Application for leave to appeal against conviction
Extension of time
Quick Take
1A magistrate's disclosure at the outset of trial that a court orderly described a self-represented accused as 'a rambler' does not, without more, give rise to apprehended bias where the magistrate expressly stated it caused no prejudice and the accused accepted the disclosure without objection during the trial.
2Speculative challenges to the chain of custody of an oral fluid drug sample will not undermine a conviction where the prosecution witness gave clear evidence of proper storage and transport procedures and no evidence was adduced to contradict the integrity of the sample or the certified laboratory analysis.
3When assessing an extension of time to appeal under s 10(3) of the Criminal Appeals Act 2004 (WA), the absence of a satisfactory explanation for delay, combined with a lack of merit in the proposed grounds, weighs against the grant of an extension even where the delay is not substantial.
