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CNN Live Today

Kennedy Cousin Skakel's Murder Trial Continues

Aired May 13, 2002 - 13:21   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
BILL HEMMER, CNN ANCHOR: For more now, let's listen inside to what's happening inside.

Back with our legal analyst, Jeffrey Toobin, on a Monday, also in Norwalk.

I hope you and Deborah are keeping dry up there, because it's been raining all day.

JEFFREY TOOBIN, CNN LEGAL ANALYST: Trying to keep warm.

HEMMER: OK, that too. Good afternoon, Jeff, how are you?

TOOBIN: Hi, Bill.

HEMMER: Listen, Deborah just gave us the lowdown. What do you make of all this that is happening right now surrounding Ken Littleton, a very interesting figure in how he came involved in this in the first place?

TOOBIN: What began today was defense attorney Mickey Sherman's cross-examination of Littleton. And the theme of his cross- examination, so far, has been that Littleton had this obsession with the Kennedys, and he recounted a couple of really bizarre incidents. First, he said, that at one point Littleton was injected with cocaine, and he claimed that the Skakel-Kennedys tried to inject bad cocaine and make his heart stop. That was one claim.

Another even more bizarre incident came in 1982 when he was arrested for drunk and disorderly in Florida, and when he was arrested he said, his name was Kenny Kennedy. Which is really sort of hard to imagine what that was.

HEMMER: Indeed.

TOOBIN: And he explained, yes, why did he say that? And he said, because JFK is my hero. It didn't make much sense at all, I have to say.

HEMMER: You know, the defense attorney ...

TOOBIN: But it is also -- I'm sorry, go ahead.

HEMMER: Yeah, the defense attorneys though have been trying to point out that they've got the wrong guy, essentially. That Michael Skakel is not responsible. Have they been effective in anyway in shifting the potential for who may have killed Martha Moxley away from Michael?

TOOBIN: Well I think that's the key here, Bill. Because I think Mickey Sherman certainly succeeded in showing that Ken Littleton is engaged in bizarre behavior. But he didn't seem to make much progress in showing that Littleton might, himself, be the killer. And I think, perhaps, the Prosecution's best argument is sort of a negative argument coming out of all this is that if Ken Littleton has an alibi -- if Tommy Skakel has an alibi -- if not them, who did it? Michael Skakel becomes the obvious possibility.

That's a tough argument to make when the standard is proof beyond a reasonable doubt. But I think, you're right, that it's one thing to say that Ken Littleton is an eccentric person -- and I don't think there is any doubt about that. It's another thing to prove that he committed this murder.

HEMMER: Yeah, we're looking into the life of a 15-year-old woman from 26 years ago, when we talk about the diaries of Martha Moxley. They've been out for a couple of days, obviously, but has there been anything revealed inside those diaries that is taking this case in one direction or another, Jeff?

TOOBIN: You know, the diaries, as I read them, read very poignantly like a fairly average 15-year-old girl's diaries. She was obviously being courted by Tommy Skakel, it does appear that Michael Skakel was also interested in her. At one point, she said she thought Michael Skakel was acting like an ass, which is hardly a motive for murder, one would think. But it does indicate that there was some relationship between them, and that is important to the Prosecution saying that Michael Skakel had a motive to commit this crime.

HEMMER: Thank you, Jeff, we'll talk again tomorrow.

Jeffrey Toobin, along with Deborah Feyerick, keeping warm and dry there in Norwalk, Connecticut. Thank you much.

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