Before a Weissensteiner direction can be given, the prosecution must specify the particular evidence which could be expected to come only from the accused; a general failure to give evidence is insufficient. The admissibility of documents tendered as handwriting comparison standards under the Evidence Act 1995 is determined by the relevance test in s 56(1), not the more restrictive common law requirements. A private document containing self-serving ruminations is excluded by the hearsay rule in s 59 where the maker intended to assert the facts contained in it, even if the document was not intended to be communicated to others. Section 3ZO(2) of the Crimes Act 1914 (Cth) only applies where investigators have identified a 'suspect'; having a photograph of an unidentified person does not make that person a suspect.
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