R v KP; ex parte

The appellant, KP, was convicted following a trial of 34 counts of indecent dealings committed over a period from 1981 to 1984. The appellant was sentenced to concurrent sentences with the longest being three years imprisonment. The majority of the convictions relate to one complainant, but some relate to this complainant’s brother, the appellant’s son, and the appellant’s daughter. The appellant brought an appeal against the conviction, and the Attorney-General appealed against the sentence. The appellant also sought an extension of time to apply for leave to appeal against the sentence to have it suspended in part, while the Attorney-General sought the maximum sentence. The appeal was heard by the court which had to decide on several legal issues.

The legal issues that the court had to decide on included whether fresh evidence could be adduced by the appellant on appeal, whether proceedings should have been stayed due to media reports, whether charges were adequately particularised, whether charges relating to all complainants should have been joined, whether relationship evidence ought to have been admitted, and whether verdicts were unreasonable. The court also had to consider the admissibility of similar fact evidence. The court had to determine whether the sentence imposed was manifestly inadequate and whether the appeal against the conviction and sentence were valid.

The court held that the appeal against the conviction was allowed and the conviction on counts 16, 19, 21, 25, 33, 34, and 35 were set aside, and the appellant is to be retried on those counts. The appeal against conviction was dismissed on the remaining counts. The Attorney-General’s appeal against the sentence was dismissed. The application for extension of time for leave to appeal against the sentence was also dismissed. The court held that the sentence imposed was not manifestly inadequate, and the appeal against the conviction and sentence were not valid. The court ordered that the appeal against the conviction is allowed, and the conviction on counts 16, 19, 21, 25, 33, 34, and 35 are set aside, and the appellant is to be retried on those counts. The appeal against conviction is dismissed on the remaining counts. The Attorney-General’s appeal against sentence is dismissed. The application for extension of time for leave to appeal against sentence is dismissed.