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Criminal law – Appeal. The defendant had appealed against two convictions of rape and three counts of indecency with a child, where he received a total sentence of 12 years' imprisonment. The defendant contended that the judge had erred in allowing the prosecution to adduce bad character evidence based on previous convictions and that the judge's summing up at the trial, focusing on those previous convictions, had been erroneous. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, in dismissing the appeal held that there could be no fault on the part of the judge and that he had been entitled to allow such evidence to be adduced and that his summing up had been entirely proper.
Criminal law – Appeal. The defendant had appealed against two convictions of rape and three counts of indecency with a child, where he received a total sentence of 12 years' imprisonment. The defendant contended that the judge had erred in allowing the prosecution to adduce bad character evidence based on previous convictions and that the judge's summing up at the trial, focusing on those previous convictions, had been erroneous. The Court of Appeal, Criminal Division, in dismissing the appeal held that there could be no fault on the part of the judge and that he had been entitled to allow such evidence to be adduced and that his summing up had been entirely proper.
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