McKinnon's decision to let cameras into court room at this stage was sparked by an application by the CBC.

A newscamera was fixed on the face of Justice McKinnon as he reminded the media of the significance of what he called a unique experiment.

"It's important that we do it right and that we do it in the proper spirit and dignity that one expects from a court of criminal jurisdiction in Canada," he said.

McKinnon has permitted one video camera and one still camera into his court to provide images. A bank of audio recorders are plugged in just outside the room, and the audio is being fed live onto the Internet.

There are rules — none of the Korean defendants can be shown, nor can the jury. And it's only the closing arguments and Justice McKinnon's charge to the jury that electronic media can capture.

Defence lawyer Tim Russell, who represents the captain of the migrant ship, was the first to address the jury.

"The accused need not prove anything, and there is no compelling reason to accept the Crown's theory of this case as the only rational conclusion," he said.

Although McKinnon's decision is not binding on any other B.C. court, the Ministry of the Attorney General is now examining the province's approximately 300 courtrooms to see how they can be renovated to accommodate electronic media.

Mayland McKim, president of the B.C. Branch of the Canadian Bar Association, believes the experiment will soon spread.

"This will be the first case in which someone can argue 'Look, it's been done in British Columbia, no calamity has befallen the British Columbia justice system, so let's do it here in Saskatchewan, or Manitoba or New Brunswick.'"

Closing arguments in this precendent setting trial will continue into next week.