Powers v The Queen

Powers appealed his conviction for armed robbery. The central issue at trial was the identification of the appellant by the principal Crown witness. The prosecution had led evidence of a pre-trial identification of the appellant by this witness during committal proceedings. This evidence was not led at trial through any other witness.

The Court of Appeal was required to determine whether the admission of the pre-trial identification evidence was permissible, and if so, what weight it could be given. Further, the Court had to consider whether, in light of the identification evidence, the verdict of the jury was unsafe or unsatisfactory.

The Court held that evidence of the pre-trial identification was admissible to demonstrate what the witness said and the strength of her identification at that earlier stage. However, it was not admissible to prove the truth of her identification. The Court considered the potential for this type of evidence to unduly influence the jury and the importance of ensuring that any identification evidence relied upon by the prosecution was reliable. The Court then assessed the overall evidence presented at trial to determine if the conviction was safe and satisfactory.