The trial of accused murderer Rosemary Priscilla Mackie has ended in a hung jury.
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The jury informed presiding NSW Supreme Court Judge Megan Latham at 12.30pm on Tuesday that a unanimous or majority verdict could not be reached.
The four women and eight men had heard three weeks’ evidence at Bega Court House in the case of slain Far South Coast woman Marnie-Lee Cave.
Judge Latham said their inability to reach a conclusion constituted a fairly compelling case for bail.
The defense expected an application would be submitted in the next few weeks and felt confident it would be approved.
Mackie has been held for two years and two months in Silverwater jail.
A unanimous decision required all 12 jurors to agree on a verdict. A majority verdict requires agreement among at least 11 members.
Mackie, 54, pleaded not guilty to the murder of Ms Cave, 26, who died from strangulation, before her body was thrown off Handcocks Bridge at Mogareeka in October, 2015.
Judge Latham said the hung jury illustrated the “equivocation” with which the Crown’s case could be regarded. Because the jury had deliberated all evidence, she had no option but to discharge them.
“I appreciate the attention you have given to this trial, but I must discharge you,” she said in court.
“I want to add you have not failed in your task. The accused has been judged by her peers and there is no power for me to put any charge on the accused; that is the way it should be.”
Before their dismissal, the jury submitted questions to the court to assist in their deliberations. They sought clarification on the validity of Mackie’s admissions to an undercover operative and the definition of a “joint criminal enterprise”, or the agreement between one or more people to commit a crime.
Judge Latham said parts of what Mackie told the operative were objectively false, but it was not the responsibility of the Crown to explain why she said these things. The jury was reminded that if they entertained doubt about the admissions as a whole, they could not find Mackie guilty.
If they thought Mackie’s knowledge of the crime was derived from other sources, they could not be satisfied by the reliability of the evidence sourced through the operative.
Judge Latham said placing Mackie at the crime scene on the evening of the murder was an essential step to determining joint criminal enterprise. Cont. 10.