Jury discharged in trial concerning Belfast man accused of murdering wife Susan Baird

A jury presiding in a trial concerning a Belfast man accused of murdering his wife was discharged on Tuesday.

A hearing into the August 2020 killing of mother-of-four Susan Baird was opened to a jury of five men and seven women at Belfast Crown Court women last week.

The 60-year-old died as a result catastrophic head injuries in the Windermere Road home she shared with her husband Gary.

The 64-year old former BBC security guard has admitted attacking his wife with a hammer in their Four Winds home.

He has pleaded guilty to a charge of manslaughter but this plea was not accepted by the prosecution.

As the murder trial was due to enter its second week, a legal issue arose which was dealt with in the absence of the jury.

After making a ruling on the legal issue, trial judge Mr Justice McFarland determined that the jury should be discharged.

The 12 members were then brought back to court and were addressed by the senior judge.

Thanking them for their patience and issuing an apology, Mr Justice McFarland told them: "We have been dealing with a lot of issues in this case, all day today, and the long and the short of it is that we're not in a position to proceed with the trial now.

"We can't really adjourn it so in the circumstances I'm going to discharge you.

"It's nothing to do with anything that's happened with you but we are not in a position to continue with this trial and bring it to a conclusion.

"Your services are no longer required so you are free to go now. Thank you."

Following this, Baird was remanded back into custody ahead of a re-trial.

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