R v Cowan; R v Cowan; Ex parte

The appellants were found guilty of various offences, including murder, indecent treatment of a child under 16, and interfering with a corpse, all of which occurred on 7 December 2003. The primary issues before the court were whether the confessions and derivative evidence should have been excluded under s 10 of the Criminal Law Amendment Act 1894 (Qld) or in the exercise of the court's discretion, whether there was a misdirection on a matter of law in the jury directions, and whether the sentence for the most serious offence was manifestly inadequate.

The court found that the questioning of the appellant at the inquest did not amount to an inducement under s 10 and that the confessions were not made under any inducement from that event. The court also held that the primary judge did not err in the exercise of discretion in not excluding the confessions and derivative evidence, as there was no unfairness, abuse of process, or miscarriage of justice. Furthermore, the court concluded that the primary judge's refusal to give the redirection sought was not an error of law or a miscarriage of justice. Lastly, the court found that the sentence for the most serious offence was not manifestly inadequate.

The appeal against conviction is dismissed, and the appeal against sentence is dismissed.