Overview

• Four men are on trial at Liverpool Crown Court for the murder of Jacqueline Rutter, with a fifth defendant charged with assisting an offender, and all deny the allegations as the case is scheduled to run six to eight weeks before Mr Justice Goose.
• The prosecution told jurors the two men who approached the door were James Byrne and Preston Connolly, with Connolly said to have flown to Istanbul in December 2023 and set to be tried separately.
• Jurors were told three men arrived in a stolen black Vauxhall Insignia, two went to the front door, Rutter was shot twice, and the car was later found ablaze within minutes of the attack.
• Prosecutors allege Barrie Glynn drove the Insignia, Simon Allen set it on fire, and Allen and David Harrison provided critical assistance to the shooters as part of the JJ Line drugs operation.
• The firearm was described as a Grand Power self-loading pistol or similar, and the jury will see CCTV, vehicle, forensic and witness evidence during the trial.