R v Cain

The Director of Public Prosecutions applied for permission to appeal against the acquittal of a defendant in the District Court. The defendant had been charged with causing death by dangerous driving. At the commencement of the trial, the defendant pleaded guilty to the lesser offence of driving without due care and attention, but this plea was rejected by the Director, and the trial proceeded on the more serious charge.

The central legal issue before the appellate court was whether the trial judge erred in directing the jury to acquit the defendant on the charge of causing death by dangerous driving. This direction arose after the close of the defence case, when the judge raised concerns about whether the prosecution had proven that the defendant's "bad driving" was a "willed and conscious act or deliberate." The judge ultimately ruled that the Crown had not proven this element and directed a verdict of not guilty.

The appellate court held that the trial judge had misdirected himself by posing the question of whether the bad driving was "willed." The court explained that for offences of dangerous driving causing death, the standard of assessment is objective, focusing on whether the driving was dangerous to the public, irrespective of the driver's subjective intention or appreciation of the danger. While the driving must be a voluntary act, the "badness" or dangerousness of the driving itself is assessed objectively. The court found that there was evidence supporting the conclusion that the defendant's act of driving was voluntary.

Consequently, the appellate court granted permission to appeal, allowed the appeal, quashed the acquittal, and remitted the matter for a retrial.