In child sexual assault cases, jury warnings about the unreliability of a child complainant's evidence cannot be based on the mere fact that the witness is a child or on features inherent to children generally, by reason of s 165A of the Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) and s 294AA of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW). The minority observations of Deane and McHugh JJ in Longman about child fantasy and the fragility of childhood memory are not authoritative and should be treated with caution. The decision in RP v The Queen on doli incapax turned on its own facts and did not change the relevant principles; school reports, circumstances of offending showing concealment, and the accused's own concession may together suffice to rebut the presumption.
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