SAN ANTONIO, Texas -- Defense lawyers in the trial of 11 Branch Davidians finished their case Thursday, with some lawyers saying the outcome could turn on the judge's instructions to the jury.
Closing arguments are set for Tuesday in the conspiracy trial, after lawyers and Judge Walter Smith agree on a set of legal instructions for jurors as they weigh evidence against the defendants. Those instructions, says defense attorney Jeff Kearney, "will be critical."
Key points: how the judge defines "conspiracy" and whether he allows a legal explanation of self-defense.
Four agents of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and six Davidians were killed in a Feb. 28 gun battle with cult leader David Koresh and his followers. The 11 Davidians on trial for murder and murder conspiracy face up to life in prison if convicted.
"I'm fairly confident the defense has done a reasonable job," says Australian Ronald Craddock, 55, whose son, Graeme Craddock, is a defendant. "I'd be surprised if a jury came to the conclusion that it was possible to sustain a case against the defendants."
Defense lawyers put on only 11 witnesses over a day and a half. None of the defendants testified.
"Everybody agonized over that decision," says Kearney. Adds Douglas Tinker, another defense attorney: "The clients are human beings. They're not practiced witnesses like law enforcement people are."
Some defense lawyers say privately two of their witnesses - a television reporter and lawyer Jack Zimmermann, who visited the compound and once represented one of the cultists - may have hurt the case with testimony. To some, Zimmermann appeared to be more of a spokesman for the Davidians; the TV reporter was combative and offered little support for defense theories.
By contrast, prosecutors put on 124 witnesses, displayed mountains of high-powered weapons in the courtroom, and showed jurors films of both the shootout between Davidians and federal agents and the fire that burned the compound to the ground last April 19.
Many defense lawyers felt that the defense should have rested early Wednesday, after a dramatic 911 tape showed Davidians panicking during the gun fight and begging for police to get agents away from their home. But in the end, a few lawyers continued with a series of minor witnesses.
Catherine Matteson, a 78-year-old Davidian who left the compound early on in the 51-day standoff with agents, has been attending the trial since it began: "I'm not afraid at all for them. I figure whatever happens, God is in charge."
