DALLAS (WBAP/KLIF News) — Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price says he’s willing to testify in his ongoing corruption trial.
Price told the Dallas Morning News he’s “strong in faith, but short on patience and temperance,” and that he may have to take the stand. But legal analyst Loretta Powers from the “Powers of Attorney” show says if Price does testify, he has more to lose than he does to gain.
“From what I’ve seen at the trial, he seems explosive,” Powers said. “At points in the trial, he’s feverishly scribbling notes to his lawyer, he has very reactive facial expressions to the witnesses, and he’s even admitted himself that he has temperance problems.
“The prosecutors know this, and their job would be to make him implode on the stand,” she added. “If he loses his temper on the stand, then he’ll lose the trial because you can’t come back from that.”
In Price’s interview with the Dallas Morning News, he says he will listen to whatever advice his lawyers give him. He has been charged with 11 counts of bribery, tax evasion and mail fraud.
Powers believes the message was more a public statement of innocence rather than his actual legal plan.
“The jury wants to hear him declare his innocence, but that’s not his job to prove that he’s innocent,” Powers said. “It’s the state’s job to prove that he’s guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.”
To hear the full interview between Loretta Powers and WBAP’s Scott Sidway, click the media player below.
