Father accused of manslaughter: jury selected for trial

The man appeared in the High Court at Auckland today. Photo / File

The trial of an Auckland man accused of killing his 11-month-old son has begun in the High Court.

This morning, in a courtroom presided over by Justice Cheryl Gwyn, a jury was selected for the three-week trial.

A jury group consisting of seven men and five woman were selected.

The accused faces one charge of manslaughter and is represented in court by Rachael Reed QC and Katie Hogan.

The defendant has name suppression.

"Suppression orders are not lightly made," Justice Gwyn told the jury today.

She had felt it necessary to make the suppression orders in this case and "you should not read into that", she said.

She instructed the jury the case was to be decided only on what they could see and hear in the courtroom.

The trial will resume on Wednesday and is set down for three weeks.