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How much doubt is reasonable doubt in the Skakel case?

By Roger Cossack
CNN Legal Analyst

ALSO • Witness in Skakel case says he used heroin Monday  DOCUMENTS • Application for Skakel arrest warrant (FindLaw) (PDF) • Decision to try Michael Skakel as an adult - January 31, 2001(FindLaw)(PDF format) Documents in PDF format require Adobe Acrobat Reader for viewing.  COURTSIDE CNN Legal Analyst Roger Cossack takes a look at legal issues in the news Previous Columns

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(CNN) -- The Skakel murder case has been working its way through the courts for some time now. Michael Skakel, a nephew of Ethel Kennedy, widow of Robert F. Kennedy, is charged with killing Martha Moxley more than 25 years ago, when they were both 15 and neighbors in a gated community in Greenwich, Connecticut.

But at a probable cause hearing April 18 in nearby Stamford to determine whether enough evidence exists against Skakel to bring him to trial, the prosecution suffered a serious setback.

Gregory Coleman, who was a student at a Maine treatment center with Skakel when they were younger, admitted he was using heroin when he earlier told a grand jury that Skakel confessed to him that he had killed Moxley.

Coleman further admitted that he had used heroin and crack cocaine before a TV interview in which he claimed that Skakel said to him, "I'm going to get away with murder, I'm a Kennedy."

This is not the only witness with whom the prosecution has potential problems. John Higgins, a student with Skakel at the Elan School, the same substance abuse treatment center in Maine, testified to the grand jury that Skakel confessed to him 20 years ago in a tearful conversation.

But Higgins said he lied to investigators when he was first questioned about the confession, admitting he had inquired about the $50,000 reward offered in the case. Two other Elan students testified for the defense that they never heard Skakel confess, further casting doubt on the testimonies of Coleman and Higgins.

A probable cause hearing requires that the prosecution produce very little evidence to be successful. It is a hearing to ensure enough evidence exists against the defendant for a trial to take place. Its original purpose was to make sure the government was not prosecuting or harassing a citizen for any reason other than that evidence exists showing that a defendant may be guilty.

At a trial, however, the prosecution must prove their case beyond a reasonable doubt. Reasonable doubt is the keystone of the criminal justice system.

So what is this reasonable doubt? How does a juror decide when the amount of evidence presented by the prosecution reaches that magical point when reasonable doubt is reached? And the answer is ... I don't know.

As you probably have figured out by now the concept of reasonable doubt is a subjective one, a personal decision to be made by each individual who serves on jury. And it's better that way.

If it were any other way, the jury would be deciding the guilt or innocence of the accused not by giving their individual conclusion, but by referring to some kind of chart that tries to define what reasonable doubt is.

The ideal jury should be made up of disparate members of the community, each bringing his own personal experience to the courtroom and using that experience to judge the credibility of the witnesses and the reliability of the evidence.

If the Skakel case does go to trial, the jury will have to put aside the family connections of the defendant and the horror of the crime and focus solely on the evidence the prosecution puts before them.

Will there be physical evidence that links the defendant to the crime? DNA or fingerprints are the kinds of evidence that go a long way in convincing juries.

Without it, and if prosecutors rely heavily on the so-called "confessional witnesses," they may be hearing the words "reasonable doubt" -- and "not guilty" -- from the Skakel jury.

CNN Legal Analyst Roger Cossack is a Law Center contributing editor and co-host of CNN's "Burden of Proof". Send comments to him by writing to roger.lawcenter@cnn.com.

Court rejects request to move Skakel trial
April 5, 2001
Documents implicate Skakel in Moxley killing
March 12, 2001
Attorneys spar over trial location in Skakel case
March 1, 2001
Kennedy nephew arraigned in adult court
February 21, 2001
Kennedy nephew to face trial as adult in 1975 killing
January 31, 2001
Prosecutor says Skakel case may depend on switch to adult court
October 20, 2000
Report clears way for ruling on trial of Kennedy cousin in 1975 murder
October 5, 2000
Kennedy cousin ordered to stand trial in 1975 slaying
August 17, 2000
Conflicting testimony over whether Skakel confessed to killing
June 21, 2000
Witness says Kennedy relative confessed to 1975 killing
June 20, 2000
Arraignment today for Kennedy kin in girl's murder
February 8, 2000
Attorney: Skakel to be arraigned next month
January 20, 2000
Attorney: No evidence to tie Skakel to 1975 killing of girl
January 20, 2000
Kennedy kin free on bond after surrendering in girl's 1975 killing
January 19, 2000

The Martha Moxley Murder
Martha Moxley - The Unsolved Murder

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