HKSAR v. GURUNG ASHIS AND ANOTHER

HKSAR v. GURUNG ASHIS AND ANOTHER

Because the court was not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the two identification parades on 27 June 2019 were fairly conducted — given unresolved doubts about actors' ethnicity, absence of contemporaneous records or evidence from the actors, and visual dissimilarities on the footage — the identification parade materials (Exhibits PP30 and PP35 and related documents) are inadmissible.

Citation
[2023] HKDC 1709
Parties
Prosecution: HKSAR; Defendant (d1): GURUNG Ashis; Defendant (d2): HAIDER Ali
Court
District Court
Jurisdiction
Hong Kong
Judgment Date
5 December 2023
Case Number
DCCC269/2020
Procedural Posture
Criminal Robbery / Trial — Special Issue Ruling on Admissibility of Identification Parades
Outcome
Identification parade evidence excluded
Legal Topics
Identification Parade Admissibility, Line Up Fairness, Ethnicity in Identification Parades, Voluntariness and Coercion, Exclusion of Evidence
Source Language
EN
Criminal Law Evidence Criminal Procedure Identification Parade Admissibility Line Up Fairness Ethnicity in Identification Parades Voluntariness and Coercion Exclusion of Evidence

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Parties

HKSAR

Prosecution

GURUNG Ashis

Defendant (d1)

HAIDER Ali

Defendant (d2)

Procedural Posture

Criminal Robbery / Trial — Special Issue Ruling on Admissibility of Identification Parades

Legal Issues

  1. 1 Whether the identification parades held on 27 June 2019 were fairly conducted and therefore admissible
  2. 2 Whether the prosecution discharged the burden of proving the actors in each line-up were of the same ethnicity as the suspects beyond reasonable doubt after the ethnicity issue was raised
  3. 3 Whether the participation of the former solicitor in arrangements for the parades was voluntary or the product of coercion

Ratio Decidendi

Because the court was not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the two identification parades on 27 June 2019 were fairly conducted — given unresolved doubts about actors' ethnicity, absence of contemporaneous records or evidence from the actors, and visual dissimilarities on the footage — the identification parade materials (Exhibits PP30 and PP35 and related documents) are inadmissible.

Court Disposition

Identification parade evidence excluded

Orders

  • Exhibits PP30 and PP35 and their related documents are ruled inadmissible