R v El-Kheir [2018] NSWDC 245

District Court New South Wales

Medium Neutral Citation: R v El-Kheir [2018] NSWDC 245 Hearing dates: 26 - 27 July 2018; 30 - 31 July 2018; 1- 2 August 2018; 6 - 9 August 2018;13 -16 August 2018; 20 - 23 August 2018; 27 August 2018; 29 August 2018. Decision date: 05 September 2018 Jurisdiction: Criminal Before: Berman SC DCJ Decision: On counts 1 – 7 on the indictment the accused is found not guilty on the grounds of mental illness. Found not guilty on count 8 Catchwords: CRIMINAL LAW – Judgment – Judge alone trial – Sexual intercourse without consent – Indecent assault – Medical practitioner commits offences on female patients – Consent at issue for one complainant – One complainant wearing listening device when touched in sexual manner – Recent history of bizarre behaviour – Voluntariness – Automatism – Hypoglycaemia – Hyperglycaemia – Mental illness – Bipolar affective disorder – Mental illness exacerbated by fluctuating blood sugar levels – Ability to reason about wrongfulness of conduct. Legislation Cited: Crimes Act Evidence Act Mental Health Act Mental Health (Forensic Provisions) Act 1990 Cases Cited: Bratty v Attorney – General (Northern Ireland) [1963] AC 386 Goodridge v R [2014] NSWCCA 37 Hill v Baxter [1958] 1QB 277 R v Bingham (Court of Appeal, Criminal Division 8 February 1991). R v Cha [2012] NSWCCA 142 R v Gillett [2005] NSWDC 20 R v Gourlay [2015] NSWSC 67 R v Hall (1988) 36 A Crim R 368 R v Hennessy [1989] 2 All ER 9 R v Hennessy [1989] 1 WLR 287 R v Hilder (1997) 97 A Crim R 70 R v Hilder CCA(NSW) 10 October 1997 R v Parks [1992] 2 SCR 871 R v Quick [1973] QB 910 R v Youssef (1990) 50 A Crim R 1 Sodeman v The King [1936] 55 CLR 192 Taylor v R (1978) 22 ALR 599 The Queen v Falconer (1990) 171 CLR 30 Vallance v The Queen (1961) 108 CLR 56 Texts Cited: Insulin resistance and outcome in bipolar disorder by Calkin et al, The British Journal of Psychiatry (2015) 206 Category: Principal judgment Parties: The Crown Tarek Abou El-Kheir Representation: Counsel: Ms K Jeffreys – Crown Mr D Dalton SC – Offender Ms A Cook - Offender