McKinney v The Queen; Judge v The Queen

The proceedings before the High Court of Australia involved applications for special leave to appeal by Vincent Peter McKinney and another applicant, Judge. They were represented by Mr. P. Hidden, QC, and Mr. P. Byrne, respectively, with both instructing solicitors being from the Legal Aid Commission. The respondent Crown was represented by Mr. R. Howie, QC, and Mr. P. Berman. The matter had previously been heard by a bench of five judges and was adjourned for further argument before the full bench.

The primary legal issues before the Court concerned the admissibility of evidence and the proper conduct of jury directions in criminal proceedings. Specifically, the Court was dealing with supplementary materials, including evidence of certain witnesses and the full summing up to the jury, which had not been fully reproduced in the initial application books. The Court also considered an unreported decision of the Queensland Court of Criminal Appeal in *The Queen v Kelvin Ronald Condren*, which had a prior connection to the High Court.

The Court, constituted by Mason CJ and other judges, was familiar with the arguments presented thus far and the factual background of the applications. Mr. Hidden, for the applicant McKinney, sought to proceed with the arguments, noting that some assertions made on the previous occasion were not entirely accurate. The Chief Justice indicated that the Court was prepared to proceed without a full rehearing of the case, acknowledging the need for additional copies of the outline of argument for members of the Court. The discussion also touched upon specific directions given to the jury regarding careful scrutiny.