Exam (elaborations)
Evidence and Criminal Procedure Past Exam with Answer and Notes
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Past exam paper on Evidence and Criminal Procedure in Northern Ireland.
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LAW - LLBEvidence and Criminal Procedure (2022-23)
Northern Ireland
The following is the exam question, answer, and comments for the above LLB module.
Key Terms
• Burglary - Under sections 9(1)(b) and 10(1)(b) of the Theft Act (Northern Ireland) 1969,
involving entry as a trespasser and theft with aggravation.
• Assault - Contravening common law and section 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act
1861.
• Entrapment - A situation where a law enforcement officer induces a person to commit a
criminal offense that the person would have otherwise been unlikely to commit.
• Gillick Competency - A standard for assessing a minor's capacity to make their own
decisions.
• Police and Criminal Evidence (NI) Order 1989 (PACE) - Legislation governing police
powers and safeguards in Northern Ireland.
• Social Media Evidence - Evidence derived from communications on social media platforms.
• Criminal Evidence (NI) Order 1999 - Legal provisions for aiding and protecting witnesses in
criminal proceedings.
• Judicial Review - The legal process through which courts oversee and scrutinize the
lawfulness of decisions or actions by public bodies.
• Galbraith Application - A legal challenge asserting that evidence is insufficient for a case to
continue.
• Hearsay Evidence - Evidence based on the reports of others rather than the personal
knowledge of a witness.
• The Criminal Justice (Evidence) (NI) Order 2004 - Legislation pertaining to the admissibility
of certain types of evidence in criminal proceedings.
PART I: Problem Scenario
Brandon, a 22-year-old man, stands charged before Ballymena Crown Court:
• on the 21st day of January 2022, having entered Saint Berlios’s Special School,
Ballymena as a trespasser, stole therein 15x Apple MacBook Pros of £45,000 total
value, the burglary being aggravated in that you had with you at the Jme a knife
the blade of which was 8” in length,
contrary to secJons 9(1)(b)
and 10(1)(b) of the TheQ Act (Northern Ireland) 1969; and
• on the same date, assaulted BapJste Barrack, a child,
contrary to common law
and secJon 47 of the Offences Against the Person Act 1861.
The locus of the burglary was a classroom which became unoccupied at 12:20 when the
students and their teacher went to lunch. BapJste’s tesJmony is that he returned alone to
fetch his football, when he discovered there Brandon, his cousin. He noJced Brandon had a
knife. He was instructed, “you will pass these out the window to me”. BapJste recalls there
being a van outside bearing a number plate, the first le]ers of which were ‘BAD’, and into
which the MacBook Pros were placed. Brandon slapped BapJste’s cheeks, said, “Good lad”,
and leQ. BapJste was found inconsolable at 13:00. He had soiled himself.
, En route to the school, police noted a Bada Bing Technologies van pass by. They observed the
driver, upon sight of them, slow down from an esJmated excess speed. The registraJon was
noted as ‘ZYZ 0101’ for follow-up. Its registered keeper is realised to be Brandon.
Police later a]ended Bada Bing Technologies’ premises, which they easily ascertained were
vacant because it is glass-fronted and there was no van in the vicinity. They entered via an
unsecured window and seized 5x assorted laptops. In police statements it is noted this was
the enJre stock within the premises.
ThereaQer police a]ended Brandon’s home, the driveway of which had the Bada Bing
Technologies’ van parked thereon. The front door answered, police rushed forward into the
hallway. Brandon states Constable Barne], the arresJng officer, laughed in his face and said,
“I knew you wouldn’t be able to resist”. ThereaQer, Brandon’s house was searched, but
nothing of interest was found. Constable Barne], who is staJoned locally, states that the
evening before the alleged aggravated burglary—having heard rumours that Brandon’s
business was failing and numerous, although unparJcularised, asserJons that Brandon is a
thief who cheats His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs—he messaged Brandon on social media
under the pretence of being a showrunner of a Canadian company producing a programme in
Northern Ireland, in urgent need of 10x MacBook Pros, and prepared to pay 10% more than
the normal retail price.
Brandon has advised his lawyers that BapJste “went off me years ago”, having become fixated
on a game of cops and robbers from childhood in which Brandon’s playacJng was so
convincing BapJste wet himself. They have not seen each other in over a decade.
The morning aQer the alleged burglary the 15x MacBook Pros were discovered in a storeroom
within the school.
Now, discern and apply the relevant law, reaching reasoned conclusions, in respect of each
of the following:
1. police conduct in respect of the invesJgaJon at Bada Bing Technologies’ premises and
thereaQer at Brandon’s house.
2. the evidence derived from the social media conversaJon.
3. BapJste has struggled with recurring nightmares and is anxious about tesJfying at trial.
4. defence counsel consider the prosecuJon case weak and Brandon has said he will not
a to parJcipate.
5. Brandon’s asserJon that BapJste has a long-held axe to grind.
PART II: Essay
Public Prosecutors have too much discreJon. Discuss.
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