The Judicial College has updated its Charge Book.Changes bring the manual further into line with the provisions of the Evidence Act 2008. They include:New Chapters4.15.1 - Silence in Response to People in Authority – Bench Notes and a Charge4.15.2 - Silence in Response to Equal Parties – Bench Notes and a ChargeRevisions4.1 - The Accused …
Tag: judgments
Jurors not allowed to do research
It's a traditional common law directive (now given a 'gloss' at s 78A of the Juries Act 2000) that jurors are not to make their own enquiries about the case they are required to decide.The rationale is easy to follow. Evidence that goes into the jury room without the knowledge of the court hasn't had …
Winch v The Queen [2010] VSCA 151: Hitting people with glasses
Edit: The RCSI tables - which I previously said were missing from the JCV's website - have now been added. I can't link to them directly but they are at 25.9.2.1 of the Sentencing Manual.The Court of Appeal decided Winch v The Queen [2010] VSCA 141 this week. At issue was the appropriate penalty for …
Continue reading Winch v The Queen [2010] VSCA 151: Hitting people with glasses
R v Halligan (No 2) [2010] VSC 232: Breach of a CBO can lead to gaol
Edit: Another example of comparatively harsh treatment is Matthews v The Queen, where a breach of CBO led to the imposition of twelve months imprisonment with a minimum of six.Unlike Intensive Correction Orders, it's rare for an offender who breaches a Community Based Order to be resentenced to immediate imprisonment. There are several sentencing options …
Continue reading R v Halligan (No 2) [2010] VSC 232: Breach of a CBO can lead to gaol
Double jeopardy
Double jeopardy is often used to refer to an accused being presented for trial or sentence before different courts regarding the same matter. It's also used to describe the situation where an accused is punished twice for the commission of the same act. Black J described the concept in this context in Green v United …