Whitehead v Procopis

The appeal was brought by Michael John Whitehead against his conviction for unlawfully assaulting James Ian Lloyd and thereby doing him bodily harm. The conviction was imposed by the Court of Petty Sessions at Fremantle. The appeal was dismissed by Hasluck J of the Supreme Court of Western Australia. The appellant submitted that the bodily harm alleged was the injury to the back as distinct from grazes or cuts and that the prosecution could not run it both ways. The appellant further submitted that the prosecution case could not succeed unless the prosecutor established that the lower back injury which was said to constitute the bodily harm was caused by a deliberate kick or blow inflicted by the appellant. The court held that the appellant's line of argument was seriously flawed. The court held that it was open to the prosecution to adduce evidence that the cluster of events comprising the brief altercation amounted to an unlawful assault, and that the bodily harm complained of, being an injury to the lower back area, was caused by this cluster of events. The court held that it was sufficient for the prosecution to establish beyond reasonable doubt that the complainant's injury was a foreseeable consequence of the appellant's actions.