Where an accused is charged with multiple sexual offences arising from a single continuous episode and the complainant's evidence of communicating non-consent is substantially equivalent across all counts, acquittals on some counts may render a conviction on another count irreconcilably inconsistent, requiring the conviction to be quashed. Where the prosecution relies on two distinct categories of lies by the accused — lies to police (attracting an Edwards direction as to consciousness of guilt) and lies to the complainant about personal circumstances — a Zoneff direction must be given warning the jury that the latter category of lies is relevant only to credibility and cannot be used as evidence of guilt, particularly where the lies are closely connected with the circumstances of the offending.
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