JURORS in the double murder trial of 61-year-old Stephen Roy Standage have concluded day one of their deliberations without reaching a verdict.
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The ten men and two women on the jury began their considerations shortly before 10am.
Jurors deliberated for about 3 ½ hours before being dismissed for the day, as one member needed to attend an afternoon appointment.
Mr Standage is accused of shooting dead Ronald Frederick Jarvis at Nugent in 1992 and John Lewis Thorn at Lake Leake in 2006.
He has pleaded not guilty to both killings.
The Supreme Court hearing against the accused has stretched five months and heard from 180 witnesses – making it one of the longest criminal trials in the state's history.
The jury must reach a unanimous verdict if they are to find Mr Standage guilty of either or both murders.
Within the first six hours of deliberations, any verdict returned must be unanimous.
After the six-hour window is closed, the jury may find Mr Standage not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter, or not guilty to either or both murders by a majority verdict.
The jury will reconvene at 9.15 am tomorrow morning.
