R v Mohammed Riasat Malik
[2024] EWCA Crim 292
R v Enes Ulas
27 January 2023
[2023] EWCA Crim 82
Court of Appeal
Enes Ulas was convicted based on CCTV and a police officer who identified him. Some mistakes were made during the trial (police officer said things he shouldn't have), but the judge fixed it by telling the jury to ignore those things. The court said the conviction was still fair.
Key Facts
- •Enes Ulas convicted of wounding with intent, possession of an imitation firearm, and violent disorder.
- •CCTV footage showed three suspects involved in an attack; Suspect 3 stabbed the victim.
- •The prosecution argued Ulas was Suspect 3, relying on CCTV, DNA evidence, clothing found at his home, and PC Christie's identification.
- •PC Christie identified Ulas after viewing CCTV images and later encountering him.
- •PC Christie's evidence was challenged, focusing on whether his identification was admissible and whether it should be excluded under section 78 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984.
- •During the trial, PC Christie improperly disclosed the presence of a firearm at a flat where Ulas had been, and DC Dawson gave inadmissible opinion evidence supporting PC Christie's identification.
- •The trial judge addressed these issues with judicial directions.
Legal Principles
Admissibility of identification evidence based on photographic images from a crime scene.
Attorney General's Reference No 2 of 2002 [2002] EWCA Crim 2373, [2003] 1 Cr App R 21
Power to exclude evidence under section 78 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984 due to adverse effect on fairness of trial.
Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984, section 78
Standard for determining whether improperly disclosed evidence is so prejudicial that a judicial direction cannot remedy it.
R v Docherty [1999] 1 Cr App R 274
Admissibility of opinion evidence from investigating officers regarding identification.
Not explicitly sourced but discussed in relation to DC Dawson's evidence.
Outcomes
Appeal against conviction dismissed.
The court found the conviction safe despite the issues with PC Christie's evidence and the improperly disclosed information. The judge's judicial directions sufficiently addressed the potential prejudice.
PC Christie's identification evidence admissible.
The judge's inference that PC Christie acquired special knowledge by analyzing the CCTV images was upheld. The court determined that the time spent on analysis, while not specified, was sufficient, given the specific circumstances of the case.
Improperly disclosed firearm evidence did not render the conviction unsafe.
The trial judge's detailed and unequivocal direction to the jury to disregard the evidence was deemed sufficient to mitigate the prejudice.
DC Dawson's inadmissible opinion evidence did not render the conviction unsafe.
The judge's direction to disregard the evidence was considered sufficient, and the evidence itself was not deemed significant.