Weir & Ors, R. v

Weir & Ors, R. v

The Court held that the statutory gateways for admitting bad character evidence must be strictly applied. In Weir, the evidence of a caution was admissible to show propensity, even though not of the same statutory category as the charged offence. In Somanathan, the evidence of similar behaviour towards other women was admissible under s.101(1)(d), (f), and (g), and the judge's directions were adequate. In Yaxley-Lennon, the evidence of a witness's caution was inadmissible under s.100, but the judge's strong direction cured any prejudice and the conviction was safe. In Manister, evidence of a prior lawful sexual relationship did not amount to misconduct but was admissible at common law as...

Parties
Prosecution: R; Appellant/defendant: Antony Albert Weir; Appellant/defendant: Ramanathan Somanathan; Appellant/defendant: Stephen Yaxley-Lennon; Appellant/defendant: Simon Manister; Appellant/defendant: Hong Qiang He; Appellant/defendant: De Qun He
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
11 November 2005
Procedural Posture
Criminal Appeal / Judgment on Consolidated Appeals
Outcome
Appeals variously dismissed or allowed in part.
Legal Topics
Bad Character Evidence, Admissibility of Evidence, Propensity, Credibility of Witnesses, Directions to Jury, Misconduct, Sexual Offences, Violent Disorder
Criminal Law Evidence Bad Character Evidence Admissibility of Evidence Propensity Credibility of Witnesses Directions to Jury Misconduct +2 more

Case Brief

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Parties

R

Prosecution

Antony Albert Weir

Appellant/defendant

Ramanathan Somanathan

Appellant/defendant

Stephen Yaxley-Lennon

Appellant/defendant

Simon Manister

Appellant/defendant

Hong Qiang He

Appellant/defendant

De Qun He

Appellant/defendant

Procedural Posture

Criminal Appeal / Judgment on Consolidated Appeals

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether evidence of bad character was properly admitted under the Criminal Justice Act 2003 in each case
  2. 2 Whether the trial judges gave adequate reasons and directions regarding bad character evidence
  3. 3 Whether the admission of certain evidence rendered convictions unsafe

Ratio Decidendi

The Court held that the statutory gateways for admitting bad character evidence must be strictly applied. In Weir, the evidence of a caution was admissible to show propensity, even though not of the same statutory category as the charged offence. In Somanathan, the evidence of similar behaviour towards other women was admissible under s.101(1)(d), (f), and (g), and the judge's directions were adequate. In Yaxley-Lennon, the evidence of a witness's caution was inadmissible under s.100, but the judge's strong direction cured any prejudice and the conviction was safe. In Manister, evidence of a prior lawful sexual relationship did not amount to misconduct but was admissible at common law as...

Court Disposition

Appeals variously dismissed or allowed in part.

Orders

  • Weir: Appeal against conviction dismissed.
  • Somanathan: Appeal against conviction dismissed.