In Massey v R [2013] ACTCA 5 the appellant, convicted of murder in a street stabbing, contended that it was a misdirection for a trial judge to tell a jury that she could not rely on self-defence if she had been the original aggressor and her aggression had not ceased. Support for this was said …
Tag: self defence
Brain v The Queen [2010] VSCA 172: cutting and pasting the interview
Section 89 of the Evidence Act prevents evidence of silence being used to infer guilt. If evidence can only serve that purpose it is not admissible.(As Jeremy Gans commented on my related post last year, this includes silence by any person, not just the accused, in response to an investigating official. It's possible to think …
Continue reading Brain v The Queen [2010] VSCA 172: cutting and pasting the interview
Charge Book becoming essential reading
The VLRC's report on jury directions came out in June and suggested a number of different reforms. One of the proposals was more frequent reference by judges to the Judicial College's Charge Book.In R v Said [2009] VSCA 244 the Court of Appeal delivered its strongest encouragement yet for increased use of the Charge Book. …