Braysich v The Queen

Braysich appealed his conviction for murder in the Supreme Court of Western Australia to the High Court of Australia. The appeal concerned the admissibility of evidence obtained from the appellant's mobile phone.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the evidence obtained from the appellant's mobile phone, which had been seized pursuant to a search warrant, was admissible at trial. Specifically, the Court had to consider whether the search warrant was validly issued and, if not, whether the evidence obtained was nonetheless admissible under the proviso to s 135 of the *Evidence Act 1906* (WA) or under the common law.

The High Court held that the search warrant was invalid because it had been issued by a police officer who was not an authorised justice of the peace. Consequently, the evidence obtained from the mobile phone was unlawfully obtained. However, the Court found that the evidence was nonetheless admissible under the proviso to s 135 of the *Evidence Act 1906* (WA), which allows for the admission of unlawfully obtained evidence if its probative value outweighs any prejudice to the accused. The Court reasoned that the evidence was highly probative of the appellant's guilt and that any prejudice was outweighed by its significance to the prosecution's case.

The appeal was dismissed.