Odio and the Dolt Defense

As jury selection begins Monday, defense attorneys will do their best to pack the jury box with as many potential holdouts as possible. The highest priority for defense attorneys will be selecting older Cubans, who will see themselves reflected in Odio. Blacks may also be desirable, as defense attorneys could try to play to their fears of police persecution.

Perhaps the most anticipated moment of the trial will be when Surana takes the stand. He is expected to undergo several days of scathing cross-examination by defense attorneys. Leading the attack will be Shohat, an attorney known for his foul temper and ill disposition; his face perpetually pinched in a scowl. Shohat practices what some courtroom observers have dubbed "nasty law," a process whereby prosecution witnesses are belittled and their credibility assailed in a humiliating manner. Bierman defends his partner: "We try our cases hard," he says, "and we certainly vigorously point out things we think are wrong."

In order for Odio's defense strategy to work, Surana, and to a lesser extent Bryars, must be eviscerated before the jury. It will be blood sport.

The two prosecutors handling the case -- Mary Butler and Larry LaVecchio -- will rely on Odio's own words to convict him. Even defense sources who have heard the tapes of Odio conspiring with Surana to solicit bribes admit that the impact could be devastating. The one bright spot for Odio, according to several sources, is that he comes across as a dimwitted naif who often has to have matters explained to him several times before he understands.

The "dolt defense" holds that Odio is too stupid to have understood what he was doing was wrong. Who knows, for Odio it may be the most believable defense of all.