New South Wales Consolidated Acts

CRIMINAL PROCEDURE ACT 1986 - SECT 281

281 Admissions by suspects

(1) This section applies to an admission:

(a) that was made by an accused person who, at the time when the admission was made, was or could reasonably have been suspected by an investigating official of having committed an offence, and

(b) that was made in the course of official questioning, and

(c) that relates to an indictable offence, other than an indictable offence that can be dealt with summarily without the consent of the accused person.

(2) Evidence of an admission to which this section applies is not admissible unless:

(a) there is available to the court:

(i) a tape recording made by an investigating official of the interview in the course of which the admission was made, or

(ii) if the prosecution establishes that there was a reasonable excuse as to why a tape recording referred to in subparagraph (i) could not be made, a tape recording of an interview with the person who made the admission, being an interview about the making and terms of the admission in the course of which the person states that he or she made an admission in those terms, or

(b) the prosecution establishes that there was a reasonable excuse as to why a tape recording referred to in paragraph (a) could not be made.

(3) The hearsay rule and the opinion rule (within the meaning of the Evidence Act 1995 ) do not prevent a tape recording from being admitted and used in proceedings before the court as mentioned in subsection (2).

(4) In this section:
"investigating official" means:

(a) a police officer (other than a police officer who is engaged in covert investigations under the orders of a superior), or

(b) a person appointed by or under an Act (other than a person who is engaged in covert investigations under the orders of a superior) whose functions include functions in respect of the prevention or investigation of offences prescribed by the regulations.

"official questioning" means questioning by an investigating official in connection with the investigation of the commission or possible commission of an offence.
"reasonable excuse" includes:

(a) a mechanical failure, or

(b) the refusal of a person being questioned to have the questioning electronically recorded, or

(c) the lack of availability of recording equipment within a period in which it would be reasonable to detain the person being questioned.

"tape recording" includes:

(a) audio recording, or

(b) video recording, or

(c) a video recording accompanied by a separately but contemporaneously recorded audio recording.