Tacopenis keeps focusing on how deserted the store was, hoping the jury will doubt her story because there were no witnesses.
But a place where there are no witnesses is where sexual predators get to work. This is what I'd be thinking if I were listening.

Twitter feed with minute-by-minute transcripts:

https://twitter.com/InnerCityPress

Often in tramatic events you don't remember a lot of the general details but instead remember very specific details about the worst part of it.

You forget the fluff and have a searing memory of the painful parts.

They can testify it is completely normal.

Unfortunately rape victims ge brutalied on the stand routinely, which is one of the reasons they won't come forward.

...I do have a few PTSD-worthy moments in my life. I remember the incidents themselves with cinematic clarity but guarantee I cannot tell you what I had for lunch on those days.

It depends on how sympathetic / empathetic the jury is to Ms. Carroll's re-telling of events, her conviction in relating what happened. I don't see Tacopina as a superstar. He's a thug, being paid to be a thug. I don't think the jury is going to expect Ms. Carroll to fully "rise above that," but I think they will look for consistency and conviction in her responses.

a mobster's mouthpiece. I saw him on tv for a few minutes and loathed him almost immediately.