Jurors selected to hear David Bain's retrial were told yesterday the presumption of innocence was the starting point of the trial and they had to put aside any prior knowledge of the case.
After the five women and seven men had been empanelled - in less than 30 minutes - Justice Graham Panckhurst explained what was expected of them over the next three months while they listened to the evidence.
He said David Bain had to be presumed innocent at this point in the trial, something he stressed because of the history of the case. It was for the Crown to prove the murder allegations against Bain to the required standard, which was beyond reasonable doubt.
That was the position reached in relation to the accused, the moment the Privy Council set aside the convictions in May 2007, the judge said.
He told the jurors he appreciated the magnitude of the requirement because of the unprecedented publicity the case had attracted. But they had assumed the responsibility of putting prior knowledge to one side.
"You and I should start with a clean slate, an open mind, with no preconceptions any kind," Justice Panckhurst said.
The guilt or innocence of David Bain was to be determined solely on the sworn evidence given in court, and by the end of the process they would be uniquely placed to reach verdicts in the case, he told the jurors.
No jury member has yet been selected as the foreman. A recent amendment to the Juries Act meant that did not have to be done at the start of a trial and Justice Panckhurst suggested the jurors take a week or so to get to know each other before selecting the person they wanted to chair their discussions.
Empanelling of the jury had to be done in a separate courtroom because the public gallery, where prospective jurors would normally be seated, was taken over by the media.
