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Queenslanders risk losing right to trial by jury
The right to trial by jury will be removed under proposed reforms to the Queensland justice system.Queensland Law Society (QLS) President Peter Eardley voiced the society's objections to…
Lawyers Weekly
The right to trial by jury will be removed under proposed reforms to the Queensland justice system.
The Queensland Government has been 'cherry-picking' key elements from the Moynihan Report, Eardley said, while ignoring other essential safeguards suggested.
The Moynihan Report on reform of the justice system suggested that, rather than defence cross-examining witnesses at a committal hearing, police would certify that all the evidence against the accused had been disclosed.
Despite this recommendation, the Government has proposed to remove the right to cross-examine witnesses, without providing a safeguard such as police certification of evidence disclosure. "Based on what the Government proposes, an accused person could arrive at court for trial with little or no idea of the extent of the evidence against them," Eardley said.
"This will ultimately result in longer, more costly, hearings, which defeats a major aim of the reform process. But, more significantly, there is no doubt that this will increase the risk of miscarriages of justice."
