Baying for the blood of Jub Jub and Themba

So another day has passed with me once again passing many hours in the Protea Magistrate's Court where hip hop star Jub Jub and his unemployed mate with a liking for fast cars applied for bail.
Last week the two crashed their Mini Coopers into a group of six school boys walking home, killing four and leaving the other two in a coma. Nine days down the line, with the funerals done, the people of Soweto are now burning with outrage and ready to lynch these two boys in the streets.
The cops, apparently responding to numerous threats of violence and all the rest, barricaded the road outside the court, locked the gates and made everyone plead their case as to why they should be let in. Sorry for the journos who left their press cards behind!
Once inside, the next obstacle was the door to the court where burly cops were posted to check out the validity of press cards and allow only relatives of the accused and victims in to join the media in watching the whole hearing go down. Once the place was neatly filled (not squashed beyond breathing like last week) the doors were closed and everyone outside had to stay there regardless of their credentials.
Lucky me - I got a prime spot on the front bench. Thankfully I had not had so much as a cup of tea before I got there, so knew I would have several hours before a bladder burst. Quite amusing to watch a TV journo and her producer sip on bottles of flavoured water only to eventually give up one of their prized seats for a toilet dash.
As the proceedings droned on we could hear the masses gathered in the streets outside causing mayhem. Then a police chopper hovered overhead.
"Do you think we are safe in here?" I wrote on my notebook and showed it to the woman next to me, who shook her head sternly.
A few minutes later she received an SMS from her newsdesk telling her that rubber bullets were flying in the street outside. Clearly the place was under siege.
The cops pulled in the big crowd control water cannon and aimed it at the masses, causing them to back off a bit.
After almost seven solid hours - well, apart for one 10-minute break for a chat in chambers - the magistrate finally ordered that the matter stand down and continue again in the morning.
*sigh*
So more fun and games tomorrow!