Date set for Jill Meagher murder trial THE man accused of killing and raping former ABC staffer Jill Meagher will stand trial just a week after the first anniversary of her death. Adrian Ernest Bayley, 41, today appeared by videolink for the first mention of his case in the Victorian Supreme Court. Earlier this month a magistrate committed Bayley to stand trial after he pleaded guilty to one count of raping Meagher, but not guilty to murder and two other rape charges. The Melbourne Magistrates Court heard Bayley had dragged Meagher into a laneway just a few minutes after she left the Brunswick bar where she had been drinking with colleagues at 1.30am on Saturday 22 September last year. He allegedly raped and strangled the 29-year old before going home to fetch his car, returning to place her body in the boot. Police found Meagher's body in a shallow grave near Gisborne South in the early hours of September 28, after hours of questioning Bayley. Supreme Court judge Geoffrey Nettle is expected to hear the case before a jury, and has set a trial start date of 30 September. The trial is expected to run for between two and three weeks, with up to 25 witnesses.