for work,” said Lorenzo.
“I went to the back to find the bathroom window open; I saw a door closing so I assumed the person went to the [front] door to open it.”
Adams said when he got to the front, the door was still locked and he went to the back again, where he noticed that the bathroom window was now closed.
“I knocked and called the other tenant to bring the spare key and opened the door.”
Adams said he was greeted with an horrific scene, with blood on the walls, the kitchen cupboards, and the floor.
“I saw Nadine lying there covered in blood, and called the tenant to come and check if there was still movement, but there wasn’t.”
Adams said the police later asked him why the bathroom door was locked.
“I said it can’t be because we don’t lock it, they asked permission to kick it down and within a few minutes came out with Corrine on a stretcher.”
tracy-lynn.ruiters@inl.co.za