[Baldwin:] The courtroom, the stage for the murder trial of George Zimmerman, it's in the dark today. It's a holiday. But already the state's remaining witnesses are in the spotlight. You have Trayvon Martin's family, who've been sitting there in the courtroom. They take possibly the stand tomorrow, along with the medical examiner who performed the autopsy on Trayvon Martin himself. To talk about this, what we can expect tomorrow, huge day for the state. You have Tanya Miller, defense attorney and former prosecutor, and Michael Grieco, criminal defense attorney in Miami. So welcome to both of you.
[Tanya Miller, Defense Attorney And Former Prosecutor:] Thank you.
[Baldwin:] And, Tanya, let me just begin with you. You and I sat here yesterday and we were watching a lot of this.
[Miller:] Yes, we did. Yes, we did.
[Baldwin:] Tomorrow's a huge day
[Miller:] Absolutely.
[Baldwin:] Because we know the state will be resting.
[Miller:] Yes.
[Baldwin:] And we're guessing, we don't have the witness list, we're guessing possibly Sybrina Fulton, Trayvon Martin's mother, takes the stand. What how does the state handle this so this is a home run for them?
[Miller:] Well, the state, at this point, is going to do what they really missed an opportunity to do with Rachel Jeantel, and that's humanize Trayvon Martin. We are going to hear from his mother. We expect heart-wrenching, emotional testimony from his mother that's going to really bring that back in the forefront of this jury. Remind them that this case is about the loss of a child who was on his way home from the 7-Eleven unarmed.
[Baldwin:] And, Michael, as you have this grieving mother on the stand, I'm sure a very poignant witness indeed, how do you, if you're the defense attorney, how do you cross-examine someone like that?
[Michael Grieco, Criminal Defense Attorney:] You have to do it very delicately. Good morning to both of you.
[Miller:] Good morning.
[Grieco:] It's very tough. When you're dealing with grieving families or when you're dealing with children or any type of sensitive witness, you have to really try to empathize with what's going on and you need to appreciate that, yes, somebody died here. There is a tragedy. But you need to make sure that you are able to point out delicately that the person that's testifying does have an interest in this, that they do have a motivation to lie. You have to be able to attack their credibility without looking like you're attacking because the prosecution is very dependent upon these witnesses to bring in the emotion that's required in order for them to get to a second degree murder conviction.
[Baldwin:] Let me stay with you, Michael, because we've been watching this trial play out the last two different two weeks. These are supposed to be state witnesses. Some of them, at the end of the day, sort of appeared defense witnesses sort of depending on your perspective. Let me just put you on the hot seat and ask you, what do you think the biggest mistake or the biggest miss has been so far, either for the prosecution or the defense?
[Grieco:] Well, listen, trial is like a game of chess, you really don't know who's winning or losing. You know, it's what the jurors are seeing. I think that Miss Jeantel's testimony really hurt the prosecution. And if they had known in advance that that was going to be pretty damning testimony for them, they shouldn't have started so early on with that.
[Baldwin:] Why do you think that because others say she was real, she was authentic, it resonated with the jurors?
[Grieco:] No, I think that she got caught up in statements in conflicting statements on both sides of it. The defense did a pretty good job of rattling her, making her seem not credible. I disagree with that. I think just because people are claiming that she was real or that she showed raw emotion, I think they were able to make their points regarding her motivation as well regarding as opposed to I'm sorry, her motivation regarding wanting Trayvon's killer convicted. She had an interest in this.
[Baldwin:] Do you agree?
[Miller:] I don't agree.
[Baldwin:] You're making eyes.
[Miller:] I don't agree. I think the biggest mistake, if there's one to be made by the prosecution in this case, was not objecting to the testimony of Detective Serino where he said he believed George Zimmerman's version of events. I just think that was devastating testimony for the prosecution. The jury should not have ever heard anything like that. And I think he was asleep at the wheel. He woke up. He tried to correct it the next day, but I think that's something he should have stopped right then and there.
[Baldwin:] Because objections, sort of like I liken this to basketball at the end of the game
[Miller:] That's right.
[Baldwin:] The game's closely tied. You want to foul your guy, right, to slow down the momentum.
[Miller:] Absolutely.
[Baldwin:] It's the same thing in the courtroom.
[Miller:] Absolutely. And I think he could have made better uses of his objection during that testimony. And, you know, Rachel Jeantel, I completely disagree. I think that, you know, her demeanor on the stand, yes, was probably different than what some of the other witnesses presented. Some of the more professional, more polished witnesses. But at the end of the day, it's not about who talks the smoothest, who looks the prettiest. At the end of the day, it's whether or not you believe that person is telling you the truth.
[Baldwin:] Tanya Miller, thank you. Come back next hour.
[Miller:] Absolutely.
[Baldwin:] I have more questions for you. Michael Grieco, thank you to you as well.
[Grieco:] Thank you.
[Baldwin:] Let me move on because coming up next here, we're going to take you live to Prescott, Arizona, where on this Fourth of July a memorial service is underway for those 19 firefighters, sons and husbands and fathers lost their lives battling the wildfires over the weekend. That's next.