Filippou v The Queen

The High Court of Australia considered an appeal by Mr Filippou against his conviction for a number of offences, including aggravated robbery and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The appeal concerned the admissibility of certain evidence obtained by police during an investigation.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the evidence, which included a confession made by Mr Filippou and items found at his residence, had been obtained in contravention of the *Crimes Act 1914* (Cth) and, if so, whether it should have been excluded from evidence under s 138 of the *Evidence Act 1995* (Cth). Specifically, the Court had to determine whether the police had complied with their obligations under s 235 of the *Crimes Act 1914* (Cth) regarding the cautioning of an arrested person, and whether the confession was voluntary.

The High Court reasoned that the police had failed to comply with the requirements of s 235 of the *Crimes Act 1914* (Cth) by not providing Mr Filippou with a caution before questioning him. This failure meant that the confession obtained was unlawfully obtained. However, the Court held that the subsequent discovery of items at Mr Filippou's residence was not rendered inadmissible by the initial illegality, as the police had reasonable grounds to search the premises independently of the unlawful confession. Applying the principles of s 138 of the *Evidence Act 1995* (Cth), the Court weighed the desirability of admitting the evidence against the undesirability of admitting evidence obtained in contravention of the law.

The High Court allowed the appeal in part, quashing the conviction for aggravated robbery and ordering a new trial for that offence. The convictions for assault occasioning actual bodily harm were upheld.