Sonter v State of NSW [2006] NSWDC 30

New South Wales District Court

CITATION: Sonter v State of NSW [2006] NSWDC 30

HEARING DATE(S): 7, 8, 9 and 10 August 2006 at Armidale

JUDGMENT DATE: 22 August 2006

JUDGMENT OF: Johnstone DCJ at 1

DECISION: Judgment for the defendant

CATCHWORDS: MALICIOUS PROSECUTION - Elements required to be proved - 1. Reasonable and probable cause 2. Malice: spite, ill-will or impermissible motive

A v State of New South Wales [2005] NSWCA 292 Glinski v McIver [1962] AC 726 Hicks v Faulkner (1878) 8 QBD 167 Herniman v Smith [1938] 1 All ER 1 Lister v Perryman (1869-70) LR HL 521 CASES CITED: Lye v State of New South Wales [2005] NSWCA 282 Mitchell v John Heine (1938) 38 SR (NSW) 466 Rapley v Rapley (1930) 30 SR 94 Sharp v Biggs (1932) 48 CLR 81 Trobridge v Hardy (1955) 94 CLR 147 Turner v Ambler (1847) 10 QB 252; 116 ER 98

PARTIES: Brett Edward Sonter (Plaintiff) State of New South Wales (Defendant)

FILE NUMBER(S): 23/2004 (Armidale)

COUNSEL: Mr D F Rofe QC and Mr Shepherd (Plaintiff) Mr M J Nield QC and Mr Spartalis (Defendant)

SOLICITORS: Abbott Pardy & Jenkins (Plaintiff) Crown Solicitor of NSW (Defendant)

JUDGMENT

HIS HONOUR

The proceedings

1. The plaintiff in these proceedings is Mr Brett Sonter. He was born in 1970 and now lives at Sawtell.

2. In the early hours of Saturday 30 December 2000 the plaintiff was injured in an episode that occurred at the Royal Hotel at Inverell ("the episode"). Arising out of that episode, the plaintiff was charged by the Inverell police under the Crimes Act 1900. The charges proffered were: assaulting Mr Michael Davis occasioning actual bodily harm and assaulting Mr Michael Davis ("the charges").