The District Court refused to exclude expert DNA evidence under ss 55 and 137 of the Evidence Act 1995 (NSW) in a sexual assault trial. The Court held that DNA evidence found in the complainant's low and high vaginal areas was relevant to the fact in issue (penile-vaginal penetration) because, taken at its highest, the evidence supported direct deposition by the accused's anatomy where proper decontamination procedures were followed during the SAIK examination. The Court distinguished R v KE [2019] NSWDC 349, finding that unlike that case, the experts here did not agree the DNA was equally explicable by innocent transfer, and held that the 'CSI effect' concern did not arise on the facts where the jury's task was to assess straightforward alternative explanations amenable to judicial direction.
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