Dansie v. The Queen

Lower Court Judgment

02/11/2020 Supreme Court of South Australia (Nicholson, Parker and Livesey JJ)

[2020] SASCFC 103

Catchwords

Criminal law – Murder – Unreasonable verdict – Verdict unsupported by evidence – Where appellant's wife drowned after her wheelchair entered pond – Where prosecution alleged intentional drowning – Where, on defence case, drowning accidental – Where s 158(1)(a) of Criminal Procedure Act 1921 (SA) provided for appeal to be allowed where Court considers verdict should be set aside on ground that conviction unreasonable or cannot be supporting having regard to evidence – Whether Court of Criminal Appeal failed to conduct independent assessment of whole of evidence – Whether open to trial judge to exclude hypothesis of accidental drowning – Proper approach by intermediate appellate court to "unreasonable verdict" limb of common form appeal provision following judge-alone trial.