With the opening statements expected Wednesday in the trial of accused Boston Marathon Bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, the federal judge in the case heard controversial motions from the defense and the government which reveal the strategic subplots that will factor in the courtroom proceedings to come.
Government lawyers asked Judge George O'Toole to bar the defense from arguing that Tsarnaev’s older brother Tamerlan had undue influence over him. Defense lawyers used terms like “domination by” and “submissiveness to” Tamerlan to describe a relationship based as much on fear as admiration.
The government countered that this trial is not about the deceased older brother, who died after he was run over during the Watertown shootout with police.
Meanwhile, the defense motioned to have the boat in which Tsarnaev was hiding in Watertown when he was apprehended either to be brought to court, or have the jury visit the warehouse where it’s housed.
Tsarnaev allegedly scribbled a dying confession in the boat, which the defense likened to a crypt. Displaying the boat in its entirety would show Tsarnaev’s state of mind as he hid out, argued the defense team.
The government objected, saying photos or panels cut from the walls of the boat would suffice. They accused the defense of using the bloodied boat as a symbol to drum up sympathy for the defendant.
In related activity, the defense team for the fourth time filed a motion to move the trial outside of Boston.
Judge George O’Toole has rejected three similar motions. As a result, the consensus among trial watchers is that this fourth request is also facing rejection.
The defense team looked at 75 provisionally qualified jurors facing peremptory challenges and concluded that the bombings, the Watertown police shootout, the overall manhunt, and the shelter-in-place directive impacted 56 percent of the group -- either directly or indirectly.
Moreover, 23 of the men and women in semi-final jury pool indicated in their questionnaires that they believe Tsarnaev is guilty.
One of the jurors deemed eligible—according to the defense—even stated that he would not be able to set aside this opinion during the trial.
The defense also complained that people of color were not well represented in the provisionally qualified jury pool.
The government pushed back and described the defense claims as "fundamentally inaccurate."
Tuesday the jury selection process is expected to end with 75 jurors whittled down to 12 with 6 alternates.
