Criminal law – Juries – Practice in Victoria of provision of conviction and other information concerning potential jurors to Director of Public Prosecutions by police – Information used to exercise challenge – Whether practice prohibited by Juries Act 1967 (Vic) – Consequences of invalidation of practice – Whether prohibition of practice relates to the constitution and authority of the jury and to the trial process in a fundamental respect – Whether breach constituted a fundamental failure to observe requirements of the criminal process.
Criminal law – Juries – Nature of and entitlement to peremptory challenge – Relevance of reasons for exercise.
Criminal law – Constitutional requirement of trial by jury – Representative nature of the jury.
Jury – Commonwealth offence – Trial in State court – Provision of information by police to prosecutor – Information used to exercise challenge – Whether practice prohibited – Whether breach constituted a fundamental failure to observe requirements of the criminal trial.
Words and phrases – "constitution and authority of the jury".
The Constitution, s 80.
Juries Act 1967 (Vic).
Maher v The Queen (1987) 163 CLR 221.