R v Stead & Attorney-General of Queensland

In the case of R v Stead & Attorney-General of Queensland, Noel John Stead, the appellant, was convicted of multiple offences, including unlawful possession of a motor vehicle with circumstances of aggravation and official corruption. Following his conviction, a Commission of Inquiry was conducted into the police investigation, which raised questions about the credibility of a key Crown witness, R. Stead petitioned for a pardon, and the Attorney-General referred the case to the Court of Appeal under s. 672A of the Criminal Code. The court was required to decide whether there had been a substantial miscarriage of justice due to the jury's unawareness of the matters revealed by the inquiry.

The Court of Appeal found that there had been a substantial miscarriage of justice. The fresh evidence revealed that R had acted dishonestly and in deliberate disregard of the law, which was not known at the time of Stead's trial. This evidence cast doubt on R's credibility and suggested that R may have been an accomplice to Stead. Although the appellant's total criminality was significant, the court considered it contrary to the public interest to implicitly condone such flagrant misconduct by police officers and to permit the administration of criminal justice to be sullied in that manner. As a result, the convictions on counts 8, 10, 12, 13, 15-19 and 21-24 were quashed, and all other relief sought by the appellant was refused. The appellant was ordered to surrender himself forthwith on delivery of judgment, or a warrant for his apprehension would be issued.