The Court held that arresting a person for offensive language where their identity and address are known constitutes improper conduct under s 138 of the Evidence Act 1995, even if the arrest is lawful. Evidence of subsequent offences (resisting arrest, assaulting police) that flow directly from an improper arrest for a minor offence may be excluded under s 138. The Court clarified that 'improper' conduct for s 138 purposes does not require bad faith or intentional wrongdoing when dealing with minor offences.
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