11.59am: Supreme Court Justice John Byrne began his summary of the trial to the jury.
He told the jury they were the judges of the facts and not to be influenced by media reports or events outside of the court hearing.
Justice Byrne told the jury they could draw inferences and make deductions from the evidence.
He said the jury could assess witnesses for credibility and to help them determine the strength and reliability of their evidence.
Justice Byrne said the evidence of a witness could be deemed unreliable for many reasons, he said an observation of something said or done was prone to being mistaken and memory faded with time.
He said memory could be affected by stress and other distractions. He said it could also be distorted through the suggestibility of others.
“Some people can come to believe they said things which they did not say but afterwards wish they had said,” he said.
Justice Byrne said there was a need for care in evaluating the reliability of witness testimony.
He told them to take care when assessing the reliability of neighbours who heard, for example, “sounds in the night” around Brookfield.
He took the jury to the burden of proof, which rested on the prosecution to prove the guilt of the accused.
Justice Byrne said Baden-Clay was presumed to be innocent and could only be convicted if the prosecution established he was guilty.
He said the prosecution had to prove the guilt of the accused beyond a reasonable doubt.
He told the jury if it was left with a reasonable doubt about guilt, it’s duty was to acquit: find not guilty.
Justice Byrne said this was a circumstantial case as no one had seen the accused kill his wife.
He said it was not necessary for facts to be proved with direct evidence, and they could also be proven through direct, circumstantial evidence or both.
Justice Byrne said the jury should dismiss all feelings of sympathy or prejudice in the trial.
“No such emotion has any part in your decision,” he said.
He said the accused was not obliged to give or produce evidence in the trial.
Justice Byrne said the burden of proof had not shifted to the accused because he chose to give evidence, and it still rested with the prosecution.
He said the jury should not hold it against the accused that he did not provide a formal statement to police
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