Tatnell v Tasmania

Tatnell v Tasmania concerned an appeal against a criminal conviction. The appellant, Tatnell, was charged with three counts of assault occasioning actual bodily harm against his wife. The jury acquitted him on two of the counts but convicted him on the third. Tatnell appealed his conviction to the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Tasmania.

The central legal issue before the Full Court was whether the jury's verdict on the remaining count was unreasonable or insupportable having regard to the evidence presented at trial. This required the Court to consider the evidence in its entirety and determine if no reasonable jury, properly instructed, could have reached the conclusion of guilt on that specific charge.

The Full Court dismissed the appeal, finding that it was open to the jury to accept the evidence of the complainant regarding the assault on the third count, notwithstanding certain inconsistencies in her testimony. The Court reasoned that juries are entitled to weigh evidence, assess credibility, and accept parts of a witness's account while rejecting others. The presence of inconsistencies did not, in this instance, render the verdict on the third count legally unreasonable or insupportable.