Crossman v Queensland Police Service

The appellant, Crossman, was convicted of exceeding the speed limit under the Transport Operations (Road Use Management) Act 1995 (Qld). The conviction resulted in a fine of $600, a payment of $89.90 in costs, and a recorded conviction. The appellant appealed against the conviction, arguing that the Magistrate exhibited a reasonable apprehension of bias, the notice of intention to challenge or dispute was ruled invalid, certificates under s 124(1) were inadmissible, the use of body-worn camera footage was unfair, and the Magistrate refused to allow cross-examination of the police witness. The appeal was heard in the Queensland Court of Appeal.

The appeal raised several legal issues, including whether the Magistrate exhibited a reasonable apprehension of bias, whether the notice of intention to challenge or dispute was invalid, whether certificates under s 124(1) were inadmissible, whether the use of body-worn camera footage was unfair, and whether the Magistrate refused to allow cross-examination of the police witness. The court was required to determine if these issues affected the fairness of the trial and the conviction.

The court found that there was no reasonable apprehension of bias exhibited by the Magistrate. The notice of intention to challenge or dispute was ruled invalid because it did not comply with the statutory requirements. However, this did not affect the admissibility of the evidence or the conviction. Certificates under s 124(1) were admissible as they were properly executed and relevant to the case. The use of body-worn camera footage was not unfair as it was relevant and properly admitted. The Magistrate did not refuse to allow cross-examination of the police witness, and the appellant's counsel had an opportunity to cross-examine the witness. Therefore, the appeal was dismissed.

The court ordered that the appellant file and serve any written submissions with respect to costs (not exceeding 3 pages in length) within 14 business days. Costs will be determined on the papers.