R v Johnson

[2020] NSWDC 153

District Court

New South Wales

• Amendment notes

Medium Neutral Citation:

R v Johnson [2020] NSWDC 153

Hearing dates:

30 April 2020

Date of orders:

30 April 2020

Decision date:

30 April 2020

Jurisdiction:

Criminal

Before:

Grant DCJ

Decision:

Direct trial by judge alone.

Catchwords:

Trial by Judge alone – Crown opposes application – COVID 19 Pandemic – Business of the court to continue

Legislation Cited:

Criminal Procedure Act 1986
Covid-19 Legislation Amendment (Emergency Measure) Act 2020

Cases Cited:

Director of Public Prosecutions (NSW) v Farrugia [2017] NSWCCA 197
Brown v The Director of Public Prosecutions (NSW) [2018] NSWCCA 94
R v Stanley [2013] NSWCCA 124
R v Coleman [2020] ACTSC 97

Category:

Procedural and other rulings

Parties:

Regina (Crown)
Nathan Johnson (accused)

Representation:

Counsel: Ms Cook for the accused

 

Crown: Ms Morgan, Trial Advocate for the Crown

  Solicitors: Ms Giannopoulos for the accused

File Number(s):

2019/00017894

Judgment

INTRODUCTION

1. The Covid-19 pandemic has turned the world upside down. Over 215 000 people have died from the pandemic. Jury trials in this state have ceased and it is unclear when they will resume. It is against this back drop that Nathan Johnson who has been charged with one count of sexual intercourse without consent, applies for and consents to trial by judge alone. His application is opposed by the Director’s representative.

THE COURT AND GOVERNMENT RESPONSE

2. The Chief Judge of the District Court has released various Practice Notes outlining essential adaptation of the Court processes and protocols responsive to the pandemic. Virtual court rooms have become the norm.

3. The Government passed ‘emergency legislation’ [1] to better equip the Court to function and conduct its business with efficiency in the circumstance of the current pandemic. The emergency legislation amendments that are relevant to this application were incorporated into the Criminal Procedure Act at Part 5.

   1. Covid-19 Legislation Amendment (Emergency Measure) Act 2020 No 1

4. The purpose of Part 5 is set out in section 353 of the act. It provides:

“The purpose of this Part is to enable criminal trial in the State to be conducted in a way that is appropriate given the public health emergency caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.”

5. The Explanatory Note to the Bill states;

“Schedule 1 amends the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 to enable criminal trials to be conducted in an appropriate way during the Covid-19 pandemic, by enabling:

(a) a witness in a trial to give evidence before the trial in a pre-recorded evidence hearing, and

(b) the original evidence of a witness recorded in a trial to be used in a new trial, and

(c) a court to order judge alone trials in certain circumstances.”

6. In the second reading speech the Attorney-General said,

“…Some of the amendments in the bill are extraordinary, which is why they generally have sunset clauses of between six months to 12 months. The Leader of the House has asked me to be brief, so I will not go into detail with many of the substantive amendments in the bill. The…