Wrongly Convicted Database Record
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Charge: |
Indecent Assault of Minor |
Sentence: |
12 months suspended after 5 months |
Years Imprisoned: |
0.42 |
Year Crime: |
2003 |
Year Convicted: |
2016 |
Year Cleared: |
2017 |
U.S. State or Country of Crime: |
Australia |
County or Region of Crime: |
Queensland |
City of Crime: |
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Result: |
Judicially Exonerated |
Summary of Case: |
"G. A. X. was wrongly convicted on February 8, 2016 of aggravated indency with a child in 2003 in Queensland, Australia. X.'s prosecution was based on the testimony of his daughter, who was 12 when she alleged that she awoke and found his hand touching her vagina. The jury acquitted X. of two counts, but convicted him of a third count. X was sentenced to 12 months imprisonment to be suspended after five months. X. appealed to the Queensland Court of Appeal, which on July 22, 2016 by a 2 to 1 majority affirmed his conviction. G. A. X. sought review by the High Court of Australia, which accepted X's case for review. On June 21, 2017 the High Court affset aside X's conviction and ordered his acquittal. The Court ruled the jury's verdict was unreasonable and unsupported by the prosecution's evidence because the jury acquitted X. of two other counts. The Court also ruled the evidence was insufficient because it could not be excluded beyond a reasonable doubt that inconsistencies in the complainants evidence could be explained by her testimony being a reconstruction and not actual memories. The Court stated: "1. Appeal allowed. 2. Set aside the order of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Queensland made on 22 July 2016 and in its place order that the appeal to that Court be allowed, the appellant's conviction be quashed and a judgment and verdict of acquittal be entered." (GAX v. The Queen, [2017] HCA 25 (High Court of Australia, 6-21-2017))" |
Conviction Caused By: |
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Innocence Proved By: |
"On June 21, 2017 the High Court affset aside X's conviction and ordered his acquittal. The Court ruled the jury's verdict was unreasonable and unsupported by the prosecution's evidence because the jury acquitted X. of two other counts. The Court also ruled the evidence was insufficient because it could not be excluded beyond a reasonable doubt that inconsistencies in the complainants evidence could be explained by her testimony being a reconstruction and not actual memories. The Court stated: "1. Appeal allowed. 2. Set aside the order of the Court of Appeal of the Supreme Court of Queensland made on 22 July 2016 and in its place order that the appeal to that Court be allowed, the appellant's conviction be quashed and a judgment and verdict of acquittal be entered." (GAX v. The Queen, [2017] HCA 25 (High Court of Australia, 6-21-2017))" |
Defendant Aided By: |
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Was Perpetrator Identified? |
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Age When Imprisoned: |
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Age When Released: |
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Sex: |
Male |
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Information Source 1: |
"GAX v. The Queen, [2017] HCA 25 (High Court of Australia, 6-21-2017) (Setting aside conviction and ordering acquittal.)" |
Information Location 1: |
http://eresources.hcourt.gov.au/downloadPdf/2017/HCA/25 |
Information Source 2: |
"High Court quashes fathers conviction for molesting daughter, By Caroline Overington (Assocaite Editor, Sydney), The Australian Business Review, July 25, 2017" |
Information Location 2: |
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/legal-affairs/high-court-quashes-fathers-conviction-for-molesting-daughter/news-story/216529d67a447e5a7d5a54c3d629ef7c |
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Comments About Case: |
Innocents Database Created and Maintained by Hans Sherrer innocents@forejustice.org