Nisan v R

Court of Criminal Appeal (NSW)|2017-11-03|Before: Hoeben CJ, Schmidt J, Campbell J, Mr J

Judgment

HOEBEN CJ at CL: I agree with Schmidt J and the orders which she proposes.
SCHMIDT J: In October 2014 Mr Nisan was driving a truck which was involved in a collision at the intersection of Warringah and Pittwater Roads, Dee Why. A number of people were seriously injured, including Mr Nisan. In November 2016, after a judge alone trial, Mr Nisan was convicted of two charges of dangerous driving occasioning grievous bodily harm and acquitted of four counts of wilful neglect occasioning bodily harm: R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep).
Mr Nisan was later sentenced to terms of imprisonment respectively of 3 years, with a non-parole period of 2 years dating from 4 April 2018 and 2 years with a non-parole period of 1 year and 9 months, dating from 4 April 2017: R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 27 April 2017, unrep).
Mr Nisan has appealed both his conviction and sentence.
Mr Nisan's case was that he had been wrongly convicted and that the sentence imposed upon him was manifestly excessive and inconsistent with the reasons earlier given by the trial judge in the conviction judgment. On appeal the grounds Mr Nisan advanced were: "Conviction Appeal 1. The trial judge erred in admitting into evidence over objection expert opinion evidence of Mr John Ruller relating to brake force efficiency in circumstances where the opinions were based on assumption that could not be made out in the evidence. 2. The trial judge erred in admitted[sic] into evidence over objection as expert opinion evidence of Mr John Ruiler[sic] concerning the record of interview of the Appellant where that opinion evidence was outside the scope of his expertise. 3. That the trial judge wrongly held that on the evidence there was no reasonable hypothesis inconsistent with guilt and the verdicts were unsafe, unsatisfactory or unreasonable in the circumstances. 4. The trial judge erred in failing to give adequate reasons for her decision. Particulars a. finding that when the appellant said in his record of interview "the top of the hill" he meant May Road and not west of Alfred Street. b. rejecting the evidence of Dr Hart and accepting the evidence of Mr Ruller. c. failing to address the submissions of the appellant relating to the credibility and reliability of Senior Constable Ben Wilson. Severity Appeal 1. That trial judge erred in her assessment of the objective seriousness of the offending in circumstances where that assessment was inconsistent with the trial judge's verdict and reasons for verdict. 2. That the sentence imposed was manifestly excessive."

The sentence was manifestly excessive

This was not a case which involved either death or deliberately dangerous conduct. It turned on whether it was brake failure, or Mr Nisan's driving, that had caused the collision.
At the hearing of the appeal the Crown conceded that the sentence imposed on Mr Nisan was very high. That concession was properly made.
The truck was not owned by Mr Nisan, who was an employed driver. The evidence established that some of the truck's brakes were out of adjustment and in cross-examination the Crown's expert Mr Ruller (a crash scene investigator), said that he would not have driven the truck with the brakes in that state. There was no suggestion that Mr Nisan knew or should have known what the state of the brakes was.
As I will come to explain, it is not entirely clear that in the conviction judgment the trial judge concluded that regardless of what conclusion was reached as to the number of brakes which were out of adjustment "the Crown cannot exclude the possibility that the poor adjustment caused the accident". If that was not the conclusion reached, for reasons which I will explain, it ought to have been.
If this was the trial judge's conclusion, it is impossible to see how, consistently with that conclusion, her Honour then went on to "reject beyond reasonable doubt that brake fade was a cause of the accident".
Her Honour later also observed that she had "a reasonable doubt as to whether the accused acted in a conscious way or was conscious of his breach of the necessary standard of care" and that "[t]here is no evidence that he intended to drive in the way he did, or acted recklessly, rather than events overtaking him".
These findings were relevant on sentence to the assessment of the objective seriousness of Mr Nisan's offences and his moral culpability for that offending. Despite making these findings, her Honour rejected his case that his moral culpability was low. Instead, her Honour concluded that it fell at the higher end of the scale; that the objective seriousness of his offending also fell at the higher end of the range; and that "all the circumstances demonstrate the abandonment of responsibility".
I am satisfied that neither those conclusions, nor the resulting sentences imposed on Mr Nisan, were properly open on the evidence received at trial and involved relevant error: House v The King (1936) 55 CLR 499; [1936] HCA 40.
Had I come to the conclusion that the conviction appeal should be dismissed, it would thus have been necessary to uphold the sentence appeal. Given that I consider that the conviction appeal must be upheld, it is unnecessary to consider the sentence appeal further.

Mr Nisan was wrongly convicted

The onus fell on the Crown to prove beyond reasonable doubt that the manner of Mr Nisan's driving was dangerous. Satisfaction on the balance of probabilities, or a finding of negligence could not result in his conviction of the dangerous driving charges which were found proven.
For reasons which I will explain more fully in relation to the grounds of appeal, I consider that Mr Nisan was wrongly convicted; that his appeal must be upheld; and that he must be acquitted of both charges.
In her judgment, the trial judge observed that the Crown's case was that Mr Nisan had failed to control his fully laden truck, while driving down the steep incline to the intersection - safe driving requiring him to reduce his speed sufficiently, so that he could adhere to the 20kph speed limit, which applied to trucks on the steep descent at Warringah Hill. The Crown argued that during this descent, Mr Nisan had to drive in a gear no higher than third and to engage the truck's exhaust brake. He had failed to do so, with the result that he had driven at excessive speed in the circumstances and in too high a gear.
Mr Nisan's case was that the brakes were not roadworthy and had been poorly adjusted, making them vulnerable to brake failure or fading. That was what had caused the accident, by preventing him from slowing the truck to the 20kph speed limit, as he had attempted to do.
There was no issue that Mr Nisan was the driver of the truck and that the applicable Road Rule 108 of the Road Rules 2008 (NSW), required that on a road where a "trucks and buses low gear sign" applies, trucks must be driven in a gear low enough to limit the speed of the truck, without the use of primary breaks.
It was also common ground that when Mr Nisan reached the intersection, the truck was travelling at a speed of some 65kph. The evidence established that if it was driven in low range, the maximum speed of the truck was 40kph. On investigation after the collision, the truck was found to be in low range, but not in gear. Being in neutral allowed its speed to increase to 65kph, even though it was in low range.
Mr Nisan did not give evidence at trial, but both at the scene and afterwards, he made statements to police about what had caused the collision. On his accounts, the collision occurred because the truck's brakes had failed. Those statements were considered by the parties' experts, Mr Ruller and Dr Hart (a qualified engineer and electrical and mechanical engineering consultant).
Mr Cowie, an experienced truck driver who witnessed the accident and was accepted to have relevant expertise, given that experience, gave evidence about what he observed and found when he lent aid at the scene of the collision. Other experts, Constable Wilson (a mechanic) and Dr White (a forensic mechanical engineer), had tested the vehicle.
There were many differences of opinion between the experts. Many of the critical differences lying between Mr Ruller and Dr Hart were resolved in cross-examination.
Evidence was also called from the owner of the truck, the mechanic who had maintained the brakes and the truck's manufacturer. From this evidence it emerged that while the brakes had been maintained, the owner had supplied the "after market" brake linings which had been used on the last occasion they were adjusted, the month prior to the collision. They were not recommended by the manufacturer, but were not tested by either Constable Wilson or Dr White, to determine whether overheating had contributed to brake failure, as was Dr Hart's opinion.
The expert evidence ought to have led her Honour to the conclusion that the Crown could not exclude the possibility that it was the state of the brakes which had caused the collision, rather than Mr Nisan's driving. That was because it finally became common ground between Mr Ruller and Dr Hart, that the brakes had faded during the truck's descent down Warringah Hill. Where that occurred was what remained in issue.
In concluding that Mr Nisan's driving was dangerous, her Honour did not consider the evidence about whether the 'after market' brake linings had caused, or contributed to the brakes fading. That was relevant to the question of where it was that the brakes faded.
Even so, I consider that Mr Ruller's concession in cross-examination that the condition of the brakes was such that he would not have knowingly driven this truck and the common view of Dr Hart and Mr Ruller, that if the brakes had been working properly, they would have been capable of stopping this truck on the descent, it was not open to her Honour to find that the Crown had proven beyond reasonable doubt that Mr Nisan's driving was dangerous, or that it had caused the collision.

Ground 1 - admission of expert evidence based on assumptions

Mr Ruller's opinions rested on a series of identified assumptions. They included brake temperatures, on which various of his calculations were based, and what Mr Nisan had meant by some of his responses during his police interview.
The trial judge rejected the objection to Mr Ruller's evidence: R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 16 October 2016, unrep).
Dr Hart's opinions also rested on various assumptions, including as to the brakes having overheated and what Mr Nisan had meant by his police interview responses.
Mr Cowie's evidence provided an objective basis for the conclusion that the brakes had overheated, given what he described smelling at the scene of the collision. Mr Ruller agreed that this indicated overheating and conceded that there was no way to verify the actual temperatures which the truck's various brakes had reached.
On Mr Nisan's case on appeal, that it was not possible to establish the temperature of the brakes was fatal to the admissibility of Mr Ruller's evidence: Makita (Australia) Pty Ltd v Sprowles (2001) 52 NSWLR 705; [2001] NSWCA 305. Further, it was argued that her Honour's reasons revealed that she had concerned herself with whether there was any basis for the defence to argue that overheating was a significant issue, in relation to the effectiveness of the brakes, rather than the admissibility of Mr Ruller's evidence.
In the circumstances Mr Ruller's evidence should not have been admitted and in the absence of his opinions, the Crown's case should have been rejected as not having established Mr Nisan's guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
In rejecting the objection to Mr Ruller's evidence, the trial judge noted that the only evidence of overheating of the brakes came from Mr Cowie, who said that such overheating had been suggested to him by an asbestos-type smell. In his interview with police, Mr Nisan had not said anything about having had any trouble with the brakes, up until this occasion. Her Honour also noted evidence that in normal circumstances, there would have been no heating of the brakes.
After referring to evidence foreshadowed in the defence case and to Heydon JA's observations in Makita at [85], her Honour concluded that Mr Ruller's opinions, while based on assumptions, were "not assumptions without having a grounding or founding in his knowledge and expertise and, in my view, he is entitled to give the estimates he has given": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 16 October 2016, unrep) at 3.
Makita was considered in Dasreef Pty Ltd v Hawchar (2011) 243 CLR 588; [2011] HCA 21. What was there decided has since been repeatedly considered by this Court. Recently in Taub v R [2017] NSWCCA 198, Simpson JA observed, for example: "27 The plurality in Dasreef refined Heydon JA's seven admissibility criteria in Makita to two:

that the witness who gives the evidence "has specialised knowledge based on the person's training, study or experience"; and
that the opinion expressed in the evidence by the witness "is wholly or substantially based on that knowledge" ([32]). 28 What was in issue in Dasreef was whether the opinion expressed by the witness proffered as an expert was based on the witness' specialised knowledge based on his training, study or experience. 29 The plurality added (citing [85] of Makita) that: "… ordinarily … 'the expert's evidence must explain how the field of 'specialised knowledge' in which the witness is expert by reason of 'training, study or experience', and on which the opinion is 'wholly or substantially based', applies to the facts assumed or observed so as to produce the opinion propounded'." ([37]) 30 This, it appears to me, states a third criterion of admissibility. Their Honours then emphasised (at [42]) that satisfaction of the criteria is a matter that goes to the admissibility of, not the weight to be attributed to, the opinion evidence. 31 The plurality declined to engage with the question whether the "proof of assumption rule" (what their Honours called "the basis rule") existed at common law; such a rule, their Honours said, was directed to the facts of a particular case. From that it might be inferred that their Honours considered that whether the facts upon which the opinion was based are established as true is a question that goes not to admissibility, but to the weight to be attributed to the opinion expressed. This is also the analysis of Schmidt J in Kyluk Pty Ltd v Chief Executive, Office of Environment and Heritage (2013) 298 ALR 532; [2013] NSWCCA 114 at [176]-[177]. 32 It seems to me that the difference between Heydon J and the plurality lies in the rigour with which Heydon J would insist on the availability of evidence to prove the truth, or correctness, of the assumptions or facts forming the foundation of the opinion as a condition of admissibility and at the time admissibility is being considered. It is not the position of Heydon J that, before evidence of the opinion could be admitted, it was necessary that the assumptions or facts be proved to be true or correct; rather, it was necessary that it be shown that ultimately the evidence would be capable of establishing that the facts or assumptions were true or correct. To insist on the availability of evidence to prove the truth of the assumptions enhances efficiency of the trial process (see [127]). Whether the evidence succeeds in establishing the truth of the facts is a question for the trier of fact. 33 The plurality, on the other hand, would allow admission of the opinion evidence provided the reasoning was exposed, reserving to the tribunal of fact whether the evidence was sufficient to establish the truth or correctness of the assumptions or facts. Failure to prove the truth of the assumptions would render the opinion evidence of little or no value."

It follows that the trial judge did not err in admitting Mr Ruller's evidence. If, however, at trial the Crown failed to prove the assumptions on which Mr Ruller's opinions rested, they would be of little or no value, in establishing the Crown case, as her Honour observed in the conviction judgment.
In relation to Mr Ruller's evidence, the trial judge noted, for example, that he had used the wrong graph in coming to conclusions about the power of the exhaust brake. Her Honour did not conclude that his opinion about this was of little or no value, because it had no foundation, as the trial judge had earlier indicated would be her approach. She observed, however, that this "undermines" Mr Ruller: see R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 22 November 2016, unrep) at 21.
Her Honour also referred to Mr Ruller's concessions that a critical assumption he had made about the brake temperature could not be verified; that the front brakes had been poorly adjusted; and that there had been brake fade, albeit in his view, near the end of the descent on Warringah Hill. Despite this, and without referring to the evidence she had earlier noted Dr Hart had given about the 'after market' brake linings contributing to the overheating of the brakes and their fading, her Honour accepted Mr Ruller's opinion that "the brakes, albeit not perfect, were not determinative of the events": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 22 November 2016, unrep) at 32. This approach did not accord with that of the plurality in Dasreef, or that which her Honour had said that she would adopt.
Despite this, the first ground of appeal must be rejected. The trial judge did not err in admitting Mr Ruller's evidence. If the assumptions on which his opinions were based were not established by the evidence led at trial, they could not, however be relied on in determining whether the Crown had proved its case beyond reasonable doubt.

Ground 4 - the reasons given were inadequate

It is convenient to next deal with ground 4.
The obligation to give reasons in a judge alone trial is governed by s 133(2) of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 (NSW). The trial judge was also obliged to explain the reasons for the findings of fact which she made: Fleming v The Queen (1998) 197 CLR 250; [1998] HCA 68 at [30] and to expose her reasoning process: Filippou v The Queen (2015) 256 CLR 47; [2015] HCA 29 at [6].

The conviction judgment

The conviction judgment was delivered orally on 21 and 22 November 2016, after judgment was reserved on 26 October. Mr Nisan's case that the majority of the judgment dealt with an outline of the evidence and the parties' submissions must be accepted.
There was no issue taken with the various binding principles to which the trial judge referred. She also noted that the test of whether Mr Nisan had been driving dangerously was an objective one, which did not require the Crown to establish that he knew or realised that he was driving the truck in a dangerous manner. Her Honour also observed that the Crown's case was circumstantial and that Mr Nisan had advanced two hypotheses consistent with his innocence: "1 Dr White is (reasonably) possibly correct. If Dr White is possibly correct then it is possible the truck's foot brakes were unroadworthy and if the truck's foot brakes were unroadworthy then the truck itself is unroadworthy. 2 If Dr White is wrong and Mr Ruller is correct, based on Senior Constable Wilson's measurements Mr Ruller says the front brakes were poorly adjusted, then Dr Hart says even one or two poorly adjusted brakes could make the truck more vulnerable to brake fade and brake fade was the cause of the accident": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep) at 9.
The trial judge referred extensively to a chronology of relevant events, including dates when the brakes had been adjusted prior to the collision, the last time on 11 September 2014. Her Honour then turned to explain where the collision occurred on 21 October 2014, before turning to the Crown which was explained to be: "The Crown submitted the Crown case is that the accused failed to control a fully laden truck down a steep decline, such that it struck a number of cars at the intersection of Pittwater Road and Warringah Road, seriously injuring two persons in a Mazda 2 and injuring four others. The Crown case is that in order to drive safely down a steep decline the accused needed to reduce his speed sufficiently so that he could adhere to the signposted 20 kilometre per hour sign which, for this truck, meant that he could not have been in more than third gear. He should have engaged the exhaust brake but he did not. The Crown case is that the accused was travelling at an excessive speed in the circumstances and was consequently in too high a gear to drive safely down the decline. His actions thereafter only made it more likely that the outcome would be disastrous, in that he tried to gear down, which at least disengages the engine and therefore the ability to brake, or worse, can end up in the engine going into the wrong, that is a higher, gear, making it more difficult to brake, or at worst, that the truck goes into neutral gear and therefore has far less ability to brake. Secondly, that he did not use the exhaust brake which, if engaged, has a retarding effect on the engine. Third, that he attempted to use the hand brake which, in normal circumstances, cannot be engaged whilst the service brake is engaged. He was at this point, the Crown said, panicking, as he acknowledged in the later part of his interview, because, the Crown says, he knew the peril he was in": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep) at 18 - 19.
The circumstances relied on by the Crown were identified to be: "1. That the truck was travelling at an excessive speed, about 65 kilometres per hour, immediately prior to impact; 2. That the gearstick was in neutral post-impact; 3. That the exhaust brake was not engaged; 4. That the brakes were serviceable, albeit not at maximum braking efficiency; 5. That the accused admitted he was the driver (no dispute); 6. The accused denied speeding and asserted brake failure. The Crown submits this is unreliable; and 7. He was going about 40 kilometres per hour at the third pair of 20 kilometre per hour signs": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep) at 22 - 23.
Her Honour then observed that the Crown had the onus of "excluding to my satisfaction that guilt is the only rational hypotheses or reasonable inference": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep) at 23.
The trial judge then turned to the expert evidence, noting that its value depended on the reliability and accuracy of the material which the experts had used, in order to arrive at their opinions. Her Honour noted that there were conflicts between the opinions of Mr Ruller, Constable Wilson, Dr Hart and Dr White. She then outlined their respective opinions and what they were based on, in considerable detail, noting that only Constable Wilson had physically examined the truck, in a condition which was said to be the same as at the time of the collision.
As to Mr Ruller, her Honour noted that in summary, his opinions were: "1. The signage along Warringah Road was sufficient and provided ample warning to drivers of heavy vehicles that there was a steep descent ahead. 2. The brakes fitted to the truck were in proper working order with the exception of the front brakes. In particular the front left steer brake was out of adjustment. The front right steer brake was almost out of adjustment. 3. All four wheel groups on the drive and lazy axles had sufficient brake adjustment. If the brakes were operating at a temperature under 300 degrees Fahrenheit they would have had sufficient brake adjustment to allow for wheel lockup. 4. If the four wheel groups on the drive axles had an operational brake temperature about 400 degrees Fahrenheit there would be a reduction in the brake efficiency. However, the brake adjustment would still have been sufficient to bring the truck to a stop from 65 kilometres per hour whilst on the descent towards Pittwater Road. 5. Based on the statements provided by Mr Nisan during interview, his knowledge of the exhaust brake would appear to be limited. It would be my opinion that the exhaust brake was not in operation at the time of the crash. This would reduce considerably the deceleration of the vehicle as it travelled down the hill. 6. The minimum gear that the truck would have been in at the top of the hill if the estimated speed of 40 kilometres per hour provided by Mr Nisan is accepted would have been fifth gear. 7. This incident is a direct result of Mr Nisan failing to reduce the speed of the truck and choosing the correct gearing prior to attempting to descend the hill": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep) at 30 - 31.
Later her Honour referred to the cross-examination where Mr Ruller agreed that in his second report he had said that the brakes on the steer axle were in poor condition and in need of adjustment and that the truck was not fit to be on the road and that the truck driver may not have been aware of this, until he started feeling that he had to use more air pressure.
As to brake temperature, her Honour noted that without allowing for heat in the brakes, Mr Ruller assessed their overall efficiency to be about 85% and with heat above 400°F, about 77%, but that still allowed considerable braking of the truck: R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep) at 29.
Her Honour also noted Mr Ruller's agreement with Dr White, that the truck's foundation brake assembly was roadworthy and in generally good condition, but that he had disagreed with his other conclusions, in whole or in part. She also noted Mr Ruller's observations about conclusions reached by Dr Hart and evidence which Mr Ruller gave in cross-examination, including that brake fade could have been a contributing factor to the accident, in its later stages: R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 21 November 2016, unrep) at 39.
After outlining the evidence of the other experts and what Mr Nisan had told police after the collision, her Honour noted that the Crown's case was that the truck was not suffering a mechanical defect, relevant to causation. She then turned to summarise, again in considerable detail, both the Crown and defence case, by reference to the evidence.
Her Honour dealt with 'The Crown key points", namely, "The Brakes and the Experts" - where she noted that it was "[a]greed that poorly adjusted brakes fade at a lower temperature. Agreed between Hart and Ruller that brake fade played a part." She then turned to "The Interview" and "Brake Fade", observing that "The experts agree that brake fade played a part".
The trial judge then turned to "The defence key points", beginning with "Introduction", then "Mr Nisan's version", "The consequences of having the front brakes out of alignment" and "The brake force calculations of Mr Ruller", noting the Crown case that the brakes were poorly adjusted. She then turned to "Other particulars of the offences alleged by the Crown", beginning with "Incorrect gear selection", then "the exhaust brake", "use of handbrake , "good character" and "speed of truck at bottom of Hill"
The trial judge then turned to "Conclusion". There had not earlier been a 'conclusion' section, when her Honour summarised the Crown's "key points". Whether what her Honour said at this point of her judgment, was intended to be an explanation of the defence's final 'key points', or her Honour's conclusion, is not entirely clear. Her Honour said: "The Court must find that (a) it is possible that the condition of the brakes was as bad as Dr White says they were; or (b) the condition of the brakes was as Mr Ruller reported, that is, the front brakes were poorly adjusted. Regardless of which finding I come to, were one, two or five brakes out of adjustment, the Crown cannot exclude the possibility that the poor adjustment caused the accident. I will just go back. The Court must find that: (a) It is possible that the condition of the brakes was as bad as Dr White says they were, or, (b) The condition of the brakes were as Mr Ruller reported, that is, the front brakes were poorly adjusted. Regardless of which finding I come to, were one, two or five brakes out of adjustment, the Crown cannot exclude the possibility that the poor adjustment caused the accident because: (a) If Dr White is correct, the truck's brakes, and therefore the truck, was not roadworthy; or, (b) If Mr Ruller is correct, then as Dr Hart says that even one or two poorly adjusted brakes could make the truck more vulnerable to brake fade, and brake fade was the cause of the accident. Having considered all of the evidence, and the lengthy submissions of counsel, I will now consider the individual circumstances brought forward by the Crown and the two hypotheses contended for by the defence. What I say under each heading is somewhat of a summary but it is essentially the reasons for the view that I come to in respect of each. I will also consider whether there is any other alternative hypothesis consistent with innocence."
What her Honour here initially twice observed, when she began "[t]he Court must find that", reflected the defence submissions. There was an issue as to whether Dr White or Mr Ruller's opinion about the state of the brakes would be accepted, which had to be resolved. It was the defence case that whichever opinion was accepted, the Crown could not exclude the possibility that poor adjustment had caused the accident.
Her Honour appeared to accept this, when she went on to say that: "Regardless of which finding I come to, were one, two or five brakes out of adjustment, the Crown cannot exclude the possibility that the poor adjustment caused the accident because: (a) If Dr White is correct, the truck's brakes, and therefore the truck, was not roadworthy; or, (b) If Mr Ruller is correct, then as Dr Hart says that even one or two poorly adjusted brakes could make the truck more vulnerable to brake fade, and brake fade was the cause of the accident."
If that is correct, the conclusion to which her Honour finally came, that the Crown had proven its case, was inconsistent with this finding.
To understand how her Honour came to conclude that the Crown had proven its case beyond reasonable doubt, it is best to record what her Honour then held in relation to the circumstances the Crown had advanced and the hypotheses the defence had raised. To that point the judgment did not clearly identify the matters over which the parties had joined issue. In the conclusions reached, there was no reference to matters which had been resolved in the cross-examination of Mr Ruller, as was apparent from her Honour's earlier summary of his and Dr Hart's evidence.
The reasoning for some of the conclusions which her Honour reached by the summary method which she adopted, is difficult to follow. Some of the conclusions are affected by her Honour's erroneous approach to the expert evidence and some of her Honour's findings are contradictory. In the result, Mr Nisan's case that the reasons given are inadequate must be accepted.
The trial judge's conclusions were: CIRCUMSTANCE ONE That the truck was travelling at an excessive speed, about 65 kilometres per hour, immediately prior to impact. I accept Senior Constable Fenton's evidence about this. Other lay evidence does not affect my view of his accuracy. The unchallenged evidence of Senior Constable Fenton is that the average speed of the truck over a distance of 24 to 32 metres, ending at the median strip at Pittwater Road, was 65 kilometres an hour. Mr Ruller supported the methodology of Senior Constable Fenton. CIRCUMSTANCE TWO That the gearstick was in neutral post impact. I accept Senior Constable Wilson's evidence about this. Under circumstance three, the evidence of Mr Grgic, the tow truck driver who towed the truck from the collision site to the RMS, is summarised. I accept his evidence beyond reasonable doubt. This supports Senior Constable Wilson's evidence. CIRCUMSTANCE THREE That the exhaust brake was not engaged. I accept Senior Constable Wilson's evidence about this. He said when he examined the truck it was "off". I accept Mr Ruller when he said, "It would be my opinion that the exhaust brake was not in operation at the time of the crash". I accept Dean Grgic's evidence that he did not touch anything to do with the gearbox, brakes or suspension. I also accept his evidence the other fellow with him did not touch anything. He said, "I can guarantee a hundred percent." He said about himself, "I can tell you a hundred percent I did not touch the gearbox, the suspension or the brakes". He was an impressive witness. Mr Cowie said he did not hear the noise he would have expected to hear if the exhaust brake was on. CIRCUMSTANCE FOUR That the brakes were serviceable, albeit not at maximum braking efficiency. The history of the servicing of the brakes is noted in the chronology and does not need to be repeated. I am satisfied the brakes had been serviced in an appropriate and timely way. It was Senior Constable Wilson who examined the truck in the most ideal circumstances. He was the only expert who physically examined the truck in a condition when it can be said it was the same as at the time of the collision. He conducted an electronic brake roller test with an approved device and all the brakes received a pass. Dr White, Senior Constable Wilson and Mr Ruller agreed the truck's foundation brake assemblies were roadworthy and generally in good condition. Senior Constable Wilson relied on his having tested the truck shortly after the accident with the truck running and he utilised the foot pedal. He relied on the Roads and Maritime Services brake roller test result and his photos. Mr Ruller had no concern about Senior Constable Wilson's methodology, nor did Dr Hart. All these matters favour his results as being accurate. I have no concern about Senior Constable Wilson's credit. I found him to be a careful expert witness. His handwritten report was tendered (Exhibit PP). Mr Ruller said the truck should be tested loaded, although the Roads and Maritime Services do not require this. He had a different view to Senior Constable Wilson about this. In any event, he concluded even given the adjustment problem with the steer axle - and he was of the view clearly there was a problem with the steer axle adjustment, and I have already analysed his evidence and summarised it - the brakes were sufficient, or the braking ability was sufficient to control the truck. Dr White examined the truck in an uncontrolled, unsecured situation. There had been a month of weathering. I accept, having considered all of the evidence, this circumstance. In support of this finding, I also note what is found under "Hypothesis One". CIRCUMSTANCE FIVE That the accused admitted he was the driver (no dispute). I am satisfied of this. CIRCUMSTANCE SIX The accused denied speeding asserted brake failure (unreliable). These assertions are dealt with elsewhere under "Circumstance Seven" and "Circumstance Four". CIRCUMSTANCE SEVEN He was going about 40 kilometres per hour at the third pair of 20 kilometre per hour signs. The accused must be in error when he said he went down to low gear one in the interview. In low gear one, the maximum speed is 12 kilometres per hour (Exhibit XX). Dr Hart agreed with Mr Ruller that Mr Nisan could not have been in gear one low ratio. He should have been in third gear prior to reach the top of the hill. Mr Ruller independently came to the view the Crown contends for, being the accused meant the top of the hill as May Road, not back up west of Alfred. After some concern, I am satisfied the accused meant the top of the hill to be the top of the hill. The downhill part is where the third 20 sign is as the Crown contends. The accused signals with his hands in the interview at about this point. I accept this circumstance. HYPOTHESIS ONE Dr White is (reasonably) possibly correct. If Dr White is possibly correct then it is possible the truck's foot brakes were unroadworthy and if the truck's footbrakes were unroadworthy then the truck itself is unroadworthy. Dr White examined the truck in an uncontrolled, unsecured situation. Mr Ruller noted, and I agree, if the brakes were as bad as Dr White said, they would have failed well before that hill. Some 50-odd kilometres was driven. Well before then, they would have failed. The viewing of the photographs is inconsistent with the evidence of Dr White as already noted. Wilson, White and Hart say in adjustment (Exhibits UU, TT, A) from looking at the angles, and that is in relation to the right (driver or offside) axle 2; and Wilson and Hart say in adjustment (Exhibits A, TT) from looking at the angles, and that is in relation to the right (driver or offside) axle 3. Dr White agreed the brakes could have been backed off in between his test and the earlier testing of Senior Constable Wilson. Dr White accepted the condition Senior Constable Wilson examined the truck in was to be preferred. He could not explain the big difference in the figures between those he obtained and those Senior Constable Wilson obtained, nor could Dr Hart. Dr Hart said he was unable to reconcile them. Dr Hart could not say which expert was correct. I accept there is no actual evidence of the brakes being backed off. Having said that, such is a possibility. There is clearly a gap which is apparent from the summary of the evidence concerning the movement of the vehicle. Senior Constable Wilson carried out two tests. He filled out the form, Exhibit PP. He has a professional disinterest in the measurements and Dr White agreed with him about the front brakes. If Dr White is right, why did the truck not fail the Maha test? In relation to this hypothesis, I also rely on my findings under Circumstance Four. I accept the Crown submission Senior Constable Wilson's measurements are supported by the totality of the evidence on the measurements on the back brakes. I reject beyond reasonable doubt the evidence of Dr White about the back brakes. In my view, his evidence is not possibly correct. HYPOTHESIS TWO If Dr White is wrong and Mr Ruller is correct, based on Senior Constable Wilson's measurements Mr Ruller says the front brakes were poorly adjusted and Dr Hart says even one or two poorly adjusted brakes could make the truck more vulnerable to brake fade and brake fade was the cause of the accident. If Mr Nisan was driving at too high a speed too late, which I accept, then this would have inhibited his ability to gear down and consequentially slow his speed. Mr Ruller accepts brake fade "near the end" but by then the damage had been done. The dangerous driving had resulted in a disastrous outcome. I repeat again the Crown submission already noted at transcript p 1029: 'His actions thereafter only made it more likely that the outcome would be disastrous, in that he tried to gear down, which at least disengages the engine and therefore the ability to brake, or worse, can end up in the engine going into the wrong, that is, a higher gear, making it more difficult to brake, or at worst, that the truck goes into neutral and therefore has far less ability to brake; secondly, that he did not use the exhaust brake which, if engaged, has a retarding effect on the engine; third, that he attempted to use the handbrake which, in normal circumstances, cannot be engaged while the service brake is engaged.' I accept Mr Ruller's evidence that the brakes, albeit not perfect, were not determinative of the events. I have real difficulty with Dr Hart's opinion applying common sense. As Mr Ruller, said Mr Nisan was the driver of the same truck over the same route the day before but there was no crash. Mr Ruller said, as already stated: '[32] On p 77 at line 1559 of the Hart Report [he also] states the following: 'The truck route was 55 kilometres. I estimated that there are 88 potential stopping or slowing points on the route not dependent upon traffic density. There are several steep hills at the Warringah Road end of the journey. It is likely that the truck brakes were 'hot' when it reached the final descent on Warringah Road. Hot brakes have a drum temperature exceeding 250 degrees Centigrade. Extreme brake temperature is greater than 350 degrees Centigrade. It is plausible that the brakes were at extreme temperature on the final descent.' [33] If the driver has driven the truck in a manner as described above, he should never have been behind the wheel of the truck. Mr Nisan was the driver of the same truck the previous day yet there was no crash as would be expected had he driven in the manner suggested by Mr(sic) Hart. This comment would seem to suggest that any truck on the road at any time following the same route would suffer brake fade prior to travelling down this grade.' Dr Hart's evidence was effectively the brakes could have faded out at any time. As a matter of common sense also, and based on the hypothesis put forward by Dr Hart, trucks should have their brakes fade down that hill virtually every day. His answer to this was, 'It is a notorious hill.' I reject beyond reasonable doubt brake fade was a cause of the accident. In my view, the accident was not caused by any mechanical defect or brake fade. I reject both of these as being reasonably possible. Given my acceptance of the circumstances relied upon by the Crown, I am satisfied that these together prove to my satisfaction the element in dispute in this trial, being at the time of the impact the accused was driving the vehicle in a manner dangerous to another person. This is the only reasonable inference or conclusion that can be drawn. There is no other alternative hypothesis consistent with innocence": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 22 November 2016, unrep) at 25 - 31.
If the trial judge's conclusion was that "the Crown cannot exclude the possibility that the poor adjustment caused the accident", her rejection "beyond reasonable doubt that brake fade was a cause of the accident", was inconsistent with that finding. In any event, the latter conclusion was wrong, given the expert evidence, to which I will come.
Her Honour's conclusion was sought to be supported by what is described to be "common sense": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 22 November 2016, unrep) at 32. A finding that it was possible that it was the brakes which had caused this collision, rather than Mr Nisan's driving, could not conceivably lead to the conclusion that if there had been brake fade "trucks should have their brakes fail down that hill virtually every day", as the trial judge postulated: see R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 22 November 2016, unrep) at 32.
Further, not only was it the common view of Mr Ruller and Dr Hart that there were problems with the functioning of the brakes, which had led to them fading as Mr Nisan attempted to slow down on Warringah Hill, how they had been maintained was relevant to what had caused them to fade. The trial judge gave no reasons, however, for the conclusion that "the brakes had been serviced in an appropriate and timely way": R v Nisan (District Court (NSW), Payne DCJ, 22 November 2016, unrep) at 28. That conclusion was contrary to the evidence of Dr Hart and the manufacturer of the truck.
Additionally, not only was there objective evidence that the brakes had overheated, but both Mr Ruller and Dr Hart agreed that the brakes had faded. Dr Hart's opinion was that the 'after market' brake linings had contributed to the overheating, which resulted in the brakes fading. This was not referred to in the trial judge's conclusions.
The conclusion that the reasons given were inadequate is reinforced by the trial judge's reference to the fact that the truck's brakes had not failed the preceding day. In her view that precluded the conclusion that they had failed on the day of the collision, also as a matter of 'common sense'. That is quite illogical, particularly when considered in light of what the experts had agreed, to which I will come.
In the result, the conclusion that the reasons given were inadequate is inescapable. Accordingly, this ground of appeal should be upheld.

Grounds 2 and 4(a) - Mr Nisan's record of interview

There was an issue between the parties as to what Mr Nisan had meant when he answered questions about his speed; the point at which he had attempted to slow down; and what he had done when changing the gears. Mr Ruller and Dr Hart each considered his answers and had made different assumptions about what Mr Nisan had meant, in arriving at their opinions.
This fell to her Honour to resolve, in deciding whether their opinions could be accepted.
In final submissions the parties addressed what Mr Nisan had said at various points during the interview, submissions to which her Honour addressed various questions. Her Honour finally accepted the Crown's submissions as to what Mr Nisan had meant, in the result coming to the same conclusion that Mr Ruller had reached in his report, namely, that Mr Nisan had only attempted to reduce his speed, when he reached the second 20kph speed sign.
It follows that admission of Mr Ruller's opinions, based as they were in part by what he understood Mr Nisan to have meant, is unlike the circumstances which arose for consideration in R v Banhelyi [2012] QCA 357. There it was concluded that Mr Ruller did not have the expertise to form opinions as to what was depicted in video footage which recorded the activation of indicator and brake lights.
Mr Nisan's answers on interview, it may be accepted, were not entirely clear. Fairly read, however, what he said about how he had attempted to reduce the speed of the truck, which was in low range, from 40kph to 20kph, by taking his foot off the accelerator and changing gears down, eventually to one, while using the footbrake, prior to the 20kph speed zone, could not reasonably be understood to have meant that he had only attempted to reduce the truck's speed at the first 20kph speed limit sign, rather than the first warning sign of the reduced speed zone which he knew was ahead, having driven this route twice or more a week for some two years.
It follows that while her Honour did not err in admitting Mr Ruller's assumptions about what Mr Nisan had meant, in coming to the same conclusions as he did about what Mr Nisan meant and then accepting Mr Ruller's opinions about where it was that Mr Nisan began slowing the truck, her Honour erred. Mr Ruller's assumptions were not made good by a fair reading of what Mr Nisan told police who interviewed him and accordingly his opinion could not be accepted.
Mr Nisan's answers had to be understood in the context that the speed limit on the long descent to the intersection at the foot of Warringah Hill was initially 70kph and later 60kph. On the steep part of the descent the limit for trucks was 20kph. Before this 20kph zone was reached, there were two sets (a set being one sign on each side of the road) of white and black signs warning of the approaching 20kph speed limit. There were then two sets of red and white 20kph speed limit signs, the first at the top of the steep descent and another further on. Shortly before the intersection was another sign, which indicated the end of the 20kph zone.
What Mr Nisan said when initially asked on interview to start "from the beginning" was: "A (Int): We are the drivers. We know this downhill ah, the speed is twenty, twenty. Oh, there are two signs, one of them black and white. Ah, due to the fact that I've been ah, driving on that direction to Dee Why for the last two years I know that street or road very, very well, I know that sign, the first one, the black and white. Before reaching the sign I start, I start reducing the speed. When I reached the second sign the speed would be twenty and I will never drive more than twenty, maybe less than twenty. Before reaching the first sign I was starting to reduce the speed. It was, yeah, it was under the forty before reaching the twenty, twenty speed area. I attempted to reduce the speed to twenty. At the top of the hill I was braking, braking to reduce the speed, but didn't go down. I realised the problem was with the brake, braking. I tried to pull the handbrake to stop the speed downhill. It didn't work. It was unsuccessful. The truck was loaded. The speed, the truck's speed increased, started to increase down the hill. I tried until the last minute pressing on the brake. Can I continue? Q21 Ah hmm. A (Int): I realised that's it, no chance by braking. I saw the cars in front of me. I tried to prevent my truck to go immediately into the cars in front of me. I tried to turn the truck to the left. I tried but what happened happened. The truck flipped on its side."
Her Honour did not refer to Mr Nisan's answer to question 20, or the detail of what he said elsewhere in this interview in her conclusions. There she said that: "I am satisfied the accused meant the top of the hill to be the top of the hill. The downhill part is where the third 20 sign is as the Crown contends. The accused signals with his hands in the interview at about this point."
What Mr Nisan meant by his answer was, however, extensively explored in the interview.
Answers to questions 52 to 54 disclosed that Mr Nisan had been working for his employer for two years, driving this route twice or more a week. He agreed that he knew the road well. In questions 56 to 61 he was asked about the number of signs on the road. He answered: "Q56 O.K. Now, I think you told me when you were coming down the road there were two signs, one black and white. What does that sign say? A (Int): It's a black and white sign. It's warning, warning the drivers that the speed will become twenty. Q57 And where is that sign situated, on your left or on your right? A (Int): On the right. Q58 Now, you said there was two. That's one sign, black and white. What's the other sign you're referring to? A (Int): Ah, after the black and white there is the red and white sign. Q59 And where is that situated? A (Int): Both sides. Oh, yeah, I am, sure on the right, but maybe both of them on both sides, but I am sure the sign on the right. Q60 [19.09] O.K. So are you saying there's two signs or maybe three signs now? A (Int): Two black and white and two red and white. Q61 And if I was to suggest to you that there were actually more than four signs what could you say about that? A (Int): Four signs, two black and white and two red and white."
Mr Nisan was also asked: "Q62 Now, you said you started reducing speed. What were, speed were you going prior to reducing your speed? A (int): Forty. Yeah, it was forty before reaching the area, before reaching the sign. Q63 Then I think you said when you reached the second sign you were doing twenty or maybe less than twenty. A (int): But not today. Today, I didn't go down to twenty today. Q64 What was the speed that you reduced to prior to putting your brakes on? A (Int): Before reaching the black and white sign down to forty. I attempted to go down to twenty. It failed. It didn't. The speed increased, started to increase when I was braking. Q65 The twenty sign, is that before you start to go down the hill? A (Int): Yes, yeah. The sign before downhill. Q66 So - - - A (Int): First the sign then the downhill start. Q67 So when you tried to reduce your speed from forty to twenty were you still driving on the flat or had you started going down the road, down the hill. MR ALALI Sorry, can you repeat that? SERGEANT SAMUEL Q68 When you were driving along doing forty you said you tried to reduce to twenty. Is that while you were still on flat or had you started to go downhill? A (Int): I was here before the downhill, just at the top, at the top, then the speed increased, started to increase slowly."
By this exchange Mr Nisan was saying that he had slowed to 40kph by the time he reached the black and white sign, but he was unable to slow to 20kph, by the time he reached the red 20kph speed sign.
When asked what else he did to try and reduce his speed, Mr Nisan said: "Q70 [19.13] And what else did you do to try and reduce the speed? A (Int): I'd pulled the handbrake and tried to check the gear. The gear was O.K. The truck continued. I can't remember what happened. I panicked. Q71 Now, you said you attempted to reduce the speed and you realised there was a problem with the brake. How did you know there was a problem with the brake? A (Int): I was braking and nothing happened. It was obvious braking failure. Q72 Now, when you were saying you were braking what was the feeling or sensation you got? A (Int): All my attempts pressing on the pedal of the brake, it's nothing happened, nothing happen or the, the, the speed is not slowing. Q73 When you say there was nothing happening what was the brake pedal doing? A (Int): Despite the fact I am pressing on the brake as normal, but the speed, there is no change in the speed. The speed increasing despite the fact I am continuously pressing on the brake. Q74 Did the brake pedal go to the floor? A Yeah. A (Int): Yes. Q75 So every, are you saying that every time you pressed the brake it went to the floor? A (Int): Today? Q76 Yes. A (Int): To the end. I ah, all my attempt is to stop that ah, the truck. To the end. To the, I tried more than once. Q77 Then I think you said you tried the parking brake. What happened then? A (Int): At that time the speed started to increase. When I pulled the handbrake nothing happened. The speed wasn't affected. The truck continued. Q78 Did you say then that the speed increased when you pulled the handbrake on? A (Int): It was all in a matter of seconds, seconds. I pulled the handbrake, the speed continued increasing."
As to the gear he was in, Mr Nisan said: "Q79 And what gear were you in at the time? A (Int): One, low gear. Um, um, when I started I started on low gear, one. Q80 [19.17] So when you started, before you went down the hill you were in first gear are you saying? A (Int): Before reaching the sign I started to go down with the gear, four, three, two, but I am sure at the top of the hill I went down to low gear, one. I tried to find a solution. I panicked. I tried to go number one. Nothing happened."
From this exchange Mr Nisan was saying that he had gone through the gears in low range from 4 down to 1, but he was not able to get into first gear.
Signage was returned to after Mr Nisan said that he had noticed something was wrong with the air gauges. He then said: "Q89 And where was this? Where were you on the roadway when that happened? A (Int): After the forty when I started, when I wanted to reduce the speed, before the sign when I started, I wanted to reduce the speed. Q90 [19.21] And is that the sign up on the flat before you go down the hill? A (Int): Yes, flat, that's right. Q91 Well, if you're still driving on the flat and you're only doing forty kilometres per hour why couldn't you stop the vehicle? A (Int): Oh, well, it was on forty. I attempted to go down to twenty then I realised something wrong with the gauge. I knew something was wrong with the brakes. Q92 O.K. The twenty kilometre per hour speed limit which one are you referring to? Where is that situated? A (Int): What do you mean? Can you explain? Q93 Well, you were saying that there are a number of signs going along Warringah Road and I think they warn a driver to slow to twenty. A (Int): Yes. Q94 And where is that first sign that says twenty? A (Int): You mean the location? I can't understand. Q95 Well, are you still driving along the flat when you have to move to twenty or are you going down the hill? A (Int): Can I, can l explain? Q96 No. Sorry. I'm just, I'm just going to show you some pictures. Might be easier to explain."
In evidence at trial was a video recording of the drive down the road, past the signs, but that was not shown to Mr Nisan. Instead, he was then shown some photographs, with the signs numbered 1 to 4. After he said he recognised number 3, the first 20kph sign, he was asked: "Q110 [19.27] O.K. Earlier you mentioned about changing gears or slowing down prior to the twenty K sign. A (Int): Yes, and here approximately the speed was around forty. Q111 Around about forty. O.K. A (Int): I attempted, I, yes. I've tried to slow down to twenty but the truck didn't slow down. Q112 O.K. So if I'm going to write here urn, forty Ks an hour at this point - A (Int): I cannot confirm - Q113 O.K. A Exactly. A (Int): - - - at what point exactly. Q114 O.K. When, do, do you know what this sign means? A (Int): Further down it'll be twenty. I can drive more than twenty after this sign, but when I, after the red no, definitely not. It should be twenty. Q115 O.K. Do you know the speed limit on this road? A (Int): I'm not sure hundred percent. Seventy. It's ah, seventy, sixty but I'm not sure."
From this exchange, it is apparent that Mr Nisan was explaining that while he had attempted to reduce his speed before he reached the 20kph speed limit sign, he had been unable to do so and when he reached that sign, he was still travelling at 40kph.
Mr Nisan was later asked again about the signs, by reference to a diagram and the photos at question 139. He then said that he was tired, exhausted, unable to remember exactly and was having trouble concentrating. He was given water and the interview continued. Later he was asked: "SERGEANT SAMUEL Q150 [19.39] I think earlier we were talking about the twenty kilometre truck and speed limit sign. Is this the one you're referring to in photograph 5? A (Int): Yeah, this is the last sign, yes. Must be twenty after this. Q151 And do you agree that where this sign is the roadway is still flat? A (Int): The, the, the downhill start, the road start going down from the top from the first sign, slowly, slowly. This is not flat. Slowly, 'cause when you're driving the truck you can feel you start, start going down. Q152 It's slightly is it? A (Int): Maybe you can see the ocean from the first traffic light. You can feel when you are driving the truck that it's not flat, slightly started going down. A Yeah, it's not, like, ah - Q153 When, when you were driving down here where was your, your right foot? A (Int): Today? Q154 Yes. A (Int): On the brake, I was trying on the brake. Q155 Was it, was it still on the accelerator? A (Int): On the brake. No, no, on the brake. Q156 O.K. And at that stage can you tell me, you might have already said, what gear you were in there? A (Int): l don't remember, when I started slowing down to forty, that's forty I was trying to reduce more and reaching this area here, down here the, the, the speed increased. Q157 And had you tried to brake at that stage? A (Int): What stage? Q158 When you went past this sign. A (int): Already I'd started, ah - - - Q159 O.K. A (Int) - - - slowing down. The speed ah, went down to forty, but when I reached the downhill the speed started to increase up and up."
By this exchange, Mr Nisan was indicating that it was after he reached the 20kph speed limit sign, that his speed began to increase.
Later, after he was taken to the signs again, Mr Nisan was asked what he understood the maximum speed in gear one low range was. He said that he thought it was up to 20kph, depending on the load and where the truck was travelling. Later he said that normally he drove down that incline in gear 3 and if the load was heavy, gear 2. Later Mr Nisan said that: "Q170 [19.43] Could it have been that you were actually in fifth gear and not first gear? A (Int): … sure my finger is, you can feel it if it's on five, the truck will be lighter. I was certain, I was certain I went to down oh, to one. A, a, a truck driver can hear it from the sound, you know. Q171 Yes. I realise that, but in the spur of the moment and you said it happened that quick, could you have actually been in fifth and not back to first? A (Int) I left the fifth before reaching that area because I started to slow down, went down with the gear."
Mr Nisan repeatedly said that it was very hard for him to remember exactly what had happened at different stages, because it had all happened in seconds. In his answer to question 190, he said that he could not remember if the exhaust brake had worked when he took his foot off the accelerator.
In answering questions 193 and 194, he also said that he always had his foot on the brake on that hill, to make sure his speed did not go over 20kph and because someone could drive in front of him on that road. Mr Nisan was then asked: "SERGEANT SAMUEL Q196 If you're driving down in first gear wouldn't that also hold you back? A (Int): It does. Q197 Because the truck can't do fifty or sixty kilometres in first gear obviously. A (Int): I tried, I attempted actually, I tried ah, to go on gear one, I, to make sure it's on one, but the speed didn't slow down. Increased. Q198 So is it a case you might not have been in first gear? A (Int): …possibility it was on two, but when the downhill started, as I said, the, the, tried to slow down, I panicked when the truck didn't slow down. I wanted to make sure if it was on low gear one. Q199 So when you, you said you panicked, you could have been in second, could you have put the truck into neutral at that stage? A (Int): With the road going downhill … the speed would increase, go high …."
By this exchange Mr Nisan again agreed that he may not have succeeded in getting the truck into first gear.
The Crown case on appeal was again that Mr Nisan was "very clear, both verbally and by his gestures", that there were only two sets of signs on Warringah Hill. Further, that "by aiming to reduce his speed to 20kph by what was in reality the second set of mandatory speed limit signs, he … left it too late to reduce speed safely".
Neither of those conclusions were fairly open on what Mr Nisan said in the interview. Nor was the conclusion which the trial judge reached.
In the result, while ground 2 must be dismissed, ground 4(a) must be upheld.

Ground 3 - unsafe, unsatisfactory or unreasonable verdict

Mr Ruller's opinion was that the collision had occurred because of Mr Nisan's driving, not mechanical problems, because he had not attempted to slow the truck to 20kph early enough on the descent. Dr Hart concluded that the collision had occurred because the brakes were out of adjustment and had become so hot that they lost effectiveness - preventing Mr Nisan from slowing the truck, as he had planned, to 20kph, in order to descend the hill.
Mr Nisan's case on appeal was that the evidence, including various concessions made by Mr Ruller in cross-examination and the resulting findings which the trial judge made in the conviction judgment, her Honour ought to have entertained a doubt about his guilt of the charges of which he was convicted: Libke v The Queen (2007) 230 CLR 559; [2007] HCA 30 at [113]. The reasons given for rejecting Dr Hart's opinions did not follow as a matter of common sense, were illogical, unsafe, unreasonable and plainly absurd.
Mr Nisan also contended that in circumstances where Dr Hart, a leading expert in heavy vehicle braking with the greater expertise, considerable caution had to be exercised in preferring Mr Ruller's reported opinions. Further, given Mr Ruller's evidence in cross-examination, that if he knew that the brakes on the steer axle were in poor condition and in need of adjustment, he would not have taken the truck "out of the yard", Dr Hart's opinions should have been accepted.
In the circumstances, in relation to what remained in dispute, Dr Hart's evidence should have been preferred, or at least led her Honour to the conclusion that there had to be a reasonable doubt as to Mr Nisan's guilt of dangerous driving. Her Honour did not, as trial judge, enjoy an advantage from seeing and hearing the evidence, given at trial, which would preclude his appeal from being upheld: Filippou v The Queen at [12].
On the Crown's case Mr Nisan should not have used the brake at all on Warringah Hill, except perhaps in an emergency. The speed limit was 20kph and he should have driven in low gear, with the assistance of the exhaust brake.
Accordingly, her Honour did not err in concluding that it was Mr Nisan's manner of driving which had resulted in him exceeding the 20kph speed limit and causing the collision. As he descended the hill he was not only speeding, but driving in the incorrect gear; he had failed to use the exhaust brake; and he then attempted to use the handbrake, thereby depleting the air pressure of the footbrake system.
The Crown also submitted that the fact that the truck was found to be in neutral at the scene of the collision, was likely to have been because Mr Nisan's speed had been too high to permit the engine to allow him to reduce gears. This had also prevented engine retardation from limiting the speed of the truck.
In my view the Crown's case should not have succeeded at trial and Mr Nissan's case must succeed on appeal.
In evidence was:

Constable Wilson's initial report into the results of the tests which he conducted on the unloaded truck, after he had undertaken repairs to its air and fuel system which allowed normal air brake pressure to be achieved, with the rear axles chained;
Mr Ruller's initial report, in which he considered the results of Constable Wilson's tests;
Dr White's initial report, he also having examined the truck and disagreeing with certain of Constable Wilson's measurements;
Mr Ruller's second report, in which he commented on Dr White's report;
Constable Wilson's second report, in which he responded to Dr White's comments;
Dr Hart's report, in which he commented on the reports of Constable Wilson, Mr Ruller and Dr White; and
Mr Ruller's third report, in which he responded to Dr Hart's report.

Neither Dr Hart nor Mr Ruller had inspected the truck.
Other evidence established that non-genuine or 'after market' brake linings had been installed on the truck's brakes. Their operation was not tested by either Constable Wilson or Dr White, to determine whether they met applicable vehicle standard regulations, or whether their operation could have contributed to the brakes failing. Dr Hart considered that they had contributed to the brakes overheating and fading.
While the experts were all called separately to be cross-examined and did not give their evidence concurrently, as would have been of obvious assistance to the trial judge, some agreements emerged.
For example, in cross-examination Mr Ruller confirmed that he agreed that the brakes on the steer axle were in poor condition and needed repair and that if he knew they were in that condition, he would not have driven the truck down Warringah Hill, or even taken it out of the yard. He also accepted that Mr Nisan may not have been aware of that problem, but in his view, he should have still been able to drive safely down the Hill, using normal driving procedures.
On Dr Hart's evidence, Mr Nisan needed to be in gear 5 or 6, to be driving the truck at 40kph. In his oral evidence Mr Ruller said that the truck would have needed to be in 5th gear.
Mr Ruller agreed that the maximum speed for gear 5 was 40kph and that to go from 5th to 4th gear, Mr Nisan had to slow to the maximum speed of 29kph. When asked if the brakes should have been able to reduce the truck to that speed, Mr Ruller said that at the top of the hill, they should have "pulled him up"; that he could also slow his speed by taking his foot off the accelerator; that using the footbrake brake was an obvious way of reducing speed; and that: "That's what I'm saying. If he had - looking at the 400 degrees at the top of the hill, had he hammered the brakes and tried to come to a stop at that point in time then I would say he probably could have pulled that vehicle up. It's going to take him an awful long time to do it."
In Dr Hart's view, to achieve a speed of 20kph going down Warringah Hill, Mr Nisan had to shift down to gear 3. That is only possible if road speed and engine speed are suitable. In cross-examination Mr Ruller agreed that to shift down, the truck had to be put into low range. After the collision it was found to be in that range, but in neutral.
Dr Hart said that if the speed was too high, an attempted gear change would fail, resulting in either a higher gear, or neutral being selected. Neutral would preclude engine retardation slowing the truck's speed. The driver would then have to rely completely on the footbrake, because the exhaust brake only worked in gear. The handbrake would also not then be of assistance, because it used the same brake mechanism as the footbrake. Mr Ruller agreed.
Dr Hart's opinion was that the truck's exhaust brake would probably be powerful enough to control the descent of the truck, if it was in gear 1 or 2, but not in higher gears. This would, however, require a speed of only 10kph at the top of the final descent. Otherwise, a driver would also have to use the footbrake while descending this hill.

Orders

The orders I would make are: 1. Leave to appeal be granted; 2. The conviction appeal be upheld; 3. The convictions be quashed; and 4. The appellant should be released forthwith.
CAMPBELL J: I have had the considerable advantage of considering Schmidt J's reasons in draft. I agree with the orders proposed for the reasons her Honour gives. I wish to record that having considered the evidence for myself I am of the view that notwithstanding the advantages enjoyed by the learned trial judge, for the reasons given by Schmidt J it was not open to her to convict the appellant.

Amendments 20 November 2017 - [133] 'applicant' changed to 'appellant' DISCLAIMER - Every effort has been made to comply with suppression orders or statutory provisions prohibiting publication that may apply to this judgment or decision. The onus remains on any person using material in the judgment or decision to ensure that the intended use of that material does not breach any such order or provision. Further enquiries may be directed to the Registry of the Court or Tribunal in which it was generated. Decision last updated: 20 November 2017

Road Rules 2008(NSW)

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Legislation Cited (2)

Cases Cited (16)