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Clockwise from left:A sketch of the Bucks Camp site Gregory Lynn drew for police;Lynn;Carol Clay;and Russell Hill.

Justice Michael Croucher reminded the jury that the prosecution did not have to establish any motive to prove an alleged murder or murders took place,and that the charges relating to Hill and Clay must be considered separately.

Croucher also told the jury that on the issue of a unanimous verdict,while the six men and six women must agree on the same verdict,he did not believe they had yet reached the point of not being able to do so.

He noted that the question of motive,though,might be a factor that meant the jurors were unable to be satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that murder occurred.

“I’d ask you to go back and consider your verdicts further,” Croucher told the jurors.

Russell Hill’s Toyota LandCruiser and the burnt-out site at Bucks Camp.Credit:Victoria Police

“All 12 of you must agree on the same verdict.”

Monday’s queries werethe second time the jurors have returned to the courtroom since they began their first full day of deliberations last Monday,following a five-week trial.

Their first question last Monday was a request to watch a recording of Lynn’s time in the witness box and the evidence of ballistics expert Paul Griffiths,who had brought the alleged murder weapon – a 12-gauge Barathrum Arms shotgun – into the court as part of his evidence.

Lynn,57,haspleaded not guilty to murdering Hill and Clay at Bucks Camp in the Wonnangatta Valley on March 20,2020.

The former Jetstar pilotgave evidence during the trial as the only witness in the defence case,after the prosecution called 48 witnesses.

During his record of interview with police,Lynn gave a version of events that Hill had entered his campsite and removed one of the guns from Lynn’s car and fired warning shots in the air.

Lynn told police he and Hill thenstruggled for control of the weapon before it accidentally fired,hitting Clay in the head. Hill then died,Lynn said,when the older man came at him and then fell on his own kitchen knife.

The prosecutor told the jury during his final address that theycould reject Lynn’s version of events – that both Hill and Clay died accidental deaths – and find he did murder both retirees,despite no motive being established.

The jury’s deliberations continue.

A new podcast from 9News,The Age and 9Podcasts follows the court case as it unfolds.The Missing Campers Trial is the first podcast to follow a jury trial in real time in Victoria. It’s presented by Nine reporter Penelope Liersch and Age reporter Erin Pearson.

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