R v Becirovic

The applicant, R v Becirovic, appealed to the Full Court of the Supreme Court of South Australia against his convictions. The dispute concerned the admissibility of certain documents seized from a property and a vehicle, and whether their admission constituted an error of law by the trial judge. The prosecution had tendered these documents, along with other evidence, to establish a connection between the applicant and a Ms Hunt, and a property and vehicle associated with her.

The primary legal issue before the Full Court was whether the trial judge erred in admitting the documents under section 45A of the *Evidence Act 1929* (SA). This ground of appeal argued that there was insufficient connection between the documents and the applicant, and that their use was dependent on a hearsay purpose. The court was required to consider the scope and application of section 45A, which provided for the admission of apparently genuine business records unless specific exclusionary grounds were met.

The Full Court reasoned that while section 45A rendered business records admissible without further proof if they were apparently genuine, the court retained a discretion to exclude them. This discretion could be exercised if the maker of the document could and should be called, if the evidentiary weight was slight and outweighed by prejudice, or if admission was otherwise contrary to the interests of justice. The court noted that the onus of persuasion for exclusion lay with the party opposing the tender. In this instance, the court found that the eighth ground of appeal, relating to the admission of the documents, was made out to the extent indicated.

Consequently, the Full Court granted the applicant permission to appeal on all grounds. The convictions on counts 1-4 were set aside, and the matter was remitted for a re-trial on those counts. The court also noted that a prior ruling by the trial judge concerning firearms found in the vehicle, which found the applicant possessed the car, should be reconsidered at the retrial.