Collins v The Queen

Collins appealed his conviction for murder in the Supreme Court of Queensland. The central issue on appeal concerned the admissibility of certain evidence obtained by police during an interview with the appellant. Specifically, the appellant argued that the evidence was improperly obtained due to breaches of his rights under the *Criminal Law (Detention and Interrogation) Act 1988* (Qld) and that the trial judge erred in admitting it.

The High Court of Australia was required to determine whether the evidence obtained during the interview was admissible, notwithstanding the alleged breaches of the appellant's statutory rights. This involved considering the scope of the exclusionary rule in Queensland law and the discretion of the trial judge to admit evidence obtained in contravention of statutory provisions. The Court also had to consider the nature of the rights conferred by the *Criminal Law (Detention and Interrogation) Act 1988* (Qld) and the consequences of their infringement.

The High Court held that the trial judge had erred in admitting the evidence. The Court reasoned that the breaches of the appellant's statutory rights were significant and that the admission of the evidence obtained as a result of those breaches was not justified. The Court reaffirmed the principle that evidence obtained in contravention of statutory rights may be excluded if its admission would be unfair to the accused, and that the onus is on the prosecution to demonstrate why such evidence should be admitted. In this instance, the Court found that the prosecution had failed to discharge that onus.

The appeal was allowed, the conviction was quashed, and a new trial was ordered.