A challenge, by way of judicial review, by a young offender convicted of the murder and rape of a 14-year-old girl, to an excepting direction which discharged a reporting restriction order imposed under the Youth Justice and Criminal Evidence Act 1999 s.45(3), was refused.
ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE ANONYMITY CRIMINAL PROCEDURE CULPABILITY DETENTION AT HER MAJESTY’S PLEASURE EXCEPTING DIRECTIONS IDENTIFICATION JURISDICTION MENTALLY DISORDERED OFFENDERS MINIMUM TERM MURDER OPEN JUSTICE RAPE REPORTING RESTRICTIONS SENTENCING YOUNG OFFENDERS
A conviction for attempted rape was quashed following the admission of new DNA evidence taken from clothing worn by the victim at the time of the offence.
ATTEMPTS CRIMINAL APPEAL ACT 1968 s.23 CRIMINAL EVIDENCE DNA EVIDENCE IDENTIFICATION NEW AND COMPELLING EVIDENCE RAPE UNSAFE CONVICTIONS
A judge had not erred in rejecting a submission of no case to answer in a trial for sexual assault where the only evidence against the accused was identification evidence from the victim. However, when admitting evidence of the accused’s previous conviction, the jury should have been told that the accused had only been included in an identification procedure because of his conviction.
ADMISSIBILITY CRIMINAL EVIDENCE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE IDENTIFICATION PREVIOUS CONVICTIONS SEXUAL ASSAULT SUMMING UP TURNBULL DIRECTIONS UNSAFE CONVICTIONS
Where there had been a long delay in bringing a prosecution for indecent assaults, the effect of the delay on the perpetrator’s identification was often best addressed by a short, self-contained direction that focused on the defendant. Although a judge’s direction on the effect of delay on the identification of a Buddhist monk who had sexually assaulted a nine-year old girl in a temple 34 years ago had not been structured in the most appropriate way, it had not amounted to a misdirection and the resulting convictions for indecent assault were safe.
APPROPRIATENESS OF DIRECTION AS TO EFFECT OF DELAY ON IDENTIFICATION OF DEFENDANT CRIMINAL PROCEDURE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE RULES 2005 r.3.2 DELAY DELAY IN BRINGING PROSECUTION FOR INDECENT ASSAULTS IDENTIFICATION INDECENT ASSAULT JURY DIRECTIONS SENTENCE LENGTH SENTENCING WHETHER SENTENCE MANIFESTLY EXCESSIVE
The judge had been wrong to direct the acquittal of two of the four defendants in a case involving an allegation of the sexual abuse of a 13-year-old girl; evidence of collusion between the complainant and a witness might be used to cast doubt on their reliability and truthfulness but it should not have been used as a reason for stopping the case.
ACQUITTALS COLLUSION CRIMINAL EVIDENCE CRIMINAL PROCEDURE IDENTIFICATION RELIABILITY SEXUAL OFFENCES TERMINATING RULINGS WHETHER JUDGE CORRECT TO DIRECT ACQUITTAL OF TWO OF FOUR DEFENDANTS
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