Lawyers for Amber Lee Hughes maintain she didn’t plan to kill ex-boyfriend’s daughter
The former pre-school teacher is appearing in the Johannesburg High Court, facing charges of rape and murder.
Former preschool teacher, Amber Lee Hughes, made an appearance in the Johannesburg High Court on 24 July 2025 for the murder of 4-year-old Nada-Jane Chalita. Picture: Sphamandla Dlamini/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - The lawyers of self-confessed killer, Amber Lee Hughes, maintain she did not plan to kill her ex-partner’s daughter.
The former pre-school teacher is appearing in the Johannesburg High Court, facing charges of rape and murder.
She was arrested after four-year-old Nada-Jane Challita was found dead in 2023.
ALSO READ: Nada-Jane Challita’s father not shocked by new admissions ex made about daughter’s death
The court has been hearing the final arguments from both the State and defence on Thursday.
The mother of little Nada-Jane Challita sat in court, wiping away her tears while she again listened to how her daughter was killed.
In the dock, Hughes blankly listened to the final arguments as presented before the high court.
Hughes’s lawyer, Marius Bouwer, has argued that the evidence provided to the court does not rightly infer that she planned to kill the little girl.
"The State carries the onus throughout. She made the admissions. She admitted to killing the child - that is indeed so. But still, it's the State's duty to prove beyond reasonable doubt that there was premeditation as well. My submission in that regard is that on the proof of fact, it is impossible or there are alternative inferences or more inferences that you can draw from the proof first."
The matter has been postponed to 28 August for judgment.