Courts / Dublin / Report

Jury in HIV case should have got evidence warning, appeal court told

Summary

In a 2021 Court of Appeal hearing, the lawyer for a Ugandan man serving a ten‑year sentence for infecting two women with HIV argued that the trial judge should have warned the jury that the case relied on circumstantial evidence. The appellant, 30, had been convicted in 2018 for intentionally or recklessly causing serious harm to the women between November 2009 and June 2010. The appeal centred on whether the jury was properly directed about the nature of the evidence, as no conclusive scientific proof of transmission was presented. The Court of Appeal noted that the defence had not raised the issue at the lower court, but the judge could still consider it. The court reserved judgment, with the appeal focusing on the adequacy of the jury's instructions regarding circumstantial evidence. The case remains at the appeal stage, with no outcome announced.

Who, what, where, when and why

What: Report matter: Jury in HIV case should have got evidence warning, appeal court told. Procedural stage: appeal

When:

• November 2009 Hearing Or Sentence
• June 2010 Hearing Or Sentence
• 2021-07-20 Publication

Why: Mr Greene said it was the prosecution's case at trial that it was not circumstantial but that this could not be true because there was no testimony to "primary fact". Prosecution account reported by CNI

Places mentioned

Topics

Stage Appeal

Related court reports

• Man charged with having 56k child abuse images and videos remanded on bail
• Ex-Dáil hopeful's allegations against former employer 'complete fantasy', WRC told
• Mater must pay €10k to worker who said he was wrongly accused of abusing patient
• 'I think we know I won't be getting bail' - Daniel Kinahan charged with directing criminal organisation
• Letting agent who claimed alleged domestic violence victim abandoned tenancy by fleeing to refuge must pay €14.7k
• 77-year-old with 470 convictions told Luas staff to 'f**k off'

Read the original CNI report