Published September 2026
Twelve-year-old Leederville assault charge discontinued after serious flaws emerged in the prosecution’s identification evidence
For more than a decade, an unresolved assault charge had followed our client around the world. By the time he contacted us from overseas, he had built a new life, started a family and established himself in another country. But one problem remained unresolved in Western Australia: an old assault charge, an outstanding arrest warrant and the prospect of returning to Perth to face a trial over an allegation said to have occurred about 12 years earlier.
The prosecution alleged that our client had punched another man once to the jaw on the dancefloor of a Leederville nightclub. He had been arrested outside the venue shortly afterwards. At the police station, officers photographed his hands and noted what appeared to be blood on his knuckles, but no swabs were taken to determine whose blood it was.
Police also interviewed him in the early hours of the morning while he was still affected by alcohol and pain medication. He appeared visibly impaired and had suffered an injury to his hand, which he explained had occurred while doing ‘front rolls’ on the dancefloor. After reviewing the circumstances in which the interview was conducted, we considered there were strong grounds to argue that it should not be admitted into evidence at trial.
The more fundamental issue, however, was identification. Two witness statements taken relatively soon after the incident gave differing descriptions of the alleged offender. The nightclub CCTV was poor quality and, remarkably, was not provided to police until about four years later. Two further witness statements were obtained years after the alleged incident, but did little to overcome the underlying weakness in the prosecution case. Nor had the blood seen on our client’s hands ever been forensically tested.
By the time police charged our client, about five months after the alleged assault, he had already returned overseas, where he had been living and working for several years. A summons was sent to his former Western Australian address without his knowledge. When he did not appear, an arrest warrant was issued. He only discovered the warrant later while applying for a visa to another country.
Our client later returned to Western Australia and obtained advice from another lawyer, but did not have confidence that the case could be successfully defended and left again before the trial date. Years later, when he approached us, he wanted to return to Perth and finally put the matter behind him. After reviewing the evidence, we reached a different view: the prosecution faced a serious obstacle in proving beyond reasonable doubt that our client was the person who threw the punch.
We prepared a detailed written submission identifying the evidentiary weaknesses and urging the prosecution to discontinue the assault charge. The submission was rejected. Relying on our advice that he had strong prospects of successfully defending the allegation, our client nevertheless returned to Western Australia. We arranged for his arrest at Perth Airport and successfully secured bail on his behalf.
We continued pressing the prosecution to reconsider. Our written submission was provided again before the matter was listed for a two-day trial and again as trial preparation progressed. Each time, the request to discontinue was rejected.
One day before the trial was due to begin, the prosecution finally changed course. The State accepted that there was no reasonable prospect of conviction and discontinued the assault charge.
Two court days had been set aside for the trial. Following the discontinuance, we applied for costs on our client’s behalf and the Magistrate granted the application in full. The separate matter arising from our client’s earlier failure to appear was resolved with a $100 fine.
After years of uncertainty, our client was able to leave court without an assault conviction, without facing a trial on the 12-year-old allegation, and with his defence costs awarded in full.