R v DBB

The case of R v DBB involved an appeal by the applicant, who was convicted of two counts of indecently dealing with his intellectually impaired stepdaughter. Following the conviction, the applicant lodged a notice of appeal; however, legal aid for the appeal was refused on the grounds that the prospects of success were insignificant. Subsequently, the applicant filed a notice of abandonment but was later informed that his prospects for a successful appeal were reasonable. The applicant then applied to have his appeal reinstated, arguing that the trial judge failed to adequately warn the jury to scrutinise the complainant's evidence with great care, and that his counsel's failure to adduce evidence of his good character at trial amounted to a miscarriage of justice.

The court was required to determine whether the abandonment of the appeal should be set aside and the appeal reinstated. The court also had to consider whether the trial judge properly directed the jury regarding the complainant's evidence and whether the failure to call good character evidence constituted a miscarriage of justice. The court needed to assess the significance of the alleged errors in the context of the applicant's overall prospects of success on appeal.

In assessing the application to set aside the abandonment of the appeal, the court found that the applicant's prospects of a successful appeal were reasonable and that the abandonment should therefore be set aside. The court held that the trial judge did not adequately warn the jury to scrutinise the complainant's evidence with a great deal of care, which was a significant error that warranted a re-trial. Additionally, the court found that the failure to call good character evidence amounted to a miscarriage of justice. Consequently, the appeal was allowed, the verdicts of guilty were set aside, and a re-trial was ordered.

The final orders of the court were that the applicant be granted leave to read the six affidavits, the abandonment of the appeal filed on 21 May 2011 be set aside, the appeal be reinstated, the appeal be allowed with the verdicts of guilty set aside, and a re-trial be ordered.