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Citation
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Judgment date
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| March 1997 |
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Court increased defendant's burglary sentence to three years, stressing necessity of reasons and proper sentencing factors.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Requirement to give reasons for sentence – Sentencing discretion reviewable – Burglary serious offence; starting point six years with hard labour – Factors to scale sentence up or down (mitigating and aggravating circumstances) – Concurrent sentences.
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31 March 1997 |
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Appeal allowed: conviction unsafe due to poor visual identification, improper hearsay and misapplication of alibi law.
Criminal law — Robbery — Visual identification — Turnbull warnings — Alibi: prosecution must disprove — Hearsay: inadmissibility of co-accused statements to police — Identification parade evidence.
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26 March 1997 |
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Court reduces excessive sentence, endorses charge-alteration under s151 and forbids sentencing on withdrawn constituent counts.
Criminal procedure – Equivocal guilty pleas – Magistrate should not accept equivocal pleas; consider amending charge under s151
Criminal procedure – Amendment of charge – Court may alter charge where accused wishes to plead to different offence or evidence discloses different offence (s151)
Criminal procedure – Discharge under s81 – Withholding consent appropriate where discharge would prejudice accused
Sentencing – Manifestly excessive sentence for simple breaking-in without violence; reduction appropriate
Jurisdiction – No power to sentence on withdrawn or constituent lesser offence included in substituted charge
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16 March 1997 |
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Court confirmed sentence and amended burglary charge to housebreaking because the entry occurred during daytime.
Criminal law — Burglary v. housebreaking — nocturnal element required for burglary — daytime entry constitutes housebreaking — amendment/regularisation of charge and confirmation of sentence.
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15 March 1997 |
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Appellate court reduced a manifestly excessive custodial sentence for minor wounding, stressing consideration of mitigation for unrepresented accused.
Criminal law – Sentencing – Unlawful wounding – Mitigation for unrepresented accused – Consideration of plea and cooperation – Manifestly excessive custodial sentence.
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13 March 1997 |
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Appeal allowed where appellant's denial and supporting evidence created reasonable doubt about knowledge of a specimen banknote.
Criminal law — Cheating — Admissibility and weight of accused's statements — Denial may create reasonable doubt — Conviction unsafe where knowledge not proved beyond reasonable doubt.
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13 March 1997 |
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High Court sets aside excessive three-year sentence for theft and substitutes 12 months, stressing need for sentencing reasons.
Criminal law – Theft – Sentence manifestly excessive – Guilty plea and recovery of property – Sentencing guidelines (up to 18 months) – Duty of trial courts to give reasons – High Court review and substitution of sentence.
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13 March 1997 |
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Government’s forfeiture and conversion of plaintiff’s property entitled plaintiff to damages assessed at market value at judgment date.
Forfeiture Act – constitutional challenge; conversion of property by the State; limitation statute — when action not statute-barred; measure of damages for conversion — market value at date of judgment; rescission of forfeiture order but failure to return property.
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10 March 1997 |