Prosecutors have rested their case against Winter Hill gang leader James “Whitey” Bulger and now the case may very well come down to witness credibility. The final witness was called by the prosecution last Friday in the ongoing 32 count racketeering trial including 19 murder charges against Bulger and now its the defense teams turn. Sixty Three witnesses were brought to the stand against Bulger often with graphic testimony of drug dealings, murder, and corrupt FBI agents. The prosecution has painted Bulger as a hands on killer and believe they have proven it through corroborating accounts from the long line of witnesses. But the credibility of key witnesses Kevin Weeks and Stephen Flemmi will be questioned by the defense as both have admitted to lying in the past and had some inconsistencies in their stories.
Most experts agree that the prosecutions case against Bulger will be a tough one t beat and they are winning the case to this point but the battle is not over. The defense will argue that suspect key witnesses have lied in the past are again lying now in exchange for lighter senetences and sweatheart deals with the government. Bulger’s attornies have yet to agrue the allegations that their client was involved in as many as 17 murders of men but they maintain that he never killed women or was ever an FBI informant. Defense is set to begin calling as many as 15 witnesses of their own today and are expected to move through their witness list much quicker then the prosecution did. The big question for most is will Bulger take the stand and testify in his own defense and only time will tell.
