Beyond a Reasonable Doubt: what does it mean?

Presumption of Innocence

A person charged with a criminal offence has the right to be presumed innocent until proven guilty. The presumption of innocence is enshrined in s 25(1) of the Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities Act 2006 (Vic).

Onus of Proof

The onus of proving a person’s guilt always lies on the prosecution. Accused people do not need to prove their innocence.

The prosecution must prove, for example, that an accused person’s actions were not:

 1. Accidental
2.  Involuntary as a result of a state of sane automatism
3.  A result of duress
4. Committed in self-defence

Beyond Reasonable Doubt

The standard of “proof beyond reasonable doubt” can be compared with proof on the “balance of probabilities”, which is the standard of proof that applies in civil cases.

Being satisfied of guilt beyond reasonable doubt does not simply mean concluding that the accused may have committed the offence charged or even that it is more likely than not that the accused committed the offence charged.

The prosecution must prove all of the elements of the offence beyond reasonable doubt AND the prosecution must also disprove beyond reasonable doubt any defences that are raised as issues in a trial.

It is not enough that the accused person is probably guilty or very likely to be guilty (Jury Directions Act 2015 s 64(1)(b).

An accused should be acquitted even if the jury are satisfied that he or she is probably guilty (i.e. probably not innocent), but are not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that he or she is guilty.

Article by Lauren Cassimatis – Principal lawyer

Meet Lauren Cassimatis

Principal Lawyer, Director & Founder | Accredited Criminal Law Specialist Lauren is one of Victoria’s leading criminal lawyers and a Law Institute of Victoria Accredited Specialist in Criminal Law.