BOSTON (MyFoxBoston.com) -- The Dzhokhar Tsarnaev defense may be finishing up and it looks like the last witness lawyers will call Monday, is a prominent catholic nun who is trying to abolish the death penalty.
The government is fighting to keep her out of the courtroom, as this trial is about to end.
Tsarnaev's jury has already heard from his Russian family, his high school teachers, his UMass Dartmouth buddies, but they haven't heard from anyone like this.
Sister Helen Prejean, a well known catholic nun, who has made it her business to abolish the death penalty in America. But that's not her only claim to fame.
Sister Helen's life story was transformed into the film Dead Man Walking. Susan Sarandon played Sister Helen, and Sean Penn, the condemned man she ministered. The defense is trying to call Sister Helen to the Tsarnaev trial as its last witness.
As far as we know, Sister Helen has not even met Tsarnaev. She's not an immediate family member, shes not part of the legal team so, she's not an approved visitor for him. So the question is, what could she possibly say that could save his life?
Our Bob Ward put that question to Boston Attorney Phil Tracy.
"What she is trying to say, I'm sure, is that even though he has done these things, as Judy Clarke has said, he did it, he should not be put to death because it is inhumane and its not the way we as people should live," he said.
In court documents FOX25 has obtained, we know the government is fighting to keep Sister Helen out of the trial.
Attorney Tracy agrees.
"I just don't think it's right," he said. "I think they should be squarely dealing with the issues, he's been convicted. Is now the proper penalty the death penalty, or life in prison?"
It's up to Federal Judge George O'Toole if Sister Helen gets in to the trial.
We will know by Monday. It's possible the jury will start deliberating the fate of Tsarnaev by Thursday.
