Read the full judgment text of CACC 000010/1989 on BabelCite. This Court of Appeal judgment was delivered on 8 November 1989 before Yang C.J., Silke V.-P., Bewley J..
Criminal law – robbery – identification – appellate review of safety of conviction – application for leave to appeal against conviction – whether trial judge misdirected himself on the proper test for drawing reasonable inferences from proved facts – whether trial judge improperly drew an inference of guilty intent upon an inference of presence – whether trial judge erred in making findings on matters unsupported by evidence or on conflicting evidence – whether conviction was unsafe and unsatisfactory. The applicant was convicted of robbery arising from an incident at the Jade Apartment, Nathan Road, where three men attacked the caretaker, tied her up and stole cash and jewellery. Two co-defendants (aged 18 and 14) were found hiding on the rooftop; the applicant (aged 23 but youthful-looking) was caught running down the stairs by police. The victim positively identified two robbers but failed to identify the applicant at an identification parade. Held, dismissing the application: the trial judge's direction on the proper test for drawing inferences was a correct statement of the law; the judge's approach in drawing an inference of intent to rob from the inferred presence of the applicant on the premises was permissible; although the judge made some findings against the applicant that should have been resolved in his favour, the cumulative weight of unexplained inculpatory evidence led inexorably to the conclusion that the applicant was the third robber. Application refused.
Legal issues: Proper test for drawing inferences in criminal trial · Drawing of inference upon inference · Findings made without supporting evidence or on conflicting evidence · Safety and satisfactoriness of conviction
Outcome: Application for leave to appeal against conviction refused; conviction stands.