Annetts v DPP

The High Court of Australia was asked to decide whether a man who filmed young boys in a change room without their knowledge was guilty of possessing child pornography. The appellant had filmed boys in a change room at a swimming pool and appealed against a conviction for possessing child pornography. The Court had to decide what it meant for images to depict people in a sexual context. This involved determining whether the images in question had to be objectively sexual or if the subjective intentions of the person filming mattered.

The Court considered whether the test for determining whether images depicted people in a sexual context was subjective or objective. The Court held that the test was objective. It found that the test was whether a reasonable person would conclude that the images depicted the people in a sexual context. The Court held that the images in question were not depictions of the boys in a sexual context because a reasonable person would not conclude that they were sexual. The Court held that the images were depictions of the boys in an everyday context and did not involve any sexual activity or nudity. The Court held that the appellant's subjective intentions did not matter. The appeal was upheld, the conviction was set aside and there was no order as to costs.