Jodi killer's appeal verdict due

10:37am Friday 16th May 2008

The teenager found guilty of killing schoolgirl Jodi Jones will discover if he has succeeded in his appeal to have his murder conviction overturned.

Luke Mitchell, 19, was convicted of the killing after the longest single-accused murder trial in Scots legal history.

Jodi, 14, was stripped, tied up and stabbed to death in woods near her home in Dalkeith, Midlothian, on June 30, 2003.

Mitchell, her boyfriend, was detained for life with a minimum of 20 years behind bars in February 2005.

The teenager has constantly claimed his innocence since he was found guilty of the murder - one of the most high-profile cases to come before a Scottish court in recent years.

On Friday he will find out if his appeal against conviction and sentence has been successful.

Mitchell was convicted at the High Court in Edinburgh after a trial based entirely on circumstantial evidence.

Three crucial areas of evidence, known as the "three keys" convinced the jury that he was responsible for the brutal killing of Jodi.

But when the case reached the Appeal Court in Edinburgh earlier this year, Mitchell's lawyers argued an "enduring sense of unease" surrounded the evidence used to convict.

During the wide-ranging appeal, prosecutors, police and the trial judge faced some degree of criticism from the defence, who claimed Mitchell was the victim of a miscarriage of justice.

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