Attorneys for defendant LaShawn R. Cecil attacked the state's case against Cecil Tuesday, calling to the witness stand an expert on prison informants and suggesting another man may have been responsible for the December 2011 murder of Jaclyn Wirth.

Cecil, 36, is on trial in New London Superior Court. The state alleges he unloaded a 9 mm handgun into the door of Wirth's apartment on East Baltic Street in Norwich as he attempted to collect a drug debt or retaliate against men associated with Wirth who were not at the home.

Wirth, 26, struck multiple times by bullets that penetrated the door, called 911 as she lay bleeding and the oldest of her two young sons begged her not to pass out. She was pronounced dead at The William W. Backus Hospital.

Though police spoke to Cecil early in their investigation, they were unable to build a case against him without the help of informants with felony records. Two of the informants recanted their statements at the trial, including William Colello, the man the state alleges drove Cecil to the Mohegan Park apartments that night. Another informant, Andrew Aviles, admitted to the jury that he has pleaded guilty in connection with a New London murder and was testifying with the hope of a reduced sentence.

Defense attorney Patrick White elicited testimony from Robert Bloom, a professor of law at Boston College and author of "Ratting: The Use and Abuse of Informants in the American Justice System."

Bloom described the culture within jailhouse settings where prisoners seek to better their own positions by finding out things about other prisoners. He cited a Northwestern University Study that found 45 percent of cases between 1973 and 2000 in which death row inmates were exonerated by DNA evidence had involved jailhouse informants. He quoted the Connecticut Supreme Court, which wrote in a 2007 ruling about the "inherent unreliability of jailhouse informants." He said prisoners have an incentive to testify and are rarely prosecuted if they lie on the witness stand.

"If a case isn't particularly strong, an informant's testimony is very powerful to the jury, almost as powerful as the police," Bloom said.

During cross-examination, prosecutor Stephen M. Carney asked whether a person who feared being hurt or killed had an incentive to lie on the witness stand. The state suggests the witnesses who recanted their testimony may fear retaliation. He also asked whether a witness like Jesse Kamienski, a chef and restaurant manager who was incarcerated briefly for nonpayment of child support, would have any incentive to lie.

Earlier in the trial, Kamienski testified Cecil talked about the shooting when they both rode in a prison transport van from Corrigan-Radgowski Correctional Institution to the Norwich courthouse. Kamienski said he was not interested in the $25,000 reward the state had offered for information in the case. He said the police came to him for information after his girlfriend called them.

"A person who is locked up for child support would not have the same incentive (to be an informant) as someone who's facing greater charges," Bloom said.

The defense also elicited testimony Tuesday about Sean Lindo, the boyfriend of Wirth's cousin and somebody that Wirth's family members identified as a suspect in the case. Lindo was tested for gunshot residue two days after the shooting, and the state forensic laboratory reported he had only one of the three elements of gunshot residue — barium, lead or antimony — on him. All three elements are needed for a positive result.

The police eventually ruled out Lindo as a suspect.

During a meeting at the Donald W. Wyatt Detention Facility in Rhode Island, where Lindo was being held in connection with another crime, detectives Corey Poor and Chris Conley used a ruse to see if Lindo would admit to the murder, Poore testified Tuesday. He said they told Lindo the gunshot residue case was positive.

"He screamed. He wailed. He rolled on the floor" in protest, Poore testified.

The defense rested late Tuesday after Cecil, who has sat quietly between his two attorneys throughout the trial, confirmed to Judge Barbara Bailey Jongbloed that he would not be testifying. Attorneys for both sides will deliver closing arguments on Wednesday. The jury will begin deliberating on the murder charge after the judge instructs them on the law.

By agreement from both sides, the judge separately will decide whether Cecil is guilty of illegal possession of a handgun. The state had presented evidence to her, outside of the jury's presence, indicating he had a previous felony narcotics conviction and would not be able to legally own a handgun.

k.florin@theday.com