R v Wotherspoon [2013] NSWSC 1730

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v Wotherspoon [2013] NSWSC 1730 Hearing dates: 4, 5, 6, 7 November 2013 Decision date: 21 November 2013 Jurisdiction: Common Law - Criminal Before: Latham J Decision: Not guilty of the offence of murder and not guilty of the alternative offence of robbery in company with the infliction of grievous bodily harm. The accused is discharged in relation to these offences. Catchwords: SENTENCE - special hearing - found unfit to be tried - determined that accused will not become fit during twelve months after finding of unfitness - murder - alternative offence of robbery in company with the infliction of grievous bodily harm - Crown case depends upon accused's admissions - reliability of accused's admissions - reliability affected by accused's mental illness, drug abuse and delay between commission of offence and date of admissions - direction according to terms of s 165, Evidence Act - not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt as to reliability of accused's admissions Legislation Cited: Evidence Act 1995 Mental Health (Forensic Provisions) Act 1990 Category: Sentence Parties: Regina - (Crown) Anne Maree Wotherspoon - (Accused) Representation: Counsel P Barnett SC - (Crown) P Rosser QC - (Accused) Solicitors Solicitor for Public Prosecutions - (Crown) Ramsland Laidler Solicitors - (Accused) File Number(s): 2011/68636

Judgment 1The accused, Anne Maree Wotherspoon, was charged on 2 March 2011 with the murder of Margaret Anne Gall on 25 March 2002. The accused was found unfit to be tried by Hidden J on 27 August 2012 and referred to the Mental Health Review Tribunal where it was determined that the accused will not become fit during the twelve months after the finding of unfitness. 2The hearing before me was conducted as a special hearing pursuant to ss 21 and 21A of the Mental Health (Forensic Provisions) Act 1990 (the Act). Apart from the offence of murder, the indictment contains an alternative count of robbery in company with the infliction of grievous bodily harm. The accused is deemed to have entered pleas of not guilty to each offence. 3The evidence in the Crown case was largely uncontested. It was common ground that the only evidence capable of supporting a conviction on the murder count or the alternative count is the accused's admissions to her presence at the deceased's home on the day of her death from blunt force injury to the head, allegedly inflicted in the course of a "home invasion" carried out by persons nominated by the accused as Small, Maynard and Bridge (in addition to herself). The reliability of those admissions determines whether a qualified finding of guilt is available under s 22 of the Act.