R v Officer A (No 3) [2022] NSWSC 1394

R v Officer A (No 3) [2022] NSWSC 1394

Material about Mr Johnstone's antecedents, prior escape attempts, criminal history, bail material and custodial assessments was admissible only to the extent there was some evidence that the accused knew of it at or around the time he shot Mr Johnstone. Facts that Mr Johnstone attempted to escape, ignored commands and did not stop after warning shots were not in dispute, and unknown details of prior escapes or antecedents did not bear on any identified fact in issue under cl 303. The Medical Escorts policy was also irrelevant because whether others should have restrained or escorted Mr Johnstone differently did not bear on whether, at the time of shooting, the accused believed on...

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
17 October 2022
Procedural Posture
Criminal Prosecution for Murder / Interlocutory Evidentiary Ruling on the Accused's Application Under S 192 a of the Evidence Act 1995 (nsw)
Outcome
The accused's proposed tender was allowed only in relation to material concerning the deceased's criminal and custodial history for which there was some evidence that the material was known to the accused at or around the time he shot the deceased; the remaining disputed material was ruled inadmissible or rejected.
Legal Topics
['admissibility of Evidence' 'relevance' 'tendency Evidence' 'lawful Excuse' 'use of Firearm by Correctional Officer' 'escape From Custody']
['criminal Law' 'evidence'] ['admissibility of Evidence' 'relevance' 'tendency Evidence' 'lawful Excuse' 'use of Firearm by Correctional Officer' 'escape From Custody']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Criminal Prosecution for Murder / Interlocutory Evidentiary Ruling on the Accused's Application Under S 192 a of the Evidence Act 1995 (nsw)

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether documents and material concerning the deceased's criminal and custodial history were admissible where there was no evidence that the accused knew of that material at or around the time of the shooting." "Whether the deceased's antecedents, previous escape attempts and alleged insubordination were relevant to whether the accused believed on reasonable grounds that it was necessary to discharge his firearm to prevent the deceased's escape." "Whether an internal Corrective Services policy concerning medical escorts was relevant to the accused's asserted lawful excuse."]

Ratio Decidendi

Material about Mr Johnstone's antecedents, prior escape attempts, criminal history, bail material and custodial assessments was admissible only to the extent there was some evidence that the accused knew of it at or around the time he shot Mr Johnstone. Facts that Mr Johnstone attempted to escape, ignored commands and did not stop after warning shots were not in dispute, and unknown details of prior escapes or antecedents did not bear on any identified fact in issue under cl 303. The Medical Escorts policy was also irrelevant because whether others should have restrained or escorted Mr Johnstone differently did not bear on whether, at the time of shooting, the accused believed on...

Court Disposition

The accused's proposed tender was allowed only in relation to material concerning the deceased's criminal and custodial history for which there was some evidence that the material was known to the accused at or around the time he shot the deceased; the remaining disputed material was ruled inadmissible or rejected.

Orders

  • ['Only material relating to the criminal and custodial history of the deceased in respect of which there was some evidence that material was known to the accused at or around the time he shot the deceased is to be admitted.' 'Material concerning prior escape attempts unknown to the accused was ruled inadmissible.'...