The use by police of a covert operative placed in a suspect's cell after the suspect has indicated a desire to consult a lawyer before speaking further does not automatically require exclusion of resulting admissions. The trial judge retains a broad discretion under Swaffield, and the manner in which the discretion should be exercised depends on the circumstances, including whether the operative's questions were leading or intense, whether misleading statements were made, and whether the suspect voluntarily spoke. A trial judge has a discretionary power to permit an accused to revisit an election under s 618 of the Criminal Code 1899 (Qld) not to give evidence, but the accused must demonstrate that permitting the change is in the interests of justice — a mere change of heart without identifying sufficiently important evidence is insufficient.
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