After he accidentally killed someone, a fugitive first had to “present his case in the hearing of the elders ” at the gate of the city of refuge to which he had fled.
كَمَا رَأَيْنَا ،‏ لَزِمَ أَنْ يَهْرُبَ ٱلْقَاتِلُ سَهْوًا إِلَى إِحْدَى مُدُنِ ٱلْمَلْجَإِ .‏