Defense strategy

August 11, 1995

From Correspondent Tony Clark

OKLAHOMA CITY (CNN) -- The trial for accused bombers Timothy McVeigh and Terry Nichols is still months away, but already their attorneys are providing a preview of the courtroom fireworks that may be ahead.

With giant posters and a showman's flair, attorney Michael Tigar laid out the linchpin for his upcoming defense of bombing suspect Terry Nichols. He says, "First, the indictment makes it clear, Terry Nichols wasn't there."

The day before the bombing, when prosecutors say the fertilizer and fuel oil were mixed at this state park, Tigar says Nichols was at an auction in Fort Riley, Kansas. And on April 19th, when the Murrah building was bombed, Tigar says Nichols was at home in Kansas.

Tigar is trying to distance Nichols from McVeigh and the bombing. He says, "Well I think it's certainly an appropriate strategy to take and I think he may be seeking to capitalize on the fact that, of the two defendants, his is the lesser known in a sense."

For Timothy McVeigh, the man the government says detonated the bomb, attorney Stephen Jones is taking a different approach by suggesting other possible bombers. Jones says, "I don't think anyone is comfortable with the idea that two army buddies who have no training, experience, education in this type of thing could have pulled this off."

According to Jones, an unidentified leg found in the rubble of the Murrah Building could have belonged to the bomber. Another Jones theory involves information from a government source about a plot by radicals to blow up government buildings. "It could be an entirely different conspiracy than the one here. It could be the same conspiracy that bombed the Oklahoma City Federal Building," Jones says. This is all designed to raise doubts about McVeigh's involvement.

Law Professor Arthur LeFrancois says, "The advantage to the approach is, the more theories you have, the more doubts you attempt to plant. Perhaps the more likely it is that a jury will in fact find some problem with the government's case."

The first high stakes battle, though, for both lawyers, will be over the location of the trial. Jones thinks his client will find justice some place else. "If the trial is in Oklahoma City, it won't be fair; won't be perceived as fair. The result will be fore-ordained. My client will be convicted and given the death penalty."

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Defense strategy

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