Bounds v The Queen

Criminal Law – Appeal against conviction - Miscarriage of justice - Appellant presented in District Court on an indictment charging two offences - The first count, possession of child pornography, alleged an indictable offence - The second count, possession of indecent or obscene articles, was a simple offence only and was wrongly joined in the indictment - No objection taken to the indictment at the appellant's trial - Whether there was a substantial miscarriage of justice because of the wrongful joinder of count two - Whether the conviction on count one should be quashed because the jury had before it evidence on count two which, but for the wrongful joinder of count two, would not have been admissible - Whether the whole indictment was a nullity.

Words and phrases – "indictable offence", "simple offence", "substantial miscarriage of justice".

Censorship Act 1996 (WA).

Criminal Code (WA) – ss 3, 689(1).

District Court of Western Australia Act 1969 (WA) – ss 8, 42.