One was described by prosecutor Mr. Barrie Meade as a cold-hearted killer, frightening in the way he befriended Wilbur Doe while plotting to murder him in the most brutal fashion possible.

Another portrait was painted by defence lawyer Mr. Tim Marshall. He pictured Watson as a victim of Police cruelty and carelessness, and of his own misguided loyalty to Ricky Smith -- "the real murderer''.

The two versions came as the lawyers summed up their cases after almost a month of evidence.

Watson, 32, a construction site foreman and martial arts fan, denies the premeditated murder of Doe, assistant manager of Bermuda Pharmacy in Hamilton.

He admits going to Doe's home but says he tried to stop Smith carrying out the attack.

Doe, 68, was beaten about the head with a wrench at around 1.30 a.m. on December 9, 1988, and died after nine months in a coma.

Quoting the Bible and clutching the wrench used in the attack, Mr. Meade outlined the Crown's case that Watson murdered Doe "beyond a shadow of a doubt''.

Watson had the opportunity to "kill two birds with one stone'' when he got to know Doe at the construction site, Mr. Meade said. He wanted Doe's money, and he saw Doe as an "irritant'' to his work.

He said Watson's eventual confession to top detectives was an attempt to "go out in style''.

And he scorned the idea that Watson confessed to protect Ricky Smith, with whom he had a "tenuous'' relationship.

He asked the jury: "Have you ever heard of a man who freely admitted to administering a brutal beating of that nature, which must put him in line for a serious penalty, if he didn't do it?'' The murder was premeditated because of Watson's confession statement about thinking of pushing Doe down an elevator shaft, said Mr. Meade. Added to this was the weapon used, the fact that it was used several times, and the fact that Watson did not use a mask although he knew Doe would recognise him.

However, the jury might decide Watson was just guilty of simple murder, he said. This could be because Watson had "common purpose'' with Smith when the two men broke into Doe's home.

"This is where his whole case falls around his ears,'' Mr. Meade said. "Even if you believe every single word he uttered from that box, if he went with Ricky Smith to that house so that Ricky Smith could actually rob Wilbur Doe and Ricky Smith did break in and beat up Mr. Doe in order to rob him while he was there, Milton Watson is as guilty as Ricky Smith would be of the simple murder of Wilbur Doe.'' That was "nonsense'', Mr. Marshall said in his speech. Watson was not guilty of premeditated murder or such alternative charges, he said.

"He can't be held responsible for Smith's actions. He was dissuading his friend from doing stupidness that night.'' He said Watson's final statement was not a confession but a "staged event'', made up as he went along. It was not an "outpouring of conscience'' but a statement made to avoid blaming Ricky Smith, who was a "brother'' to him.

It was made after a week in which Watson had been arrested twice and had his home searched three times. During his 113 hours in Police custody he had been "denied all the basic human needs''.

Police had "diddley squat'' in terms of evidence, and had to rely on getting a suspect to talk, said Mr. Marshall. "They attempted to achieve that by emotionally and physically abusing Mr. Watson.

"I don't think that they cared whether they got Ricky Smith to take responsibility or whether they got Milton Watson, as long as they got one of them.'' Watson was so fed up he took responsibility, said Mr. Marshall. By their "cold and callous'' approach, Police got an innocent man on trial and gave the real murderer a seven-year sentence for robbery.

Mr. Marshall reminded the jury of Smith's appearance in the witness box, when he said he could not remember the events of the night in question.

He said Smith had a volatile temper and respected nobody. He was a cocaine user and had admitted he could be violent.

Watson's future had been in limbo since 1988, he said. "This man, while he may have been stupid, he may have been a smart alec in 1988, and while he may have been wrong to let Ricky Smith influence him, that does not mean he can be found guilty.'' The case continues today with summing-up by the judge, Chief Justice the Hon.

Sir James Astwood.