R v IL (No 2) [2014] NSWSC 1710

Supreme Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v IL (No 2) [2014] NSWSC 1710 Hearing dates: 27, 28 November 2014 Date of orders: 02 December 2014 Decision date: 02 December 2014 Jurisdiction: Common Law Before: Hamill J Decision: Direct the jury to return verdicts of not guilty in relation to counts 2(a) (murder) and 2(b) (manslaughter) Catchwords: CRIMINAL LAW - application for directed verdict of not guilty - constructive murder - murder felony rule - joint criminal enterprise - interaction of principles - fire in clandestine methylamphetamine laboratory - co-offender killed in fire - no evidence of who committed act causing death - no evidence to exclude possibility that deceased committed the act causing death - whether joint criminal enterprise catches every act committed by co-offender - principal in the second degree - derivative liability - deceased could not be guilty of his own homicide - manslaughter by unlawful and dangerous act - causation - whether chain of causation broken by act of deceased Legislation Cited: Crimes Act 1900 (NSW) Crimes Act 1958 (VIC) Drug Misuse and Trafficking Act 1985 (NSW) Firearms Act 1996 (NSW) Cases Cited: Batcheldor v R [2014] NSWCCA 252 Burns v The Queen [2012] HCA 35; 246 CLR 334 Clayton v The Queen [2006] HCA 58; 168 A Crim R 174; 81 ALJR 439 Hong v R [2009] NSWCCA 242 Johns v The Queen [1980] HCA 3; 143 CLR 108 The Queen v Lavender [2005] HCA 37; 222 CLR 67 Likiardopoulos v The Queen [2012] HCA 37; 247 CLR 265 McAuliffe v The Queen [1995] HCA 37; 183 CLR 108 Penza and Di Maria v R [2013] NSWCCA 21 R v Cramp [1999] NSWCCA 324; 110 A Crim R 198 R v Dagger (District Court (NSW), 21 November 2012, unrep) R v Demirian [1989] VR 97; 33 A Crim R 441 R v Jacobs [2004] NSWCCA 462; 151 A Crim R 452 R v JMR (1991) 57 A Crim R 39 R v Johns [1978] 1 NSWLR 282 R v Kennedy (No 2) [2008] AC 269 R v Phan [2001] NSWCCA 29; 53 NSWLR 480 R v R (1989) 44 A Crim R 404; 18 NSWLR 74 R v Sharah (1992) 30 NSWLR 292 R v Spathis [2001] NSWCCA 476 R v Staines [1999] NSWSC 1101 Royall v The Queen [1991] HCA 27; 172 CLR 378 Ryan v The Queen [1967] HCA 2; 121 CLR 205 The People v James (1998) 62 Cal App 4th 244 The People v Schaefer (2004) 118 Cal App 4th 893 White v Chrones (D Cal, EDCV 06-329, 21 September 2009) White v Ridley [1978] HCA 38; 140 CLR 342 Wilson v The Queen [1992] HCA 31; 174 CLR 313 Texts Cited: Criminal Trials Bench Book G Williams "Finis for Novus Actus", (1989) 48 Cambridge Law Journal, 391 New South Wales Legislative Assembly Parliamentary Debates (Hansard), 13 March 1974 New South Wales, Law Reform Commission, Report on Complicity [129] (2010) R Button & L Babb "Some Aspects of Constructive Murder in NSW", (2007) 31 Crim LJ 234 Category: Procedural rulings Parties: Crown IL (Accused) Representation: Counsel: R Herps (Crown) R Pontello (Accused)