R v Daryl Bruce Lewis [2003] NSWCCA 180

R v Daryl Bruce Lewis [2003] NSWCCA 180

The cumulative admission of highly prejudicial evidence about violence by Mrs Md, uncharged assaults and other conduct by the appellant, together with inadequate relationship evidence warnings, inadequate Longman and Murray directions, failure to direct that each count be considered separately, and prejudicial cross-examination, rendered the trial fundamentally unfair and caused a miscarriage of justice requiring the convictions on counts 2 to 9 to be quashed and a new trial ordered. Count 1 was also quashed and an acquittal entered because charging assault on the alleged facts would be a contrivance to circumvent the 12-month statutory bar applicable to indecent assault under s78 of the...

Jurisdiction
Australia
Judgment Date
04 July 2003
Procedural Posture
Criminal Appeal Against Conviction and Application for Leave to Appeal Against Sentence / New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal
Outcome
Appeal against conviction allowed; convictions on counts 2 to 9 quashed with a new trial ordered; conviction on count 1 quashed and verdict of acquittal entered; sentence appeal not dealt with.
Legal Topics
['appeal Against Conviction' 'sexual Offences' 'relationship Evidence' 'longman Direction' 'murray Direction' 'miscarriage of Justice' 'unfair Prejudice' 'statutory Time Bar']
['criminal Law' 'criminal Procedure' 'evidence'] ['appeal Against Conviction' 'sexual Offences' 'relationship Evidence' 'longman Direction' 'murray Direction' 'miscarriage of Justice' 'unfair Prejudice' 'statutory Time Bar']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Criminal Appeal Against Conviction and Application for Leave to Appeal Against Sentence / New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ["Whether the trial miscarried because prejudicial evidence of assaults by the appellant's mother and other uncharged conduct was admitted." 'Whether relationship evidence was admitted and used beyond its legitimate purpose and without adequate directions.' 'Whether the jury should have received fuller Longman and Murray directions and directions to consider each count separately.' 'Whether count 1, charged as assault, was an impermissible attempt to avoid the statutory bar applicable to indecent assault proceedings under s78 of the Crimes Act.' 'Whether leave should be granted under rule 4 of the Criminal Appeal Rules to raise grounds not objected to at trial.']

Ratio Decidendi

The cumulative admission of highly prejudicial evidence about violence by Mrs Md, uncharged assaults and other conduct by the appellant, together with inadequate relationship evidence warnings, inadequate Longman and Murray directions, failure to direct that each count be considered separately, and prejudicial cross-examination, rendered the trial fundamentally unfair and caused a miscarriage of justice requiring the convictions on counts 2 to 9 to be quashed and a new trial ordered. Count 1 was also quashed and an acquittal entered because charging assault on the alleged facts would be a contrivance to circumvent the 12-month statutory bar applicable to indecent assault under s78 of the...

Court Disposition

Appeal against conviction allowed; convictions on counts 2 to 9 quashed with a new trial ordered; conviction on count 1 quashed and verdict of acquittal entered; sentence appeal not dealt with.

Orders

  • ['Convictions in respect of counts 2 to 9 be quashed and there be a new trial.' 'Conviction in respect of count 1 be quashed and in respect of that count there be a verdict of acquittal.']