Where defence counsel deliberately elicits extensive evidence of an accused's criminal record beyond what is necessary to establish a specific point (such as absence of convictions for a particular type of offence), and there is no rational or reasonable explanation for the extent of the evidence elicited, the trial will be unfair and a miscarriage of justice will result. A Prasad direction should not be given where the jury may not understand the legal basis of the Crown case, particularly in joint criminal enterprise cases where the co-accused's criminal responsibility has not been explained.
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