Cross-examination of an accused about prior drug use and its effect on impulses, and questions implying prior criminal history, requires leave under s 15(3) of the Evidence Act 1977 (Qld); failure to obtain leave, combined with the prejudicial nature of the questioning, may produce a miscarriage of justice even where defence counsel did not object. The s 617 Criminal Code requirement that a trial be conducted in the presence of the accused is mandatory and cannot be departed from merely because the accused misbehaved on a prior occasion, where the accused is not currently conducting himself so as to render continuance impracticable. Where videotaped evidence of a child complainant is supplied to the jury room under s 99 of the Evidence Act, the warnings required by R v H must be given.
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