Reid v Director of Public Prosecutions (Queensland) and Anor

In *Reid v Director of Public Prosecutions (Queensland) and Anor*, the High Court of Australia considered an appeal from the Court of Appeal of Queensland concerning the interpretation of section 13(1) of the *Criminal Code Act 1899* (Qld) (the Criminal Code). The appellant, Mr. Reid, had been convicted of a serious offence, and the central dispute revolved around whether the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) had the power to withdraw a charge after a jury had been empanelled but before any evidence was led.

The primary legal issue before the High Court was whether the DPP's power to withdraw a charge under section 13(1) of the Criminal Code was exercisable at any stage of the proceedings, or if it was limited to a period before the commencement of the trial. This question necessitated an examination of the interplay between the DPP's prosecutorial discretion and the procedural stages of a criminal trial, particularly the point at which a trial is considered to have commenced.

Kiefel J, delivering the judgment of the Court, reasoned that the phrase "at any stage of the proceedings" in section 13(1) of the Criminal Code was intended to grant broad discretion to the DPP. The Court held that the empanelling of a jury did not, in itself, constitute the commencement of the trial for the purposes of limiting the DPP's power to withdraw a charge. The commencement of the trial, in the context of a jury trial, was understood to be the point at which evidence is led. Therefore, the DPP retained the power to withdraw the charge after the jury was empanelled but before evidence was presented. The appeal was dismissed.