Singh-Mann and Others v Regina: CACD 15 Apr 2014

The defendants appealed against their convictions for conspiracy to defraud, attacking the judge’s summing up.
Held: The appeals failed.
Fulford LJ said, as to where the accused had not given evidence: ‘On the basis of those authorities, it is clear that when a defendant has said little or nothing in interview and has elected not to give or call evidence, ordinarily the limit of the judge’s duty is simply to remind the jury of ‘such assistance, if any, as (defence) counsel had been able to extract from the Crown’s witnesses in cross-examination’ and any ‘significant points made in defence counsel’s speech’. In this context, it is to be stressed that in order to present a defence to the charges the defendant is not compelled to give or to call evidence; instead, he is entitled to rely on evidence presented by the prosecution or by his co-accused when advancing arguments for the jury’s consideration as to whether the prosecution has established his guilt. The rehearsal of this material by the judge does not necessarily have to be extensive or detailed – indeed, frequently it will be sufficient merely to identify the central submissions and the evidence that underpins them – but the judge must generally ensure that the jury receives a coherent rehearsal of the main arguments that are being advanced by the accused.
The timing and the form of this summary (of the main arguments relied on by the defendant) will depend on the circumstances of the case – most particularly, whether the relevant evidence needs to be gathered together in one section of the summing up or whether it is preferable to refer to it incrementally as the judge summarises the evidence in the case as a whole – but in either case the judge ought to explain the key submissions of the accused in support of his defence at a convenient juncture during the summing up.’

Fulford LJ, Hickinbottom, Simler DBE JJ
[2014] EWCA Crim 717
Bailii
England and Wales
Cited by:
CitedHussain, Regina v (No 2) CACD 28-Apr-2016
. .
CitedLunkulu and Others v Regina CACD 7-Aug-2015
Request for leave to appeal out of time against convictions for murder and against sentence. Much evidence had been circumstantial, and the defendants alleged bias in the summing up, and complained of the admission of bad character evidence.
Criminal Practice

Updated: 02 December 2021; Ref: scu.523750