Johns v The Queen [1980] HCA 3

Johns v The Queen [1980] HCA 3

The trial judge did not err in directing the jury that the applicant could be guilty of murder if the discharge of the firearm and killing were within the parties' contemplation as a possible contingency in carrying out the armed robbery. At common law an accessory before the fact is not subject to a narrower test of liability than a principal in the second degree where liability rests on the same common purpose. The applicant, as an accessory before the fact to murder dealt with as a principal, was sentenced under s. 19 and the mandatory sentence of penal servitude for life applied.

Jurisdiction
Australia
Procedural Posture
Criminal Application for Special Leave to Appeal and Appeal Against Conviction and Sentence / High Court of Australia; Special Leave Granted and Appeal Dismissed
Outcome
Special leave to appeal granted; appeal dismissed.
Legal Topics
['murder' 'accessory Before the Fact' 'common Purpose or Common Design' 'principal in the Second Degree' 'armed Robbery' 'mandatory Life Sentence']
['criminal Law' 'criminal Procedure' 'sentencing'] ['murder' 'accessory Before the Fact' 'common Purpose or Common Design' 'principal in the Second Degree' 'armed Robbery' 'mandatory Life Sentence']

Case Brief

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Procedural Posture

Criminal Application for Special Leave to Appeal and Appeal Against Conviction and Sentence / High Court of Australia; Special Leave Granted and Appeal Dismissed

Legal Issues

  1. 1 ['Whether the doctrine of common purpose or common design applies to an accessory before the fact who is not present at the execution of the criminal enterprise.' 'Whether liability under common purpose requires that the killing be a probable consequence, rather than a possible contemplated incident, of carrying out the common purpose.' 'Whether a life sentence for murder was mandatory for an accessory before the fact under the Crimes Act, 1900 N.S.W.']

Ratio Decidendi

The trial judge did not err in directing the jury that the applicant could be guilty of murder if the discharge of the firearm and killing were within the parties' contemplation as a possible contingency in carrying out the armed robbery. At common law an accessory before the fact is not subject to a narrower test of liability than a principal in the second degree where liability rests on the same common purpose. The applicant, as an accessory before the fact to murder dealt with as a principal, was sentenced under s. 19 and the mandatory sentence of penal servitude for life applied.

Court Disposition

Special leave to appeal granted; appeal dismissed.

Orders

  • ['Application for special leave to appeal granted.' 'Appeal dismissed.']