TT #202 · Parashas Shoftim · Fifth Aliyah · Passuk 19:04
And this is the matter of the killer who shall flee there and live: one who strikes his fellow without knowledge, and he was not an enemy to him from yesterday and the day before.
Torah Temimah points to Makkot 7b.
TT lemma: דְּבַר הָרֹצֵחַ.
English: ‘The matter of the killer’ – that the matter shall be clear.
Derash on the need for clarity (Bavli) — the case must be properly investigated.
The status of the killer as accidental must be established with clarity before the protection of the city is fully applied.