Tootle v The Queen [2017] NSWCCA 103
- casetreasury
- Aug 1, 2024
- 1 min read
Facts: Defendant (D) was convicted of 11 counts of sexual offences against a 13yo complainant. During the trial, the trial judge (TJ) gave a number of directions to the jury, including advising that the jury were entitled to formulate questions to be asked of witnesses (Ws), and encouraging the jury to do so. TJ advised the jury of a particular process through which they could have questions put to the witness. D counsel objected a number of times. The prosecution (Pr) expressed hesitation, but the process went ahead. The jury posed 56 questions to various Ws, and the questioning process formed one of the grounds of D’s appeal.