THE JURY IN the Graham Dwyer trial asked for a number of items, including a flipchart, maps and an overview of phone contacts, before being sent home for the night yesterday.
After 40 minutes of deliberations, the foreman asked the trial judge for maps of cell connections to be blown up to a larger scale, as well as videos of the accused’s interview with gardaí. They were told they would get memos of the interviews, rather than videos.
The seven men and five women will continue their deliberations at 11am today.
Graham Dwyer, a 42-year-old architect from Foxrock in Dublin, is charged with the murder of Elaine O’Hara on 22 August 2012. He denies the charge.
The jury in the murder trial has heard 42 days of evidence, including Justice Tony Hunt’s instructions.
Concluding his charge yesterday, Justice Hunt told the members: “The one thing that you can say with certainty is that two people met that day, one person came home, the other didn’t.
Where did they go, how did they go, what did they do when they got there. How did the stuff end up in the reservoir?
He also told them it was up to them alone what evidence they should accept and reject.
During his charge, he said the jury had to leave “sentiment and emotion” aside when reaching a verdict.
Discussing the possibility of suicide, the judge told the jury that if there is a reasonable possibility of suicide then they had to acquit the accused. “It’s as simple as that,” he said.
Judge Hunt said that the question of suicide is one that has to be considered. He said the prosecution and defence clashed on the matter.
The judge said he was going to throw in his “six pence worth” and said that both sides might be correct. He asked the jury to draw upon their own experience with suicide and come to their own conclusion on the state someone is in, although he said that could prove difficult as often times there is no reason to give as to why someone would take their own life.
“You make up your own mind on that and apply your own knowledge of life…”.
The jury is allowed to decide its own hours, within reason, from today. Justice Hunt said that a result produced on “exhaustion” is “not legally sound”. He also asked all members to participate in deliberations, adding that it was important they all have their own view.
He said that only a unanimous verdict is acceptable. Before retiring for the day the jury foreman asked the judge what they had to convict the defendant of. The judge clarified the charge on the form sheet was murder.
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