Alison Morgan QC told the jury: “The prosecution claims that Julia must have seen her attacker, the defendant, waiting in the woods.
“He was in the same place he had been before. This time he was armed with a large and obvious metal railway jack.
“Julia runs to save herself, along the way. She was being chased by her attacker.
“She probably fell while running, which broke her left wrist.
“She was then subjected to what the pathologist who examined her body described as a ‘violent and prolonged blunt force trauma, particularly on the top and back of the head.’
The jury was shown a photo of police bodyguards arriving at the site of Julia James’ body.
Ms Morgan continued: “There was very little blood right next to Julia’s body. However, a little further away, long grass was pulled out and placed on what was then identified as a pool of blood. It seems that the grass was used to cover the blood in this area.
“It follows that Julia James must have bled at that time to lay blood on the ground before being moved to her final position. Given the serious nature of the severe head injuries, most of the head injuries must have been inflicted while she was facing the ground with her hood raised.
“If it were otherwise, dust particles would have been found in the area around the body, which it was not.”
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