KEY POINTS:
The age-old custom of shooting the messenger who bears bad news is still alive and well judging by Solicitor-General David Collins' statement of his reasons on the retrial of David Bain.
The decision to outline his position was an unusual step, he said, not just because of the public interest in the case but also "because of the considerable degree of misreporting of information".
Thus Mr Collins, as many have done before him, fixed the media firmly in his sights. Specifically, he was concerned to clarify the point that the Privy Council did not acquit Mr Bain.
The trouble is, as far as can be determined, no media outlet ever reported that the Privy Council had done so. On the contrary, the media were punctilious in their accuracy on this point.
For instance, on the day the story broke, the Herald, in its front-page report, gave an even fuller and more accurate account of the Privy Council's position than Mr Collins included in his statement.
We reported - accurately - that the Law Lords had quashed the convictions and ordered a retrial. We emphasised - again accurately - their statement that it was up to a jury to decide whether Bain was guilty or not and nothing in the Privy Council ruling should influence that decision.
We also reported - once more accurately - that they said it was up to the Crown to decide whether a retrial was in the public interest.
There is no room for misunderstanding here.
Mr Collins' statement, of course, was not just concerned with the past. He was also threatening contempt of court proceedings against anyone who might try to improperly influence proceedings in the future.
That is appropriate, but this legitimate warning would have been so much more effective if he had kept his powder dry and used it with a little more discernment.
