Andrew L. Urban.
Justice at the hands of ‘The System’ is sometimes no justice at all, it seems, as the new 9-part series The Innocence Files (Netflix) reveals how police break the rules, forensic experts use junk science, prosecutors withhold exculpatory evidence and judges fail the wisdom test. But some witnesses also contribute to wrongful convictions – which can take decades to correct, if ever. Continue reading
Marking 11 years since her arrest (August 20, 2009) and while awaiting the oft-delayed start of Sue Neill-Fraser’s further appeal against her conviction for the murder of Bob Chappell (now scheduled for November 2, 2020), we publish the transcript of the closing submission of her defence barrister, (the late) David Gunson SC, as a case briefing for those not familiar with it, but also as an opportunity to re-examine the various elements that give rise to serious concerns about the safety of the conviction. Continue reading
Andrew L. Urban.
Eve Ash, the Melbourne filmmaker whose documentary, Shadow of Doubt, opened a Pandora’s Box on the Sue Neill-Fraser (many say wrongful) murder conviction, has produced a 4-part eLearning course, Giving Expert Evidence, which has now (July 23, 2020) been released on OPENSESAME.com an acclaimed online learning library based in USA. It begins by urging expert witnesses not to advocate but inform. Oh, and beware of ego … Continue reading
Andrew L. Urban.
Over the past 14 years under Justice Chris Maxwell’s reign as its president, 18 of the judgements of Victoria’s Court of Appeal have been overturned by the High Court, while in the previous decade, 10 of its judgements were reaffirmed and reversed only twice by the High Court. The analysis is in a report released today, by Victoria’s former chief crown prosecutor Gavin Silbert QC. Continue reading
Andrew L. Urban.
When juries in a circumstantial case are told of DNA, they assume that it’s a solid piece of evidence, unquestionable. The prosecution relies on this assumption and tells its story as if every DNA sample was like a brick. The case of Bradley Murdoch’s conviction for the murder of Peter Falconio is a strong example of why this is not so; even DNA can lead to unsafe convictions, as revealed in Channel 7’s investigative documentary mini series, Murder in the Outback,* which concluded on Sunday, July 19, 2020. Continue reading
He had an alibi. Why was he charged, tried and convicted? Robert Xie and his wife Kathy have always maintained he was in their bed beside her at the relevant time on the night of the Lin family murders, for which he was sentenced to life imprisonment without parole in 2017. As the three learned judges retired last week to consider his appeal against the five murder convictions, they will come face to face with the single most crucial aspect of the case: Xie’s alibi – which the Crown has not disproved beyond reasonable doubt. Phillip Chapman’s July 3, 2020 comment on this is published here (with a background briefing) to bring it to greater prominence for our readers. Continue reading
In his book, Murder by the Prosecution (Wilkinson Publishing) ANDREW L. URBAN reports on murder trials that relied exclusively on circumstantial evidence and how these resulted in convictions – since overturned or under appeal. Through exploring these cases he came to recognise a pattern, secret strategies. He now adds the case of Robert Xie to the three examples in his book. Continue reading
The directions hearing in the Tasmanian Supreme Court before Justice Wood on Friday, July 3, 2020 was unable to settle on 17 August as the start date for the long awaited appeal against her 2010 murder conviction, reports Rosie Crumpton-Crook, Secretary of the Sue Neill-Fraser Support Group. Continue reading
Andrew L. Urban.
Of the 12 member jury at Robert Xie’s third murder trial in 2015, (the longest in NSW history), most voted NOT GUILTY. Some didn’t, resulting in a hung jury and a fourth trial, in 2016/17. Triggered by the 2020 appeal, two of the 2015 jury are voicing their deep concerns following their experience of the legal system. Highly critical of what they saw and heard as jurors, their anger is directed at fellow jurors, the prosecutor, witnesses and the judge in equal measure. Continue reading
Andrew L. Urban.
As his appeal hearings draw to a close this week, Robert Xie’s fate lies in the hands of the judges. But how the legal system (mis)treated him over several years is also deserving of scrutiny. Convicted in 2017 of the five brutal murders of his wife’s family in July 2009, Xie has always maintained his innocence, and the case against him was circumstantial – and “not overwhelming” even in the words of the prosecutor. Continue reading