Freeman-Quay v The Queen

Freeman-Quay appealed to the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of New South Wales against a conviction for grievous bodily harm and a sentence for assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The conviction arose from a trial by judge alone, while the sentence followed a plea of guilty.

The primary legal issue before the Court of Appeal was whether the conviction for grievous bodily harm was unreasonable having regard to all of the evidence presented at trial. In relation to the sentence for assault occasioning actual bodily harm, the Court was asked to determine whether the sentence imposed was manifestly excessive, plainly unjust, or unreasonable.

The Court of Appeal upheld the appeal against conviction for grievous bodily harm. It found that there was a reasonable possibility that another person, rather than the appellant, had inflicted the injuries upon the complainant. This reasonable possibility meant that the conviction was unsafe and unsatisfactory. However, the appeal against the sentence for assault occasioning actual bodily harm was dismissed, as the Court found the sentence to be neither manifestly excessive nor plainly unjust. The Court ordered that the conviction for grievous bodily harm be quashed and that a verdict of acquittal be entered.