Kozul v The Queen (1981) 147 CLR 221

Facts:  Defendant (D) was charged with maliciously shooting at the victim (V) with intent to do GBH. Allegedly, V tried to get into a club. D tried to prevent him, and in the ruckus, D’s finger slipped on the trigger and a shot was accidentally fired. Prosecution’s (Pr) case theory was that it was fired deliberately. However, There was a question over how easily that type of gun could be incidentally discharged. Pr called an expert witness (W) who testified that the trigger was quite heavy and not very sensitive. The gun was an exhibit (real evidence)  and the trial judge (TJ) allowed the jury to take the unloaded gun and test whether it could be discharged accidentally. 

Want to read more?

Subscribe to casetreasury.com to keep reading this exclusive post.

Subscribe Now