Bain could have stepped in blood, says witness

David Bain could have stepped in the blood of his brother or sister, rather than it dropping onto his sock, a jury has been told.

The fresh evidence was presented to the jury in the High Court at Christchurch yesterday as it considers whether Bain, now 37, shot dead his parents and three siblings, or arrived home on June 20, 1995, after all had died.

The murder retrial also heard yesterday about blood left around the Bain family's Dunedin home which could have come from David. Crown prosecutors say he got into a violent struggle with his brother, Stephen, before shooting him.

Bain's defence team argues that his father, Robin, killed his family before committing suicide with the rifle. Evidence was given yesterday that blood on a curtain could have come from Robin as he fell after being shot.

Bain told police soon after the deaths that he came home from his paper run to find his mother and father dead, then called 111, but did not enter his siblings' bedrooms. He also said he had been experiencing periods of "spacing out" around that time.

Peter Cropp, who analysed blood samples for police in his role with the ESR, gave evidence that blood on the bottom of a sock David was wearing could have come from Stephen or his sister Laniet. Dr Cropp's opinion was that the blood dropped onto the sock and soaked through it.

Questioned yesterday by Bain's lawyer Helen Cull, QC, he agreed it was possible that the wearer of the sock could have stepped in blood.

"I can't exclude that. It would have to be a wet and relatively fresh stain."

Dr Cropp told the court of bloodstaining on a doorjamb to the pantry in the kitchen that could have come from David, Stephen, or Laniet, but not from anyone else in the family.

A sample taken from a blood spot in the bathroom basin could also have come from David, Stephen or Laniet.

Dr Cropp said he examined blood on curtains in the lounge where Robin was found dead, with a .22 rifle lying next to him, and found it could be Robin's.

He examined a sample from blood spots between 600 and 750mm above the bottom edge of the curtain, which sat less than 250mm above the floor.

The Crown says Robin was shot while kneeling in the lounge.

The shape of the blood spots indicated that they had fallen onto the curtain, Dr Cropp said.

Ms Cull: "So, if for example Robin Bain was standing when shot, this blood could have come from his head as he was falling down - couldn't it?"

Dr Cropp: "Yes, it could, because this is just a snapshot of the position where the blood has exited and fallen onto the curtain."

Dr Cropp said yesterday he was shocked to find gel plates used in the testing of blood in the Bain case had vanished from the ESR files since his departure.

While he has given evidence that David's blood could have been on the rifle found next to Robin's body, he agreed with Ms Cull that he could not exclude rabbit or possum blood being on the weapon. The trial continues.

WEEK IN SUMMARY

Monday, March 30
Milton Weir, the detective sergeant in charge of the Bain house crime scene, is accused of lying about the location of a spectacle lens considered important in the case.

He admits making a mistake over exactly where it was found in Stephen Bain's bedroom because of an optical illusion in a photograph he viewed.

He agrees this could have unintentionally misled the jury in Bain's first trial, but denies ever lying about it.

Mr Weir also rejects alleged discussions with ophthalmologist Gordon Sanderson, who will give evidence in the trial.

Tuesday, March 31
Bain's defence team continue to grill Mr Weir, accusing him of planting the lens. Mr Weir denies it.

However, he says it was inappropriate to have the words "Hang Bain" painted on his house after a function to celebrate a Court of Appeal decision in the Bain case.

Mr Weir says he cannot explain a pair of socks and a letter sent to him from a prostitute named Petra. He agrees relationships he had within police had broken down over matters of trust before he left the force.

Wednesday, April 1
Bloody sock prints in the Bain house are closely scrutinised as the prosecution seek to prove they were David Bain's, and the defence try to show they were left by David's father Robin.

Retired forensic scientist Peter Hentschel maintains the sock prints he measured at 280mm long would have been left by someone with a bigger foot, despite Bain's lawyers putting to him that the foot would have to be smaller than the print.

Mr Hentschel says testing finds no evidence of gunshot residue on the hands of either David or Robin.

Thursday, April 2
Mr Hentschel stands by the standard of his work on the case as Bain's defence team say another witness will call it "inadequate".

Former ESR forensic scientist Peter Cropp gives evidence of blood samples from the Bain case he examined.

He says blood found on David Bain's sock could have come from Stephen or Laniet, while blood on the rifle could have been David's.