Mitchell team in four-week evidence limit

Published on Saturday 23 February 2008 10:39

LUKE MITCHELL'S defence lawyers have four weeks to find any new evidence that might clear him of murdering girlfriend Jodi Jones.

The deadline was set by appeal judges in Edinburgh yesterday after they had already heard ten days of legal argument about the conduct of Mitchell's trial.

Defence QC Donald Findlay said at least one witness had still to be interviewed and described the task of preparing a file of sworn statements for the court to consider as "a work in progress".

Yesterday, advocate depute John Beckett QC, for the Crown, urged Lord Hamilton – sitting with Lords Osborne and Kingarth – to reject the defence claims.

He said the man Mitchell's defence team had indicated as a possible suspect had already been cleared by DNA tests.

Mr Beckett also told the appeal judges that the defence claims, so far, should not be allowed to shake the jury's verdict that Mitchell had murdered 14-year-old Jodi.

"The material fails the test," he said.