Judge alone could decide guilt at Wangaratta murder trial of Phillip Dunn

Defence barrister Diana Price told the Supreme Court on Monday she would consider making an application for a judge-alone trial during conversations with her client in the coming weeks.

Dunn, 60, and Darcy McNamara, 44, have been accused of killing Wangaratta man Nathan Day in July 2018.

Justice Michael Croucher said a judge-alone trial could be held in Wangaratta, rather than Shepparton or Melbourne, because there was no need to find jury members not exposed to publicity of the case.

"It's easier to get up a trial like that because you don't have to have a concern about juries and the need for social distancing in quite the same way," he said.

"There's no doubt that could get on much quicker than a jury trial.

"It's entirely a matter in the hands of the accused if he feels he wants to make an application."

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A decision on applying for a judge-alone trial will be made when the case returns to court in September.

"It's something Mr Dunn and I have discussed from time to time and it might now be that now we're in stage four we can return to that conversation in greater depth," Ms Price said.

Justice Croucher also revealed country courthouses such as Wodonga, Shepparton, Geelong and Ballarat could host socially-distanced jury trials sooner than in Melbourne.

"I've been involved in a project to see whether country courts might be altered so as to have jury trials in a socially-distanced fashion, in the same way we tried to organise the same thing here (in Melbourne), which was going to happen from July 20 until things went pear-shaped again," he said.

"It is certain that Wangaratta won't be chosen as a jury trial venue in the early restart period ... but I think far more likely Shepparton than Wodonga in the early stages."

He said the decision was one of the "ifs and buts" of court cases during the pandemic.

"When that would be depends on what happens with the restrictions that we're given or not," Justice Croucher said.

If Dunn decides on a jury trial, it could be held in Shepparton later this year.