During the Sunshine trial it had appeared to many that they the plaintiff lawyers were playing good cop, bad cop for the jury. Many court observers believed that Richard Hollow, the News-Sentinel lawyer operated as the “good” plaintiff lawyer. While many believe that Moncier was playing the part of “bad” plaintiff lawyer.

Yesterday, during Hollow’s first appearance in closing arguments, he employed the use of a tabloid term. He repeated the tabloid term three times during his first of two appearance to the jury. The first time that I heard him say it, I thought why would he use such a term?

Then I thought maybe he was playing to at least one television station, you know the one that employs the tactics of shock ’em journalism, Hint: It is the ABC affiliate. Then I realized that he was probably playing to the News-Sentinel. And that if he said it enough, it may wind up as a tabloid headline in today’s newspaper. As of 5:32 a.m. the online version of the News-Sentinel has incorporated his tabloid term.

In describing the January 31, 2007 appointment process, he used the term “orgy of political power.” Sex sells on television commercials. So maybe in describing a lurid sex act it will sell more newspapers, shock television viewers and boost their ratings and may play to normal everyday citizens, even those on a jury.

In regards to the trial itself, I will not be surprised if the jury returns a guilty or a non-guilty verdict.