Hawkins v The Queen [1994] HCA 47

High Court of Australia Mason C.J. Brennan, Dawson, Toohey and Gaudron JJ. Hawkins v The Queen [1994] HCA 47

ORDER Appeal allowed. Set aside the order of the Court of Criminal Appeal and in lieu thereof order that the appeal to that Court be allowed, the appellant's convictions be quashed and a new trial be held.

Cur. adv. vult.

The Court delivered the following written judgment:—

Oct. 14 Mason C.J.,Brennan, Dawson, Toohey and Gaudron JJ.

The appellant was convicted of four offences relating to events at a caravan park at Windang on the night of 23-24 December 1989. The offences included the abduction of and sexual intercourse with a girl aged fifteen months, inflicting actual bodily harm with intent to have sexual intercourse, and assault occasioning actual bodily harm to the brother of the girl. The appellant appealed against the convictions on the ground that the trial judge was in error when he admitted into evidence a record of interview made on 17 January 1990. The Court of Criminal Appeal (McInerney and Badgery-Parker JJ., Priestley J.A. dissenting) dismissed the appeal.

The division of opinion in the Court of Appeal related to the appellant's argument that the record of interview was inadmissible as it contained a confession which should not have been received into evidence because it had been induced by an untrue representation made to the appellant by a person in authority, within the meaning of s. 410(1)(a) of the Crimes Act 1900 NSW. The majority rejected that argument along with other arguments which were advanced on behalf of the appellant.

The appeal to this Court challenges the correctness of the majority opinion on the s. 410(1)(a) point. The appeal also challenges the rejection by the Court of Criminal Appeal of other grounds argued in support of the inadmissibility of the record of interview. However, in view of the conclusion which we have reached in relation to the s. 410(1)(a) point, we shall confine our attention to that aspect of the appeal.