R v Gray

In the Court of Appeal of New Zealand, the case of The Queen v Antony Frederick Gray (CA 112/07) was heard on 16 May 2007, and judgment was delivered on 6 June 2007. The applicant, Antony Frederick Gray, sought leave to appeal against a ruling by Baragwanath J that the evidence obtained from a search of his car and person was admissible. The search was conducted under section 18 of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1975, and the applicant argued that the search was unreasonable and violated his rights under section 21 of the New Zealand Bill of Rights Act 1990. The Crown argued that the evidence obtained should be admitted, and the Court of Appeal heard the application for leave to appeal on the same day as the initial hearing.

The legal issues before the Court of Appeal were whether the search of Gray's car and person was lawful and, if not, whether the evidence obtained should still be admissible. The Court of Appeal considered the evidence admissible for the following reasons: first, it was arguable that the search was lawful, and second, even if the search was unlawful, the evidence was still admissible under the test set out in R v Williams [2007] NZCA 52. The Court of Appeal also noted that both counsel had difficulties with certain paragraphs of the High Court's judgment, but since counsel chose not to engage with those views, the Court of Appeal did not consider it appropriate to go any further.

The Court of Appeal granted leave to appeal, but dismissed the appeal as Gray had pleaded guilty, and the disputed evidence was now irrelevant. The Court of Appeal made an order that the judgment and reasons for judgment were not to be published in the media or on the internet until the final disposition of the trial, but publication in a law report or law digest was permitted.