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American Morning

Sentencing Day For Kennedy Cousin Michael Skakel

Aired August 29, 2002 - 08:49   ET

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

DARYN KAGAN, CNN ANCHOR: It is sentencing day for Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel. A judge in Connecticut rejected his attorney's request for a new trial. Skakel was convicted in June of killing Martha Moxley in 1975, when both of them were 15 years old. Dorothy Moxley expressed some sympathy for Skakel's family, but she said she hopes he's put away for a long time.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

DORTHY MOXLEY, MARTHA'S MOTHER: I know Michael has this darling little boy, and I know it's wonderful for fathers to be with their children, but I'm never going to be with my daughter. And so I think it's only right that he go to jail, too, and be serve a long sentence.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

KAGAN: And now from Norwalk, Connecticut to tell us what we can expect in court today, Vinny Politan. He's been covering the case for Court TV.

Vinny, good morning.

First of all, just about housekeeping items for the judge to say sorry, you know, we're not going to give you a new trial, and we're not going to accept this evidence of the drawing that surfaced in the last few days.

VINNY POLITAN, COURT TV CORRESPONDENT: Yes, that's what happened yesterday. They denied all the motions, six motions by the defense, trying to get a new trial, trying to get the verdict thrown out, and the judge denied all of them, and that's pretty much what he's been doing throughout this trial. Any time the defense makes a motion or asks for something, it pretty much gets denied.

KAGAN: Yesterday was the Moxley family's turn to speak out about what impact this murder has had on their family, and the long wait of all these years of seeing justice to come their way.

POLITAN: Yes, it was very powerful, and Dorothy Moxley getting up there and talking about 27 years of torment, and the theme that she used in her statement was talking about tears, all the different type of tears, the tears that came to her eyes when she thinks about that night that her daughter was murdered and how frightened she must have been, and how painful it all was, and the tears that came to her eyes when the verdict finally came down, and Michael Skakel was found guilty of murdering Martha.

KAGAN: And what was Michael Skakel's reaction in the courtroom as the Moxleys were talking?

POLITAN: It was interesting, because a lot of times we see lots of cases on Court TV, where sometimes the victim, or the defendant is looking down and won't make that eye contact and doesn't want to acknowledge the people that are speaking, the victim's family. But in this case, Michael Skakel was looking directly at everyone as they spoke, which was sort of interesting, and the look on his face was a look of sincerity, and a look of pain as well.

So it was different than your normal sentencing day in court, when a lot of times you don't have that contact, the eye contact between defendant and victim.

KAGAN: And in this case, all eyes will be on Michael Skakel as he has his say. Vinny, what could he possibly say? This is a man who still insists he didn't do this. He can't get up there and say he's sorry. He can sorry maybe he's sorry it happened, but he can't say he's sorry he did it, if indeed he intends to appeal.

POLITAN: Yes, if he wants to appeal, he can not make any admissions, because as we hear on TV all the time, anything you say can and will be used against you, because what the defense wants to do is get a new trial. So if he admits anything in court today, that could be used in new trial if he was to win an appeal. So he's got to very careful about what he has to say. He has got to talk about himself, about his life. He's got to talk about the victim, and express some sorrow, to humanize himself, and express that sorrow to the Moxley's but by the same token not admit anything.

KAGAN: But, again, he can't go in there and start denying it, and trying the facts of the case, because that might irk the judge a little bit.

KAGAN: And when do you expect the judge who hand down the sentence? I think we'll hear today, probably early afternoon, perhaps after lunch, because we still have to see a few people to testify, take the stand for the defense, including Michael Skakel this morning. Then there will be some legal argument. And I expect probably early this afternoon, we should find out what the rest of Michael Skakel's life is going to be like.

All right, we will be tracking it. Vinny Politan in Norwalk, Connecticut. Rainy there, as it is here in New York City. We'll let you go in and get out of the rain.

Thank you so much, Vinny.

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