Lawyer consultant shares stories

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The final Town Hall guest of the season brought the McMorran Place audience a touch of just what trial consulting firms are all about Monday morning. A couple of decades ago local attorneys would probably not have sought out consultation on trials, but now consultants often show up on opposite sides of the bench and used in the best way possible for arguments given to the jury. Jo-Ellan Dimitrius is well known in the trial consultant world and she was the speaker at Port Huron’s Town Hall series. She says such groups help with lawyers and prosecutors with aiding in the trial process. Dimitrius notes it is not unusual these days to find consulting teams representing both sides in certain cases. She says the groups also work with witnesses and how best to make presentations to the jury on difficult and often technical subjects. Dimitrius has worked on some 600-trials that include some high profile cases as Rodney King, O.J. Simpson, and Robert Blake and will be the last guest for the season. The Port Huron Town Hall Series begins anew this coming October with gymnast Shannon Miller. Tickets are available at McMorran Place.