Daniel, a witness to a crime, recognises his best friend Sam stealing a car on CCTV images produced by the court. Can the jury rely on this evidence? Using the case of A-G Reference (No 2 of 2002), it was held a jury can rely upon photogrpahic evidence in deciding whether the defendant committed the offence, where a witness knows the defendant sufficiently well to recognise the offender depicted in the photogrpahic image.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The Answer is Yes, the jury can rely on this evidence. In the case of A-G Reference (No 2 of 2002), it was established that photographic evidence can be used by a jury to decide whether a defendant committed an offence, particularly when a witness is familiar enough with the defendant to recognize them in the photographic image. In the scenario provided, Daniel, who is a witness to the crime, recognizes his best friend Sam in the CCTV images presented in court. Since Daniel knows Sam well enough to identify him, his testimony regarding the recognition of Sam in the CCTV footage can be considered reliable evidence. Therefore, the jury can take Daniel's recognition of Sam into account when determining the guilt of the defendant. This precedent supports the admissibility and reliability of photographic identification by a witness who has sufficient familiarity with the person depicted in the images.

Daniel, a Witness to a Crime, Recognises His Best Friend