Webster v Tasmania; Tasmania v Webster

Webster appealed against his convictions in the Supreme Court of Tasmania for eight counts of computer-related fraud, having been acquitted on ninety-five similar counts arising from the same circumstances. Tasmania cross-appealed against the acquittal on those ninety-five counts. The central issue before the Full Court of the Supreme Court of Tasmania was whether the jury's verdicts were inconsistent and, if so, whether those inconsistencies rendered the convictions unsafe and unsatisfactory.

The court was required to determine whether the jury's finding of guilt on eight counts and acquittal on ninety-five counts, all stemming from an alleged arrangement to transfer funds, demonstrated a fundamental flaw in the jury's reasoning. Specifically, the court had to consider if there was a reasonable explanation for the inconsistent verdicts that was consistent with the appellant's innocence, and if such inconsistency rendered the guilty verdicts unsafe and unsatisfactory, warranting their quashing.

The court reasoned that the jury's verdicts were factually inconsistent, as the asserted arrangement to transfer funds was the basis for all counts. The acquittal on the majority of counts suggested the jury did not accept the prosecution's case in its entirety, yet the conviction on the remaining counts implied acceptance of the same core factual assertion. The court found no rational basis for the jury to distinguish between the counts in the manner it did, leading to the conclusion that the verdicts were unsafe and unsatisfactory. Consequently, the convictions were quashed, and verdicts of acquittal were entered on all counts.