Regina v Elizabeth Anne Burdis - [1999] NSWSC 614

CITATION: REGINA v Elizabeth Anne BURDIS [1999] NSWSC 614

CURRENT JURISDICTION: Criminal

FILE NUMBER(S): 70052/98

HEARING DATE(S): 18 June 1999

JUDGMENT DATE:
23 June 1999

PARTIES :

Regina
Elizabeth Anne Burdis

JUDGMENT OF: Sully J

COUNSEL : Mark Antonty McAdam QC - Crown
Christopher John Bruce - Defence

SOLICITORS: Crown Solicitor
Legal Aid of NSW

CATCHWORDS: Criminal law - murder by stabbing and 2 accompanying and serious discrete stabbing offences; defence of mental illness precluding criminal responsibility - Mental Health (Criminal Procedure) Act 1990 (NSW), s.38.; Trial by Judge alone pursuant to an election made in conformity with Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW), s.32(1).; Held: defence established; verdict on each count of not guilty by reason of mental illness - ancillary orders

ACTS CITED: Mental Health (Criminal Procedure) Act 1990 (NSW) s.38
Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW), s.32(1)

DECISION: Not guilty by reason of mental illness - to be detained as a forensic patient at the Bunya Unit of the Cumberland Hospital until released by due process of law.

SUPREME COURT OF
NEW SOUTH WALES
CRIMINAL DIVISION

SULLY J

23 June 1999

70052/98 - Regina v Elizabeth Anne BURDIS

REASONS FOR VERDICT

1   HIS HONOUR: On 18 June instant Elizabeth Anne Burdis, [“the accused”], was presented for trial in this Court upon an indictment containing three counts. 2   The first count in the indictment charges the accused with having murdered her father, Ronald John Burdis, on 29 March 1998 at Rous. In order to establish this charge, the Crown must prove beyond reasonable doubt all of the following:

(i) The death in fact of Mr. Burdis;

(ii) An act of the accused causing such death;
(iii) An accompanying intent of any of the kinds stipulated in section 18(1)(a) of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) .

3   The second count in the indictment charges that the accused at the same time and place wounded her mother, Dorothy Edna Burdis, with intent to murder her. In order to establish this charge, the Crown must prove beyond reasonable doubt all of the following:

(i) A wounding in fact of Mrs. Burdis;

(ii) An act of the accused causing such wounding;
(iii) An accompanying intent to murder, being any of the types of intent nominated in section 18(1)(a) of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) .

4   The third count in the indictment charges the accused with having maliciously wounded, at the same time and place, her sister, Helen Margaret Burdis. In order to establish this charge, the Crown must prove beyond reasonable doubt all the following:

(i) A wounding in fact of Miss Burdis;

(ii) An act of the accused causing such wounding;

(iii) Accompanying malice in the accused.
The accused, upon arraingnment, pleaded not guilty to each of those three charges.

5 On 18 March 1999 the accused signed a document purporting to be an election made pursuant to section 32(1) of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW). The document is Exhibit B in the present proceedings. I am satisfied, and was so…

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.

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Details

Case: [1999] NSWSC 614
Decision Date: 23 June 1999

CaseChat Overview and Summary

The defendant, Elizabeth Anne Burdis, was charged with murder and two counts of serious stabbing offences. Burdis was tried before a judge alone, following an election under the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW). The crux of the case revolved around the defence of mental illness, which, if established, would preclude criminal responsibility under the Mental Health (Criminal Procedure) Act 1990 (NSW). The court was tasked with determining whether Burdis was suffering from a mental illness at the time of the offences and, if so, whether this illness precluded her criminal responsibility.

The primary legal issue was whether Burdis was mentally ill at the time of the stabbings and whether this illness negated her capacity to understand the nature and quality of her acts or to know that they were wrong. The court considered expert psychiatric evidence, the circumstances of the stabbings, and the statutory requirements under the Mental Health (Criminal Procedure) Act 1990 (NSW). The court needed to apply the statutory criteria to determine if Burdis met the threshold for being found not guilty by reason of mental illness.

The court concluded that the defence of mental illness was established. Burdis's psychiatric condition met the criteria under section 38 of the Mental Health (Criminal Procedure) Act 1990 (NSW). The judge found that Burdis was unable to understand the nature and quality of her actions or to know that they were wrong at the time of the offences. Therefore, the court found her not guilty on each count by reason of mental illness. In addition to the verdicts, the court made ancillary orders concerning Burdis's ongoing care and treatment under the Mental Health Act.

Orders