Jaw v WA

[2016] WASCA 40

Western Australia Court of Appeal

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Interrogate

Catchwords

1. Criminal Law
2. › Sexual offences
3. › Children
4. › Joinder of charges
5. › Severance
6. › Whether child pornography count properly joined with sexual offence counts
7. › Whether propensity evidence admissible under s 31A Evidence Act 1906 (WA)
8. › Criminal Procedure Act 2004 (WA), s 133, Sch 1 div 2 cl 7(3)(a)
9. › Evidence Act 1906 (WA), s 31A
1. Criminal Law
2. › Sexual offences
3. › Children
4. › Inconsistent verdicts
5. › Whether acquittals on some counts factually inconsistent with convictions on others
6. › Whether verdicts represent affront to logic and common sense
7. › Criminal Appeals Act 2004 (WA), s 30(3)(a)
1. Criminal Law
2. › Evidence
3. › Recall of witness for further cross-examination
4. › Whether trial judge erred in refusing application to recall complainant
5. › Whether matter of substance not cross-examined on
1. Criminal Law
2. › Sentencing
3. › Sexual offences against children
4. › Totality principle
5. › Whether total effective sentence bore proper relationship to overall criminality
6. › Criminal Code (WA), s 320(2), s 320(4)

Quick Take

Possession of child pornography found in proximity to photographs of a complainant may constitute propensity evidence of significant probative value under s 31A of the Evidence Act 1906 (WA) in a trial for sexual offences against children, supporting joinder of the pornography count with the sexual offence counts. Acquittals on some counts of a multi-count sexual offence indictment are not inconsistent with convictions on other counts where the acquittals are explicable by specific evidentiary weaknesses on those counts, such as contradictory evidence or inherent improbability.