Adam and Ben were walking down Plenty Road at 2am in February 2022, when they were attacked. Adam and Ben were both injured in the attack, Ben more seriously than Adam. During the struggle, Ben scratched the attacker on his face.The attack was witnessed by Celine who was watching from her bedroom window at the time, waiting for her housemate Maria to come home. Celine recorded the attack using her cell phone, and knocked violently at her window to attract attention.Upon hearing the noise caused by Celine, the attacker fled, and Adam flagged down a passing taxi and, dragging Ben INTO the taxi with him, urged the driver to rush them to the closest hospital. Adam was clearly severely shaken, and the driver could see that Ben was barely conscious and covered in blood. Adam told the taxi driver they had been attacked by a stranger. At the emergency department, Adam explained that they had been attacked, and says that he thinks that Benscratched the offender. The police attend the hospital and Adam gave a description of the attacker as being a young male of about 20 years of age, wearing an Essendon footie jumper and blue jeans, possibly with a scratch on his face. Ben was not able to give the police any identifying information at all, saying that itwas all a blur and he couldn't remember.Dennis Crump was picked up by police at 4am, on Northcote High Street. He had a long fresh scratch on his face and was wearing an Essendon footie jumper. He also had bruises onhis hands, consistent with having been in a fight. He was taken to the Northcote PoliceStation and an identification parade was held at the station at 4pm the next afternoon. Adamtook a while to make the identification because the men all looked roughly the same, butfinally Crump turned his head in such a way that the scratch on his face was visible and atthat point Adam picked Dennis. Ben was still in hospital at the time, so the police put together a photo board with photos of the men from the identification parade. Although theother men in the parade are dressed similarly (none of them wearing football jumpers), only Dennis had a scratch on his face.At the station, while waiting for the identification parade to begin, Dennis tells SergeantErsatz that Adam and Ben 'deserved what they got, walking around like that holding hands, seriously they were just asking for it so I gave it to them'. When asked during the recorded interview to repeat the statement, Dennis replied 'don't know what you're on about mate' and denied any involvement in the crime.

Dennis Crump is known to the police, as having prior convictions for common assault and public order offenses including being drunk and disorderly and using offensive language. He was required to complete anger management classes following a conviction for assault in the magistrate's Court in 2019. Dennis was expelled from his high school for continued bullying of two students he believed to be gay. Celine told Maria about what she had witnessed, but her student visa expired a week after the assault, and she left Australia. Although it is believed Celine was returning to Brazil, she hasnot been located by the police. Maria encouraged Celine to report what she had seen to the police, but Celine was worried about getting involved ina police matter a week before she was due to leave the country and did not do so. Maria called the police when she saw a Crime Stoppers advertisement on TV. She told them that she returned home around lunchtime the day after the attack, having stayed the night at a friend's house, and that when she got home Celine told her what she had seen and showed her the video.

Q1

Would the transcript of the original bail application hearing be admissible in the trial?

Q2

Can the prosecution lead evidence about Dennis' previous criminal history

Q3

The prosecution wish to call Maria to give evidence.Would her evidence beadmissible?

Q4

Can the prosecution call Sergeant Ersatz to give evidence about the statement madeby Dennis before the ID Parade?

Q 5

Dennis wants to call his therapist as a witness to testify that Dennis has reformedsince the anger management classes he took in 2019. The therapist is registered withthe Department of Justice as an accredited behavioural therapist, has worked with manyex-prisoners, and has given evidence in other criminal trials. The therapist could testify to how Dennis has developed a more positive attitude towards gay menin the past two years as a result of the therapy. Would such evidence be admissible,and what implications, if any, would it have for the prosecution case?