Posted on 03/12/2005 1:34:40 PM PST by quidnunc
A man who confessed to killing two women walked free from court yesterday when a judge ruled the evidence too damning.
Father-of-two Lyle Simpson admitted being a killer, DNA evidence proved he was at the scene of one murder and he tried to commit suicide a day later.
Yet after three days of legal argument in the NSW Supreme Court, Judge Anthony Whealy ruled some evidence was just too damning and ran the risk of "unfair prejudice'' to the accused.
A married Simpson was accused of murdering his mistress Rhonda Buckley, 51, in September 2001 in Georgetown, Newcastle.
But the family of the victim were devastated by the decision which enabled Simpson, 45, to go free after 16 months in jail awaiting trial.
Ms Buckley's daughter Suzy Westgarth said: "I am bloody angry, so angry."
Outside the court yesterday, Simpson said: "I'm relieved to go home. I've got two disabled kids and I just want to live my life and be left alone by the police," he said.
-snip-
But in court, his defence team led by legal aid solicitor Joanne Harris successfully argued the evidence would unduly prejudice the jury.
A court source said: "The evidence would be too prejudicial for the jury to hear, they would naturaly assume from some of the evidence, that he was guilty.
-snip-
What that means, is if the a single piece of evidence is so overpowering it would sway a jury from giving a fair trial, it cannot be used.
-snip-
(Excerpt) Read more at dailytelegraph.news.com.au ...
Just read the article again and noticed that this is from Australia, the Digest must have a version of their magazine for down under.
Australia is backwards land, right?
Its pretty safe to say, from reading the article, if one were to commit murder in front of a camera, the videotape would have to be inadmissible.
When did they legalize LSD in NSW or is it reserved just for Judges?
This HAS GOT to be a joke, right? Right? sigh
He was much too guilty, we just HAD to let him go.
sheesh....
Sounds like that judge is a real genius.
Or what Emperor Joseph II’s said about Mozart’s opera Die Entführung aus dem Serail:
"Too many notes, my dear Mozart, and too beautiful for our ears."
Unbelievable.
I guess the Atlanta killer should go free now? There is no doubt that he killed 4 people. Isn't that compelling enough?
This is an example of post-modernism run amok.
"Not gill . . . cup? Not gillcup! You have been found not gillcup of the charges made against you and may leave this court a free man."
He was laughed out of court (just about literally, the appeals court had some nasty words for him AND his lawyer in the published opinion).
Apparently the idiots got shipped to Australia, and are on the trial court bench over there.
Speechless, Liberalism personified.
Judge Anthony Whealy ruled some evidence was just too damning and ran the risk of "unfair prejudice'' to the accused.
Quick, hide this article from the US Supreme Court. If the libs on the court see this, Brian Nichols in Atlanta will be set free.
So then someone else should just kill him and document it on videotape. That way THEIR evidence will be deemed "too damning".
RIDICULOUS
This idiot judge ought to be nervous. Ms. Buckley's family might decide to get even and leave too much compelling evidence.
Therefore I propose abolishing the jury system altogether and replacing it with a coin-toss system. That way every defendant will have fairness, which is to say the exact same chance of acquittal as every other defendant.
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