Thompson, A.D. v The Queen [1986] FCA 404

Thompson, A.D. v The Queen [1986] FCA 404

The appeal failed because there was evidence on which the jury could find beyond reasonable doubt that the deaths or acts causing death occurred in the Australian Capital Territory; the trial judge was not required to seek a special verdict on jurisdiction; the Richardson murders were properly admitted as similar fact evidence because the circumstances were strikingly similar; the crash and fire experiments were conducted in sufficiently similar circumstances for their results to be admissible, with any differences going to weight; and the expert witnesses were sufficiently qualified to give opinions about the vehicle's impact speed.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
12 September 1986
Procedural Posture
Criminal Appeal Against Convictions for Murder / Appeal From the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory to the Federal Court of Australia
Outcome
Appeal dismissed.
Legal Topics
['murder' 'territorial Jurisdiction' 'special Verdict' 'similar Fact Evidence' 'experimental Evidence' 'expert Opinion Evidence' 'unsafe and Unsatisfactory Verdict']
['criminal Law' 'evidence' 'criminal Procedure'] ['murder' 'territorial Jurisdiction' 'special Verdict' 'similar Fact Evidence' 'experimental Evidence' 'expert Opinion Evidence' 'unsafe and Unsatisfactory Verdict']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Criminal Appeal Against Convictions for Murder / Appeal From the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory to the Federal Court of Australia

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether there was sufficient evidence that the deaths or the acts causing death occurred within the Australian Capital Territory so as to found jurisdiction.' 'Whether the trial judge was required to direct the jury to return a special verdict on jurisdiction.' "Whether evidence relating to the appellant's later murders of four persons at Richardson was admissible as similar fact evidence and whether adequate directions were given about that evidence." 'Whether evidence of crash and fire experiments conducted with a similar vehicle was admissible.' "Whether expert opinion evidence as to the speed of the appellant's vehicle on impact, based on damage to the vehicle, was admissible." 'Whether the verdicts were unsafe and unsatisfactory.']

Ratio Decidendi

The appeal failed because there was evidence on which the jury could find beyond reasonable doubt that the deaths or acts causing death occurred in the Australian Capital Territory; the trial judge was not required to seek a special verdict on jurisdiction; the Richardson murders were properly admitted as similar fact evidence because the circumstances were strikingly similar; the crash and fire experiments were conducted in sufficiently similar circumstances for their results to be admissible, with any differences going to weight; and the expert witnesses were sufficiently qualified to give opinions about the vehicle's impact speed.

Court Disposition

Appeal dismissed.

Orders

  • ['The appeal be dismissed.']