Judge’s sympathy warning for Tabak jury

In summing up, Mr Justice Field described this as a tragic case in which a “lovely young woman with a promising future ahead of her has been robbed of her life”, writes Channel 4 News Home Affairs Correspondent Andy Davies. But he told the jury to consider the evidence and reach a verdict “in a calm, dispassionate and rational way”.

The judge told the jury that they must be “sure” of Vincent Tabak’s guilt in order to convict him of murder, and that if they are not sure, then the verdict must be “not guilty”. The burden rests with the prosecution, he said, to prove to the jury that Tabak had intended to kill Joanna Yeates or to cause her really serious bodily injury when he strangled her. He warned them not to speculate in the case, adding that “speculating amounts to no more than guessing”.

Vincent Tabak, a 33 year old Dutch engineer who specialised in people flow analysis, has admitted manslaughter but denies murder. Mr Justice Field asked the six men and six women on the jury to make “due allowance for the stress the defendant is obviously under” and to bear in mind that he gave evidence in English (not his first language).

As he outlined the principal issues in the case, the judge reminded the jury that the defendant had told a “series of calculated lies” to the police. “That may affect your assessment,” said Mr Justice Field, “as to whether he is a truthful witness”. He continued: “You must not assume because he lied he is guilty… but you must consider why he lied.”

The parents and boyfriend of Joanna Yeates were in court during the summing up. Vincent Tabak sat in the dock with his head held in his hands for much of the summary. Just after 12.30pm, the judge sent the jury out, instructing them to try to reach a unanimous verdict.