Reg v Ross; Reg v Annakin; Reg v Heeney; Reg v Hennessey; Reg v Kucler; Reg v Melville; Reg v White; Reg v Eaves; Reg v Parker (S205-88 - S210-88; S69-89 -

The proceedings before the High Court of Australia involved applications for special leave to appeal by the Crown against decisions of the Court of Criminal Appeal of New South Wales. The respondents, including Ross, Annakin, Heeney, Hennessey, Kucler, Melville, White, Eaves, and Parker, had all been convicted of murder at a trial concerning an affray at the Viking Tavern in Sydney on 2 September 1984. This affray, which involved members of two bikie groups, resulted in seven deaths. The Court of Criminal Appeal had overturned the murder convictions and substituted convictions for manslaughter.

The central legal issue before the High Court was whether the Court of Criminal Appeal had erred in quashing the original murder convictions and substituting manslaughter convictions. The Crown contended that the Court of Criminal Appeal's decision was incorrect.

The Crown's submissions argued that the Court of Criminal Appeal had made an error in its judgment. The factual background to the case involved a violent confrontation between two motorcycle groups, where members were aware of the likelihood of trouble and that others were armed, leading to an affray in which seven people were killed. The trial had resulted in murder convictions for the respondents, but these were subsequently overturned by the Court of Criminal Appeal, which substituted manslaughter convictions. The Crown sought to persuade the High Court that this substitution was erroneous.