Son David Bain cleared in New Zealand family killing case

Originally found guilty on the basis of guesswork only

A NEW Zealand man has been found not guilty of murdering five members of his family in 1994 after a retrial described by his lawyer as the country's most extraordinary case. David Bain, 37, was in tears yesterday after the verdict. He was accused of killing his father, Robin, 58, mother, Margaret, 50, and three siblings, Arawa, 19, Laniet, 18, and Stephen, 14, with a .22 rifle after returning from his morning paper round in the southern city of Dunedin. Mr Bain has always maintained his father killed his family and then turned the gun on himself.

He spent 12 years in prison after being found guilty in 1995 of shooting his family with the rifle, but he was released in 2007 after the Privy Council in London ruled that a substantial miscarriage of justice had occurred.

During the trial, witnesses said Laniet Bain had told them her father had an incestuous relationship with her and she was preparing to tell the rest of the family.

An exhausted Mr Bain found it difficult to speak after the verdict, but he was quick to praise former All Black Joe Karam, who led the fight to free him. "All I can say is that without Joe and his solid strength, without the love of the people who have supported me since day one, I wouldn't have made it through this far," Mr Bain told cheering supporters. "Joe has been there through everything for me."

The panel of five men and seven women took just 24 hours to reach their unanimous verdict after a gruelling three-month trial that has dominated New Zealand's headlines.

Summing up on Tuesday, the prosecution told a court packed with journalists and members of the public that the first jury got the verdict right. Crown prosecutor Kieran Raftery painted a picture of a heartless, uncaring brother who framed his father.

He even went as far as to set up an alibi on his paper round, breaking his routine to walk onto a property so a dog would bark, and later telling police the dog owner would remember him, Mr Raftery said. Just two days after the deaths, he had planned the funerals in detail right down to which song to play for each family member, the jury was told. Mr Raftery argued that because Stephen Bain had had to "fight like hell to stay alive" it was unlikely he had been attacked by his father, who was described by many as 58 going on 78. Mr Raftery concluded by recalling words Bain said to a friend soon after the killing: "I always seem to end up hurting those I love."

Lead defence counsel Michael Reed QC described Bain as a "a really nice guy with a lovely smile and a nice way about him. He is not a murderer". Robin Bain had "flipped" and killed his family, he argued. He described the school principal as a man who feared his teenage daughter would reveal their incestuous relationship. "There was a great risk for Robin," Mr Reed said. He said the father was a "reclusive sort of guy" who was suffering depression, was "shabby and unkempt and had a strong body odour". His marriage was disintegrating and he lived in a van.

A suicide note typed on a computer in the home read: "Sorry, you are the only one who deserved to stay." The note has been challenged as a plant by David to shift guilt to his father. But Mr Reed said the correct comma usage made it more likely the work of an older, meticulous computer buff such as Robin than the then 22-year-old David.

Mr Reed picked apart the "ego-driven" police investigation and the "messy" prosecution case, wrapping up with: "His life has not been his own now for nearly 15 years. "Put David out of his misery, return him to freedom with a not-guilty verdict on all charges."

Original report here



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