Evans v The Queen

Evans was convicted of possession of drugs with intent to sell or supply and subsequently appealed against his conviction. The appeal against the conviction and an application for leave to appeal against his sentence were dismissed by the court. The key issues in the appeal were the admissibility of certain evidence, the adequacy of the jury directions, and the sentencing.

The court first examined whether evidence of cash and a note found in the accused's car was admissible to support the charge of possession of drugs with intent to sell or supply. The defence argued that the evidence was not relevant to rebut an innocent explanation for possession of the drugs. The court held that the evidence was relevant as it could support an inference of intent to sell or supply, and therefore, it was properly admitted.

Regarding the jury directions, the appellant contended that the trial judge's directions on the onus of proof concerning circumstantial evidence were inadequate or misdirected the jury. However, the court found that when the directions were read as a whole, there was no misdirection or inadequacy in the directions given to the jury.

Lastly, the appellant sought to lead fresh evidence of his rehabilitation demonstrated by his business success in an attempt to argue that his sentence was excessive. The court found that the evidence did not meet the exceptional circumstances required for such an application, and the sentence was not excessive. Consequently, the appeal against the conviction and the application for leave to appeal against the sentence were dismissed.