Paul Joseph Cameron v The Queen

[2009] NZSC 90

IN THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW ZEALAND

SC 54/2009
[2009] NZSC 90

PAUL JOSEPH CAMERON

v

THE QUEEN

Court:Blanchard, McGrath and Wilson JJ

Counsel:D J Sharp for Applicant

M D Downs for Crown

Judgment:12 August 2009 

JUDGMENT OF THE COURT

The application for leave to appeal is dismissed.

REASONS

[1]       The applicant was convicted of murder.  Part of the Crown case was what is called “scenario evidence”, whereby a context is established to provide an incentive for a suspect to confess to a crime and a confession results.  Mr Cameron does not seek to challenge the legality of that investigative technique or the general admissibility of evidence so derived.  What the applicant does claim is that the evidence should have been excluded under s 28 of the Evidence Act 2006 as unreliable, or under s 29 as having been influenced by oppression, or under s 30 as having been improperly obtained.

[2]       These are however questions of fact, which are the subject of concurrent findings against Mr Cameron in the High Court[1] and on two occasions (pre-trial and post-conviction) in the Court of Appeal.[2]  No question of public or general importance arises and there is no appearance of any miscarriage of justice.

[1]R v Cameron (unreported, High Court, Gisborne, CRI-2006-016-3325, Venning J, 10 August 2007).

[2]R v Cameron [2007] NZCA 564 (CA430/07, 7 December 2007); R v Cameron [2009] NZCA 87 (CA568/08, 24 March 2009).

Solicitors:
Burnard Bull & Co, Gisborne for Applicant
Crown Law, Wellington