Collecting evidence
Before the hearing, you must prepare the evidence you want to show to the Court.
You should do this quickly, because some forms of evidence may not be available or may be destroyed after some time.
If you want to use electronic evidence, such as videos or sound recordings, you should contact the court as soon as possible before the hearing to make sure that the equipment you need is available on the day.
You should also review the prosecutor’s evidence, as this might help you identify what evidence you need for your case.
You can take photographs of the location of the alleged offence to use as evidence. You may want to take photos that show signs, obstructions, hazards or anything else that is relevant to your case.
If you are using photographs as evidence, you should make sure that they are printed and good quality. You can’t show the photographs on your mobile phone or camera.
If you have received a fine from a council for a parking offence, or from Revenue NSW for a camera detected offence, the prosecutor may use any photographs that were taken to confirm that your vehicle was the vehicle seen at the alleged offence and that you were the driver. You should make sure that you look at these photos as part of your preparation for the hearing.
To get a copy of a photograph from a council, you should speak to the council who issued the fine and request a copy of the photograph.
To get a copy of a photograph taken by a camera, you can either;
- view or download the photograph for free online
- call Revenue NSW on 1300 138 118
- write to Revenue NSW and ask for a copy to be mailed to you.
You will have to pay a $11.00 fee (as at July 2017) by sending a cheque or money order with your letter to:
Revenue NSW Photo Requests
PO Box 786
Strawberry Hills NSW 2012
You need to provide some proof of identification with your request, such as your address, date of birth or driver licence number.
For more information, see View a camera image of your offence on the NSW Government website.
If you were stopped and received a fine from a police officer, the alleged incident may have been recorded on In-car Video (ICV). ICV is footage recorded by equipment installed in some police vehicles. The ICV records images and sounds. It can record a conversation you have with a police officer after you are stopped.
Police officers who have ICV equipment in their cars must record any vehicle that they follow and intend on stopping. Once the police officer stops you they must tell you if they are using the ICV.
If you were told that the incident was recorded, you may want to view this footage before you go to court. You should contact the officer in charge or the prosecutor and make an appointment to view the footage.
If you haven't had a chance to view the ICV before or on the day of court, you may be able to ask for an adjournment to get some more time.
Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) is a television system which is used for the surveillance of a premises or place.
CCTV cameras are usually located near:
- identified crime hot spots
- ATMs and banks
- licensed premises
- bus stops, taxi ranks, car parks and railway stations
- community facilities, including public toilets and telephones
- places frequented by potentially at-risk groups, such as the elderly and young people.
If you are fined for an offence that occurred in one of those areas, such as "Attempt to re-enter or remain in the vicinity of premises" or "Smoking in a covered or enclosed station area", you may want to consider getting a copy of any CCTV footage to help prove that you didn’t commit the offence.
Owners or operators of CCTV footage may provide access voluntarily. CCTV footage may not be kept for long periods, and you should ask for a copy as soon as possible.
If an organisation won’t voluntarily give you a copy of the footage, you can serve a Subpoena for Production.
You might have documents such as letters, maps or receipts that support your case, for example:
- a letter from Transport for NSW that led you to believe you were entitled to drive when in fact you were suspended or disqualified
- google maps showing the distance between two locations
- receipts for mechanical repairs that led you to believe your indicators were working.
Witnesses who can support your case must attend the hearing to give evidence in person.
If your witnesses don’t attend the hearing, you can ask the Court for an adjournment. However, if you haven't subpoenaed your witnesses, the Court may not give you the adjournment. If you want to make sure your witnesses attend the hearing, you should subpoena them.
If the Court adjourns your case because your witnesses didn’t attend court, you may be ordered to pay the prosecution's costs of attending court that day.
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