The jury in the Jo Cox murder trial is expected to begin its deliberations on Wednesday morning.

Thomas Mair, the man accused of murdering the Labour MP, opted not to give evidence at his trial at the Old Bailey in London.

The judge, Mr Justice Wilkie, said he expected to finish his summing up on Wednesday when the jury would retire to consider its verdict.

Earlier, the jury was told that the murder in June had brought two extremes of humanity “face to face” after Mair allegedly shot and stabbed Cox in a brutal attack in her constituency. The court has also heard that Cox’s killing was politically motivated and cowardly.

“The sheer brutality of her murder and the utter cowardice of her murderer bring the two extremities of humanity face to face,” said prosecuting counsel, Richard Whittam QC.

In his closing speech, Whittam added that the attack had “brought out the best of the people who were with her” – the two members of staff and Birstall residents “from all walks of life” who tried to protect Cox.

As Cox’s family looked on in court eight, Whittam said that, despite being armed and having the “element of surprise”, Mair failed in his first attempt and came back to shoot and stab Cox again. “Perhaps he underestimated Jo Cox’s tenacity and courage,” said Whittam.

He concluded by telling the jury that all the evidence “compellingly establishes Thomas Mair was her murderer”.

The court was told that Mair had declined to appear as a witness in the trial.

In the defence closing speech, Simon Russell Flint QC said Cox had been brutally and callously murdered and her death had had a huge impact on hundreds, perhaps thousands of people, including her husband, parents and young children.

He said it was the jury’s duty to decide whether Mair was responsible beyond reasonable doubt. “It is you and you alone who have been charged with the responsibility in determining what are the true verdicts in each of the counts on the indictment.”

Earlier, a written statement from the MP Stephen Kinnock was read to the jury, in which he described how Cox had become a good family friend. “She was an incredibly well-liked and popular person and always found time for people despite her busy life,” the statement said.

Mair is accused of killing Cox on 16 June in Birstall, West Yorkshire, a market town in her Batley and Spen constituency. She was on her way to a meeting with voters, and had been scheduled to attend an event to raise support for the campaign for the UK to remain in the EU, a week before the referendum.

She was shot twice in the head and once in the chest, and stabbed 15 times. Mair, 53, an unemployed gardener from Birstall, is charged with her murder and the grievous bodily harm of Bernard Carter-Kenny, 77, who was stabbed in the stomach after coming to the MP’s aid.

Mair is also charged with possession of a firearm with intent to commit an offence, and possession of a dagger. The court has heard that the attack was captured on CCTV.

The court was told that Mair remained silent during three and a half hours of police interviews the day after Cox was killed. “He didn’t answer any questions, and simply remained silent,” said DC Roger Williams in a statement read to the jury.

Mair declined to enter pleas when he appeared at the Old Bailey for a preliminary hearing last month. As a result, not-guilty pleas were entered on his behalf.

The Old Bailey also heard from DS Andrew Cass, who was at Westminster magistrates court on 18 June, when Mair first appeared accused of Cox’s murder. He told jurors that when asked to confirm his name, Mair replied: “Death to traitors. Freedom for Britain.”

The officer said: “He was asked again and repeated the same words again.”

The case continues.