Failure to give the mandatory jury directions under s 21A(8) and s 21AW(2) of the Evidence Act 1977 (Qld) about the presence of a support person for a special witness will result in a miscarriage of justice in a finely balanced case where the prosecution turns solely on the complainant's evidence. The directions must cover each separate measure taken under the special witness provisions, not merely some of them. Evidence of a complainant's distressed condition that is not closely related to the commission of an identified offence or a preliminary complaint should not be led at trial.
The full text is available to signed-in members, including the 16 later cases that cite this judgment.
7 of the 16 citing cases carry a classified treatment. How each court treated it is available to signed-in members.