R v Ngo, R v Dao, R v Dinh [2000] NSWSC 976

New South Wales Supreme Court

CITATION : R v Ngo, R v Dao, R v Dinh [2000] NSWSC 976 revised - 2/03/2001 FILE NUMBER(S) : SC 70086/98; 70023/98; 70059/99 HEARING DATE(S) : 07/09/2000 JUDGMENT DATE : 7 September 2000

Regina v Phuong Canh NGO, PARTIES : Regina v Tu Quang DAO, Regina v David Duy Thai DINH, JUDGMENT OF : James J at 1

M Tedeschi QC - Crown J Nicholson SC - Ngo COUNSEL : M Buscombe - Dao R Hoenig - Dinh T Blackburn - John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd IV Knight - Crown LMG Solicitors & Attorneys - Ngo SOLICITORS : Jackson Smith - Dao S Mullany - LAC - Dinh Mark Polden - John Fairfax Publications Pty Ltd DECISION : Application granted

THE SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES COMMON LAW DIVISION

JAMES J

THURSDAY 7 SEPTEMBER 2000

70086/98 - REGINA v PHUONG CANH NGO 70023/98 - REGINA v TU QUANG DAO 70059/99 - REGINA v DAVID DUY THAI DINH

JUDGMENT 1�� HIS HONOUR: This is an application brought by the Crown in criminal proceedings against three accused, Phuong Canh Ngo, Tu Quang Dao and David Duy Thai Dinh. Each of the accused is charged with the murder of John Newman, a member of the State Parliament, on 5 September 1994. There have so far been two trials of the murder charges. The first trial was aborted after it had run for a number of weeks. After the second trial the jury was unable to agree and the jury was discharged without reaching any verdict. 2�� Separate trials of the accused Mr Ngo and the accused Mr Dao on the one hand and the accused Mr Dinh on the other have been fixed to commence on 29 January 2001. Those trials will be the third trials of the charges. 3�� On or about 23 August this year the Director of Public Prosecutions filed a notice of motion in which the Director sought the following orders: 1. That at the trial of Phuong Canh Ngo and Tu Quang Dao which is due to commence on 29 January 2001, access to the public and press gallery be restricted to persons approved by the court. 2. That the Sheriff provide transportation for the jurors to and from court in a manner deemed appropriate by the Sheriff. 3. That from the time the jury retire to consider their verdicts until the verdicts being returned the jury are to be sequestered. 4. This application to be heard in camera. 4�� This application was supported by an affidavit sworn on 23 August 2000 by Naguib Kaldas, a detective superintendent of police who is the senior investigator in the task force investigating the death of Mr Newman. 5�� In pars 2 to 4 of his affidavit Mr Kaldas refers to a series of previous affidavits, including a number of affidavits by persons who either gave evidence at previous trials of the accused or made statements to the police in connection with the investigation into the death of Mr Newman.