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Bella Bond Trial Is High Stakes For Defendant And District Attorney

BOSTON (CBS) -- No one has more at stake than Michael McCarthy, as the jury deliberates whether he should spend the rest of his life behind bars.

But legal experts say the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office that brought him to trial has a lot at stake too, with the public demanding justice for baby Bella Bond.

Michael McCarthy bella bond murder trial
Michael McCarthy in court on June 14, 2017 during his murder trial (WBZ-TV)

Bella was killed and dumped in Boston Harbor two years ago, washing up on Deer Island in Winthrop, and left unidentified for months.

"This is really sort of a political moment for the Suffolk DA's office," legal analyst Jennifer Roman told WBZ-TV.

dan conley
Suffolk District Attorney Dan Conley (WBZ-TV)

That's because this case is on the heels of the D.A. losing a different high profile case in the very same courtroom two months ago, when former Patriots star Aaron Hernandez was cleared on two murder charges.

"They've now brought to trial two cases where the testimony turned on the credibility of their two prime star witnesses," Roman said.

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Legal analyst Jennifer Roman. (Photo credit: WBZ-TV)

Roman says it raises questions about the deals prosecutors make. In this case, McCarthy's former girlfriend, the baby's mother Rachelle Bond will walk free when the trial ends after pleading guilty to lesser charges including accessory after murder.

Hernandez Verdict
Aaron Hernandez reacts to the not guilty verdict in his double murder trial on April 14, 2017. (WBZ-TV)

"Hernandez was found guilty of a lesser charge," Roman said.  "In the middle of the Bella Bond case, the prosecution seemed to signal that they recognized that the lack of physical evidence and the fact that they were resting their entire case on Rachelle Bond's testimony was iffy at best because they then added the lesser charges of manslaughter," Roman said.

As the jury deliberates, there is no indication of how this will stack up for McCarthy or the DA's office.

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