R v RNS

Case [1999] NSWCCA 122 7 June 1999

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CITATION: REGINA v R N S [1999] NSWCCA 122

FILE NUMBER(S): CCA 60456/98

HEARING DATE(S): 28 April 1999

JUDGMENT DATE:
7 June 1999

PARTIES :

REGINA v R N S

JUDGMENT OF: Spigelman CJ at 1; James J at 2; Bell J at 3

LOWER COURT JURISDICTION: District Court

LOWER COURT FILE NUMBER(S) :

LOWER COURT JUDICIAL OFFICER: Nader DCJ

COUNSEL: Appellant: R. Burgess
Respondent: L.M.B. Lamprati

SOLICITORS: Appellant: T.A. Murphy
Respondent: R. Gray

CATCHWORDS: CRIMINAL LAW; Sexual assault; Appeal against conviction; Admissibility of evidence of complaint (Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s.108(3)); Delay in making complaint; Summing-Up - Adequacy (Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) s.405AA); Indictment - time essential

ACTS CITED: Crimes Act 1900
Evidence Act 1995
Criminal Appeal Act 1912
Crimes Act 1900

CASES CITED:
Graham v The Queen (1998) 72 ALJR 1491
Regina v PAH (unreported CCA 18/12/98)
Regina v Gillard (unreported CCA 5/3/99)
Regina v Harvey (unreported CCA 9/4/98)
Regina v Davies (1985) 3 NSWLR 276
Crofts v The Queen (1996) 186 CLR 427
Longman v The Queen (1989) 168 CLR 79
Regina v Lynch (unreported CCA 12/3/99)
Regina v DJK (1997) 96 A Crim R 443
Regina v Johnston (unreported CCA 31/7/98)
Palmer v The Queen (1998) 193 CLR 1
Regina v Condon (1995) 83 A Crim R 335
Regina v Zorad (1990) 19 NSWLR 91
Regina v Beserick (1993) 30 NSWLR 510
Regina v Wickham (unreported CCA 17/12/91)
Regina v Fraser (unreported CCA 10/8/98)
Regina v Harvey (unreported CCA 11/12/96)
Regina v AH (1997) 42 NSWLR 702
Regina v Greenham (unreported CCA 8/3/99)
M v The Queen (1994) 181 CLR 487
Regina v Dossi (1918) 13 Cr App R 158
Regina v Macdonald (1995) 84 A Crim R 508
Regina v Pfitzner (1976) 15 SASR 171
The King v Dean (1932) NZLR 753
Regina v VHP (unreported CCA 7/7/97)

DECISION: See para. 84

IN THE COURT OF
CRIMINAL APPEAL
60456/98
SPIGELMAN CJ
JAMES J
BELL J
Monday, 7 June 1999

REGINA v R N S
JUDGMENT
1    SPIGELMAN CJ: I agree with Bell J.

**********

IN THE COURT OF
CRIMINAL APPEAL

60456/98

SPIGELMAN CJ

JAMES J

BELL J
Monday, 7 June 1999

REGINA v R N S

JUDGMENT

2    JAMES J: I also agree with Bell J.

**********

IN THE COURT OF

CRIMINAL APPEAL

60456/98

SPIGELMAN CJ

JAMES J

BELL J
Monday, 7 June 1999

REGINA v R N S

JUDGMENT

BELL J:

3    The appellant, RNS, appeals against his conviction on an indictment containing four counts alleging sexual assaults upon his stepdaughter, ZG. The trial proceeded over five days in the District Court at Muswellbrook and on 26th June 1998 the jury returned a verdict of guilty on each count.
4 The first count alleged the commission of an indecent assault upon the complainant, she being under the age of 16 years and under the appellant’s authority, contrary to s.61M(1) Crimes Act 1900. This offence was said to have occurred between 1st January 1992 and 31st July 1992 at Muswellbrook.
5 The second…

Grounds of appeal

[14] The appellant contends that the primary judge erred in finding that the respondent had discharged the onus of establishing the matters required under the relevant provision.

[15] It was submitted that his Honour failed to give adequate weight to the evidence of the second witness, and that the findings of fact were not reasonably open on the material before the Court.

[16] The respondent, for its part, submits that no error is disclosed, and that the conclusions reached were well within the range of outcomes available to the primary judge.

Consideration

[17] It is convenient to deal first with the question of construction, as the resolution of that issue informs the remaining grounds advanced by the appellant.

[18] For the reasons that follow, we are of the view that the appeal should be allowed in part and the matter remitted for further determination.

Continue reading R v RNS

Details

AGLC: R v RNS [1999] NSWCCA 122
Case: [1999] NSWCCA 122
Decision Date: 7 June 1999

CaseChat Overview and Summary

In the matter of R v RNS, the appellant, RNS, stands convicted of sexual assault, and appeals against his conviction on the grounds of the admissibility of evidence of his complaint under the Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) s.108(3), the delay in making the complaint, and the adequacy of the summing-up by the trial judge. The case was heard in the New South Wales Court of Criminal Appeal. The appellant argued that the trial judge erred in admitting evidence of his complaint under s.108(3) of the Evidence Act, given the significant delay in making the complaint. He contended that the delay undermined the reliability of the evidence and should have excluded it from consideration. Additionally, the appellant claimed that the summing-up by the trial judge was inadequate under s.405AA of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW), as it did not sufficiently direct the jury to consider the potential impact of the delay on the credibility of the complainant's evidence.

The court considered whether the trial judge correctly admitted the evidence of the complaint under s.108(3) of the Evidence Act, despite the delay in reporting. It was also necessary to assess whether the summing-up was adequate in directing the jury to properly consider the delayed complaint's impact on the evidence's reliability. The court noted that the delay in reporting was significant, but held that the trial judge appropriately assessed the evidence's probative value against its potential prejudicial effect. The court further found that the summing-up adequately directed the jury to consider the delayed complaint's impact on the evidence's reliability, fulfilling the requirements of s.405AA of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW).

In conclusion, the appeal was dismissed. The court upheld the trial judge's decision to admit the evidence of the complaint, finding that the trial judge appropriately balanced the probative value against any prejudicial effect. The summing-up was also deemed adequate, as it properly directed the jury to consider the impact of the delay on the evidence's reliability. No further orders were made by the court.

Orders