A detective defended his note-taking in the Lagoon Park murder trial by telling a lawyer that if he wanted to, he could have written that her client had killed the man - but did not.

Det. Con. Ronald Green was resolute under a full day of cross-examination by defence lawyer Liz Christopher that notes he wrote before taking a statement from a murder accused, James (Spooks) Dill, were proper.

Under intense questioning by Ms Christopher, representing Dill, Det. Con. Green never wavered that the handwritten notes on non-standard green stenographer's notepad paper could be used instead of the marked Bermuda Police Service notepads officers should use during investigations.

Dill, of no fixed abode, along with co-accused Robert Blair Tucker, of Pembroke, and Terranz Sidney (Monster) Smith of Sandys, deny killing mysterious American Stanley Lee on July 28, 2001 in what prosecutors believe was a drug deal gone bad.

Explaining that he had a specific role in the investigation, Det. Con. Green said he entered an interview room around noon on Dill's first full day in Police custody and found him to be talkative.

"I said very little to the defendant. If anything at all. He was doing all the talking!" the 24-year veteran said. "I informed him that we were investigating a body found at Lagoon Park. I didn't ask him any questions."

To which Ms Christopher, adopting an incredulous tone, said: "You mean he just started talking? Is that what you're saying?"

"Yes," Det. Con. Green replied. "I was told to speak to him on his involvement - if any - on connection with the death of Sean Russells."

Det. Con. Green drew a searing response from Ms Christopher during an exchange on whether his note was a true record of what was said during that interview.

"Wouldn't it be correct to say that you were only writing what you wanted to write down when you were taking those notes?" Ms Christopher asked, during a particularly strident stretch of questioning.

"I took those notes to the best of my ability," he said. "No! If I wrote what I wanted to write, I would have said Mr. Dill killed the man. But I didn't!"

With that, Ms Christopher asked that Mrs. Justice Norma Wade Miller admonish the detective because of the "inappropriate" comment before the jury.

And when the judge did not, the lawyer promised to "revisit" the issue in the future.

Mrs. Justice Wade Miller - with a nod at Det. Con. Green - replied: "But that's in response to your question. None of us would be able to anticipate what the witness is going to say. Anyway, the witness has heard heard my comments."

Ms Christopher responded she was "overwhelmed" by the Det. Con. Green's answer.

Det. Con Green was forced to admit that Dill was never explicitly told that he was a suspect in the murder of Mr. Lee, and that he never asked Dill about drug importation.

But he forcefully denied a suggestion by Ms Christopher that the notes on stenographer's notepad paper was an attempt to circumvent the Judges' Rules, which are not law but directions for Police, published by the UK Home Office.

Under the Judges' Rules, The Royal Gazette understands, officers are instructed to use police notebooks - unless none are immediately available.

Prosecutors - led by Director of Public Prosecutions Kulandra Ratneser - claim relations between Mr. Lee and Tucker turned violent when it was discovered that a shipment of drugs - for which the American acted as facilitator - was found to be of low quality.

Police were shown the heavily decomposed body of Mr. Lee in the isolated park 13 days after he was allegedly killed. Smith contends he showed Police the body on condition of immunity.

The ten woman, two man jury watched the exchanges between the lawyer and the veteran narcotics officer, who on Thursday read in Dill's statement which points the finger at Tucker for the stabbing.

Dill told Police on August 13, 2001 that Tucker had claimed that the burly ex-con had "put his hands" on him and that he would have to "take him out".

Ms Christopher continues her cross examination of Det. Con. Green on Monday.