Providence mayor corruption trial turns to defense.(The Providence Journal)

PROVIDENCE, R.I. _ Will Buddy walk?

That's the question on people's minds as the government prepares to rest its case and the defense takes its turn in the matter of United States vs. Vincent A. Cianci Jr.

During 27 days of testimony over the past six weeks, prosecutors have presented evidence of bribery and corruption at Providence City Hall.

There have been tales of tow-truck operators and University Club mandarins, School Department leases and illicit campaign contributions.

There have been videotapes of the mayor's longtime top aide, Frank E. Corrente, taking bribes. There has been testimony by a convicted former tax official, David C. Ead, that he personally arranged bribes with the mayor. And there has been cynical commentary, by another convicted tax official, Joseph A. Pannone, that Cianci schooled him in the ways of bribery.

The disclosures have made for sensational courtroom drama and have drawn national attention. But will the evidence add up to a conviction that knocks Cianci out of the mayor's office? Or will they simply become campaign fodder for his political opponents when the still-popular Cianci seeks a record seventh term in November?

"The prosecution has provided enough threads to the jury for them to weave the mayor a prison jumpsuit," says Louis M. Pulner, a veteran defense lawyer and former prosecutor who has followed the trial for WPRI-Channel 12. "But that depends on the jurors accepting the credibility of the witnesses, which is an issue."