Key events in the Jill Dando murder case

(PA)

Barry George always maintained he did not kill Jill Dando. His legal battle to try to clear his name has been one of the longest in recent criminal history:

* 2 April 1999 - Jill Dando, 37-year-old television presenter, is shot dead with a single bullet to the head on the steps of her home in Fulham, south west London.

* 25 May 2000 - Police arrest Barry George, also known as Barry Bulsara, following surveillance on him.

* 2 July 2001 - A jury finds George guilty of murder on a 10-1 majority. He is later sentenced to life imprisonment.

* 29 July 2002 - George loses an appeal against his conviction at the Court of Appeal in London. Three judges reject his claim that his conviction was "unsafe".

* 16 December - The House of Lords refuses permission for George to mount a further challenge to his conviction.

* 25 March 2006 - It emerges that lawyers for George have submitted new evidence to the Criminal Cases Review Commission (CCRC) which they believe undermines the safety of his conviction.

* 20 June 2007 - The Criminal Cases Review Commission refers the conviction to the Court of Appeal.

* 29 October - The foreman of the jury that convicted George in 2001 tells a BBC documentary that George might have been found not guilty if crucial evidence linked to firearms residue found in his pocket was presented differently.

* 5 November - George begins second appeal against conviction at the Court of Appeal.

* 15 November - George's appeal is upheld and a retrial ordered after scientists say a particle of firearms discharge residue (FDR) found in George's pocket is too small to say where it came from.

* 9 June 2008 - Retrial begins at the Old Bailey with the judge ruling out the inclusion of the FDR evidence.

* 1 August - George cleared of Dando's murder.