R v Tran [2022] NSWSC 1377

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Tran [2022] NSWSC 1377 Hearing dates: 16 September 2022 Decision date: 16 September 2022 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Button J Decision: The iteration of s 23A of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) which is to be applied in the trial is the form that existed prior to the commencement of the Mental Health and Cognitive Impairment Forensic Provisions Act 2020 (NSW) Catchwords: CRIME – Murder – Partial defences – Substantial impairment CRIMINAL PROCEDURE – Pre-trial ruling – Whether s 23A of the Crimes Act in current form or prior form is to apply to murder trial – Where killing occurred prior to commencement of amendment – Where first arraignment occurred after commencement of amendment – Where "trial proper" occurred after commencement of amendment STATUTORY INTERPRETATION – Amendment and repeal – Retrospectivity – Where no transitional provision included in amending Act with regard to adaption of partial defence of substantial impairment – Caution in applying legislation retrospectively without express intendment – Preferred construction is prior form of s 23A of the Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) Legislation Cited: Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) Mental Health and Cognitive Impairment Forensic Provisions Act 2020 (NSW) Cases Cited: Lodhi v The Queen (2006) 199 FLR 303; [2006] NSWCCA 121 R v Papanicolaou (No 4) [2021] NSWSC 1698 Stephens v The Queen [2022] HCA 31 Category: Procedural rulings Parties: Rex (Crown) Thanh Tran (Accused) Representation: Counsel: K Jeffreys (Crown) J Manuell SC (Accused)