R v Blackman (No 2)

In the matter of R v Blackman (No 2), the accused faced a special hearing before a judge alone, dealing with a count of murder and alternative counts. The dispute centred on the admissibility of evidence from a witness who had been granted a certificate that protected them from self-incrimination. The certificate had been repeatedly expanded over time to cover new topics, leading to questions about the scope of the protection it afforded. The primary issue for the court was whether the witness's evidence was admissible under the terms of the certificate, which had been broadened beyond its original scope.

The legal issues revolved around the interpretation and application of the certificate that protected the witness from self-incrimination. The court had to determine whether the repeated expansions of the certificate's scope were permissible and whether the evidence provided by the witness fell within the scope of the certificate as it had been amended. The court also had to consider the broader question of what constitutes evidence that "may tend to prove" that the witness has committed an offence, and how this interacts with the protections afforded by the certificate.

The court found that the repeated expansions of the certificate's scope were permissible, as they were made in the interests of justice and to ensure that the witness could provide all relevant evidence without fear of self-incrimination. The court held that the evidence provided by the witness did fall within the scope of the certificate as it had been amended, as it pertained to matters that were relevant to the charges against the accused and that the witness had been adequately protected from self-incrimination. The court noted that the concept of evidence that "may tend to prove" that the witness has committed an offence is broad, and that it includes not only direct evidence of the commission of an offence but also any evidence that might indirectly suggest that the witness has committed an offence. However, the court held that the evidence in question did not fall within this broad concept, as it did not suggest that the witness had committed an offence.

The court ordered that the evidence provided by the witness be admitted, as it was relevant to the charges against the accused and was protected by the certificate as it had been amended. The court also ordered that the accused be tried on the charges against them, including the count of murder and the alternative counts.