In R v MDY [2024] QCA 119, the appellant, MDY, was convicted of rape and subsequently appealed against his conviction. The Queensland Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, set aside the conviction, and ordered a retrial. This case arose from an alleged incident on 23 December 2021, where MDY was accused of anally raping the complainant.
The appeal centred primarily on three grounds of alleged miscarriages of justice:
Failure to Direct on Accident: The trial judge did not properly direct the jury regarding the defense of accident under s 23 of the Criminal Code (Qld). This omission was critical because MDY's defense included that the initial penetration was accidental.
Failure to Direct on Mistake of Fact: The jury was not directed on the defense of mistake of fact under s 24 of the Criminal Code (Qld), particularly whether MDY might have mistakenly believed he was penetrating the complainant's vagina rather than her anus.
Improper Admission of Discreditable Conduct Evidence: Evidence of MDY's discreditable conduct towards the complainant was admitted without proper directions to the jury on how this evidence should be considered, raising the risk of propensity reasoning.
The appeal court found that the trial judge's failure to properly instruct the jury on these legal defenses contributed to a miscarriage of justice. Consequently, the Court set aside MDY's conviction and ordered a new trial.