Fresh evidence cannot be adduced in appeal of Court Martial assault conviction

Military law – General Court-Martial – charge of committing a civil offence, contrary to s.169 of the Defence Act 1954 – assault contrary to s.2 of the Non Fatal Offences Against the Person Act 1997 – charge of using insulting language to a superior officer contrary to s.133 of the Act of 1954 – procedural history of appeals – leave to rely on additional grounds of appeal – selection process for, and the composition of, the Court-Martial Board – alleged prosecutorial delay – alleged prosecutorial misconduct – alleged prosecutorial bias / conflict of interest – alleged non-disclosure – Defence (Amendment) Act, of 2007 – motion seeking leave adduce evidence of new or newly discovered facts – s.33(1) of the Courts of Justice Act 1924 – s.31 of the Criminal Procedure Act 2010 – s.78 of the Court of Appeal Act 2014 – defendant cannot show that the supposed new evidence represents material that could not reasonably have been known or acquired at the time of the trial – defendant cannot rely on additional grounds of appeal – whether some of the members of the Board were ineligible and the selection of the members of the Board was unlawful – whether there was “prior involvement in the matter” on the part of the Chief Prosecutor of the Director of Military Prosecutions – no breach of European Convention on Human Rights Act 2003 on account of alleged delays – conviction safe – appeal dismissed.