Opening statements today in Daytona-area mortgage fraud case: No 'knock-knock' jokes

ORLANDO -- As a reporter who has spent the better part of his career covering cops and courts, I look forward to the opening statements because they help set the tone for the trial. Such is the case today in U.S. District Court in Orlando where three people are accused of defrauding banks and lending institutions in multi-million dollar mortgages for homes that ended up in foreclosure.

The government will tell the jury of 10 men and women its version of the facts against Jim Sotolongo, Ramara Garrett and Stephanie Musselwhite. The government's opening could go 45 minutes to an hour.

Then comes a trio of defense attorneys with their version of the facts, which collectively could last anywhere from an hour to 90 minutes.

Of course, what the prosecution or defense attorneys say is not evidence and should they try and draw any conclusions, the other side will likely object that they are making arguments, which are reserved for the close of the trial.

Openings for each side are supposed to be a road map of what to expect during the course of the trial. Then again, as we learned from the George Zimmerman murder trial, the tone of openings can sometimes come out of nowhere -- to the point of vulgarity, and even the ridiculous, as in the form of a knock-knock joke.

Who could forget Assistant State Attorney John Guy's first words to the jurors: “Good morning. ‘(expletive) punks. These (expletives) always get away.’ Those were the words in that grown man’s mouth as he followed a 17-year-old boy.”

Then Guy repeated the F-word before punks three times for emphasis.

Not to be outdone, defense co-counsel Don West tried to start things off with humor: "Knock-knock. Who’s there? George Zimmerman. George Zimmerman who? Ah, good. You’re on the jury."

Suffice to say, the jurors weren't amused. None of the six even cracked a smile.

In the end, though, it all worked out in Zimmerman's favor as the jury found him not guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of unarmed 17-year-old Trayvon Martin in the Sanford gated community where Zimmerman was a neighborhood watch commander. The jury bought the defense's story of self defense.

The case today in federal court is far different.

Instead of blood and guts, instead of murder and mayhem, it's about the allegation of white collar crime, and on its face, boring stuff with lots of tedious details. But the stakes are high.

The government will allege crimes were committed for the purpose of greed while the defense will allege it was just the opposite with the banks and lending institutions lax in their procedures in the name of moving properties at the height of the housing boom.

This is a case that goes back half a decade or more with the FBI putting out a complaint that has colorful language, describing Sotolongo as the "ringleader" and alleging 70 properties and $50 million were lost in the scene to defraud. The superseding indictment, however, alleges seven properties and just under $13 million.

The trial could go eight to 10 days.