Eastman v The Queen

In *Eastman v The Queen*, the High Court of Australia considered an appeal by the applicant, Eastman, against his conviction for murder. The central dispute concerned the admissibility of evidence obtained through a search of the applicant's property, which the applicant argued was unlawful.

The High Court was required to determine whether the evidence obtained from the search was admissible, notwithstanding the applicant's contention that the search was conducted without lawful authority. This involved an examination of the scope and application of the common law power to search for and seize evidence of a crime, and whether that power had been exceeded.

The Court reasoned that while police possess a common law power to search for and seize evidence of a crime, this power is not unfettered. It is circumscribed by the need for the search to be reasonably necessary for the purpose of preventing the commission of a crime or for the investigation of an indictable offence. In this instance, the Court found that the search conducted by police had exceeded the lawful scope of this power, as it was not reasonably necessary for the purpose of investigating the specific offence for which the evidence was ultimately used. Consequently, the evidence obtained from the unlawful search was deemed inadmissible.