Agresti v The Queen

The appeal in *Agresti v The Queen* was brought before the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory by the appellant, Agresti, against his conviction for sexual intercourse without consent. The central dispute concerned whether the complainant's consent, or lack thereof, was vitiated by her intoxication, and whether the appellant had acted recklessly as to her consent.

The legal issues before the Court of Appeal included whether the complainant was unconscious during the sexual intercourse, and consequently unable to consent, and whether the appellant was reckless regarding her consent. Crucially, the court had to determine the correct test for causation under s 67(1)(e) of the *Crimes Act 1900* (ACT) concerning whether the complainant's consent was caused by the effect of intoxicating liquor. The court also considered whether the jury's verdict was unreasonable and unsupported by the evidence.

The Court of Appeal found that the trial judge's direction to the jury regarding the causation of consent by intoxication was erroneous. This error led the court to uphold the appeal on this ground, setting aside the conviction and sentence and ordering a new trial. However, the court dismissed the appeal on the ground that the verdict was unreasonable, finding that it was open to the jury to have found the appellant guilty beyond reasonable doubt based on the evidence presented.

Consequently, the Court of Appeal ordered that the appeal be upheld, the convictions and sentences be set aside, and a new trial be ordered on Count 1. The appellant was granted bail pending further orders and the delivery of the court's reasons, with a prohibition on the publication of the judgment until the conclusion of the new trial.