David Bain trial: Down to 12 good people

It is a job that no amount of money could make attractive - yet it pays less than the minimum wage.

The five women and seven men of the jury who will sit through the retrial of David Bain will face long, intense days, graphic details and one of the hardest decisions of their lives.

They must decide whether Bain, a teenager at the time, is guilty of the murder of his parents, brother and two sisters in Dunedin in 1994. If they find him guilty, he could be returned to prison, where he has already spent much of his life.

The 12 jurors are likely to be away from their jobs for three months as they hear the detailed evidence.

Criminal law professor Warren Broadbanks, from Auckland University, said some lawyers preferred responsible-looking people with jobs, because they feared that retired people tended to be more conservative.

But the Ministry of Justice pays jurors only $31 per half day, rising to $127 if they stay after 9pm, for the first week of a trial. After that, they are paid $40 per half day, rising to $163 if they stay after 9pm.

So juries in long cases are often made up largely of civil servants (whose pay is topped up by their employer), beneficiaries and superannuitants.

"There is an element of sacrifice," Broadbanks said. "With less finance they may suffer hardship."

The defence counsel challenged three men who were called to the jury box: one middle-aged man wearing jeans, a white T-shirt and carrying a backpack; one in his 30s with sandy hair and a white shirt; and one young man with gelled black hair and street clothing. As he was turned away, there was a ripple of nervous laughter among those waiting to be called.

Crown prosecutor Cameron Mander also challenged one man, who was wearing glasses and a black shirt.

Most who were chosen looked to be aged over 40, and all appeared Pakeha. The men were dressed for the most part in plain shirts and jeans; the women in skirts, shirts, and cardigans.

After the trial began on Friday, experts worried about what kind of emotional and financial impact it will have on the jurors, who will spend the next 12 weeks in a windowless Christchurch courtroom.

"This is going to interrupt people's lives for months and months," said clinical psychologist Jeanne le Roux, "There will be a guilt association for not being at work.

"It was a horrific case. The scenes were mind-boggling, there was a lot of blood. If all the pictures are shown again then it will be hard for people to stomach.

She added: "There will be a small proportion of people who will be really disturbed by it. This is not tea-time chatter."

Criminal lawyer Jane Northwood said anybody who had lived in this country for the past 15 years would already have an opinion on Bain's guilt or innocence.

"God only knows," she said. "Juries are lotteries. If they are younger I would say they would be more likely to have an open mind."

Northwood warned that personal bonds would be formed between jurors during the trial.

"When you are deliberating, it will be hard not to align yourself with those people that you share a bond with."