R v Brown

The defendants were charged with the murder of a woman in the County of Cumberland. They were tried before a single judge, sitting without a jury, on the basis that they were unfit to be tried by a jury. The defendants pleaded not guilty and raised the defence of mental illness. The jury returned a special verdict that the defendants were not guilty by reason of mental illness. The Crown appealed against the verdict. The defendants cross-appealed on the issue of the judge's directions to the jury regarding the burden of proof in relation to the defence of mental illness.
The appeal raised questions concerning the proper approach to the burden of proof in relation to the defence of mental illness in a judge alone trial and the adequacy of the judge's directions to the jury. The court considered whether the judge should have directed the jury that the defence of mental illness was to be established on the balance of probabilities, and whether the judge's directions in this regard were sufficient to protect the defendants' rights. The court concluded that the judge should have directed the jury that the defence of mental illness was to be established on the balance of probabilities, but that the judge's directions in this regard were sufficient to protect the defendants' rights. The court found that the judge's directions were adequate and did not result in a miscarriage of justice.

The appeal was dismissed. The cross-appeal was also dismissed.