2:48pm Saturday 13th October 2007
By Sally Henfield
A JURY will be allowed to directly question a man accused of killing his wife and dumping her body in a lake when he goes on trial next week.
Former Blackburn council tree surgeon Robert Lund faces a five-day trial at the Cour d'Assises in Albi, France, after spending three years on remand in the town's prison.
The 55-year-old is accused of murdering his second wife Evelyn, 52.
Evelyn began a relationship with Lund just a few months after her first husband Arthur Taylor, a Burnley building society manager, died of cancer in 1991.
The couple left their home in Winter Hill, Darwen, in 1997 to start a new life in La Veaute in the south of France. Evelyn disappeared after visiting friends on December 29, 1999.
Her body was discovered in 2001 on the back seat of her Toyota Landcruiser, submerged in the Lac de la Bancalie, when a drought caused water levels to fall and the vehicle was spotted by a horserider.
The families of both Lund and Evelyn have waited almost seven years to find out the truth.
The French legal system differs to the English system in several ways. Trials at the Cour D'Assises are given a set amount of days in which to conclude. Sometimes this means that the court can sit through until around 9pm.
Once a jury has retired it cannot go home until a verdict is delivered.
Sentencing is immediate, unlike in England where the judge will adjourn the case to read the pre-sentencing reports. In France, this will have been done beforehand.
Lund will be defended by a barrister from a legal firm in Albi.
Lund will have met the main judge M. Richiardi, the Président of the Cour d'Assises, five days prior to the trial for an interview about his character and background.
The Président will co-ordinate the trial, which is due to begin on Monday, and will start by questioning Lund in the witness box. A cross examination of Lund will follow, before witnesses and experts give their evidence.
Unlike in an English court, the nine jurors can ask questions throughout the trial. Final speeches are made and the jury then retires.
If Lund is found guilty he may have to pay civil compensation to Evelyn's family.
If he is found innocent he can apply for compensation for his time spent in jail.
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