Sparre v The King

The High Court of Australia heard an appeal from the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory concerning a conviction for unlawful carnal knowledge. The appellant, Patrick Holger Sparre, was charged with unlawfully and carnally knowing a girl under the age of sixteen years, specifically a girl of fourteen years. A proviso to the relevant legislation stipulated that it would be a sufficient defence if the accused had reasonable cause to believe the girl was sixteen years or older.

The legal issues before the High Court were whether the trial judge erred in directing the jury to find the appellant guilty when the jury could not agree on the specific defence regarding reasonable belief of the girl's age, and whether the High Court had the power to order a new trial in such circumstances. The core of the dispute centred on whether the question of reasonable belief as to the girl's age was a matter for the jury to determine, and what the consequences were if the jury could not reach a unanimous decision on that specific issue.

The High Court held that the question of whether the accused had reasonable cause to believe the girl was of or above the age of sixteen years was a question of fact for the jury. If the jury agreed that carnal knowledge had occurred but could not agree on the defence of reasonable belief, no verdict could be lawfully entered. The trial judge's direction that the appellant must be found guilty because he had not established his defence, despite the jury's disagreement, was deemed an error. The Court found that a failure of the jury to agree on the defence did not equate to a finding that the defence had not been established. The High Court also confirmed its power to order a new trial under the Judiciary Act 1903-1940.

Consequently, the High Court allowed the appeal, quashed the conviction, and ordered a new trial of the appellant before the Supreme Court of the Australian Capital Territory. The appellant was remanded to custody with liberty to apply for bail pending the retrial.