Tannous v The Queen

The applicant, Tannous, sought special leave to appeal from a decision of the Court of Criminal Appeal of New South Wales. The application concerned a prosecution arising from a raid on a house in Punchbowl in May 1984, where six co-accused were charged with conspiracy to supply heroin.

The legal issues before the High Court included whether the applicant was entitled to an extension of time to lodge his application for special leave, and the substantive grounds for special leave itself. The applicant's submissions, as outlined by Mr. Maurice QC, were supported by an affidavit detailing the reasons for the delay in lodging the application, which were contended to be meritorious.

The High Court was presented with an outline of the facts, including that the applicant was one of six individuals charged with conspiracy to supply heroin. While the opening of the Crown case was not recorded, the trial judge's summing up provided an overview of the Crown's allegations, which included that Tannous was the instigator of a transaction for the sale of heroin. The applicant also sought to have circulated additional transcript pages and two records of interview which were exhibits at the trial.