Court TV Host: An angry federal judge unexpectedly recessed the death penalty trial of confessed al-Qaida conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui to consider whether government violations of her rules against coaching witnesses should remove the death penalty as an option.

Court TV Host: Hello Savannah Guthrie, thanks for joining us today....what's the latest?

Savannah Guthrie: Hi. I think today can only be described as stunning. The judge is now seriously thinking about dismissing this case. If she does, that means that Moussaoui will just be sentenced to life in prison, and the trial will end. It was revealed this morning that a certain attorney for the FAA had improperly sent transcripts of the opening statements to potential witnesses in the case. That's a huge no-no. The judge is furious.

Question from TrialJunkie: Will that FAA attorney face any professional sanctions?

Savannah Guthrie: I think there is a very good chance that she will. She has to come here tomorrow and face an absolutely livid federal judge, who has painstakingly tried to preserve order in this case for the past four and a half years. Now the judge may have to tell the prosecutors they're not able to seek the death penalty. At a minimum, the judge may refuse to allow the prosecution to allow these tainted witnesses, which is a huge blow to their case. I think this attorney has a lot to answer for tomorrow.

Question from ally: Does this mean the whole trial will have to be started over?

Savannah Guthrie: Potentially, it means that the trial IS over. Remember, Moussaoui has already pleaded guilty. The only issue in this trial is what his punishment should be. If the judge tells the prosecutors you're not allowed to seek the death penalty, as a way to remedy this misconduct, there's nothing more to do in a trial, so the case would be over. Moussaoui would spend the rest of his life in prison.

Question from ally: Is it also grounds for appeal?

Savannah Guthrie: The prosecutors will appeal, I believe, if the judge dismisses the death notice in this case. If the judge tells the prosecutors they can't call the FAA witnesses anymore, the government may try to appeal that decision. Of course, no matter what the judge decides to do, if the trial goes forward, the defense will make this a big issue on appeal.

Question from Deano: Savannah, you have gotten to watch Moussaoui -- do you think he even cares? Have you been able to get any insight on his feeling about this?

Savannah Guthrie: Let me just preface this by saying: I'm speculating. I have a feeling the main thing Moussaoui cares about in this trial is the opportunity to testify. I think he wants to be front and center in the courtroom with a soapbox to go on his rants to go on about who knows what. It's an interesting situation, because apparently you have someone who was willing to die in a suicide hijacking, so you wonder how much of a threat it is to him now that he may get the death penalty.

Question from ally: How did the judge find out about them misconduct, do you know?

Savannah Guthrie: The prosecutors told the judge, by letter, and attached all these emails that the TSA attorney had written to the witnesses from the FAA. I just got my hands on these emails and read them, and there are some doozies in there. The attorney forwards the entire transcript of the opening statements to seven potential witnesses and to some of them she talks about problems of the prosecution's theory of the case and suggests ways to handle those weak spots. You come away kind of agreeing with what judge Brinkema said this morning when she said it was the "most egregious" violation of the witness rule she'd seen in all her years on the bench.

Question from Alicia: Are the prosecutors furious as well?

Savannah Guthrie: The prosecutors are outraged. You really have to feel for them. This was not their fault, but they're paying the price. We don't know how exactly this was brought to their attention. All we know is they found out late Friday afternoon that the attorney, Carla Martin, had sent the transcript to one potential witness. When they investigated, they found out it was much worse than that. She had sent the transcript to seven, along with the commentary.

Question from trialrun3729: Isn't this exactly the kind of area in which Moussaoui would benefit most from having a lawyer?

Savannah Guthrie: Yes, and he does have a lawyer - he has five lawyers. He may not appreciate that, but they're doing a very good job for him.

Question from kapsy: Hi Savannah - the judge still has the option of questioning those witnesses to find out the extent of the violation of rules, right?

Savannah Guthrie: Yes, she does, and in fact she's called a special hearing for tomorrow morning to do just that. She's also requested the presence of the offending attorney, Carla Martin. She will have to explain to the judge why she did what she did. Apparently, she initially claimed that she didn't think that opening statements were off limits for witnesses, but the judge has already indicated that she doesn't buy that argument for a minute. Her order is pretty clear. Also, the attorney talked about the testimony of witnesses too, so there goes that argument.

Question from googler2006: The U.S. has lost or screwed up other terrorism cases - isn't such prosecutorial misconduct a major embarrassment to the U.S. when the world looks at our way of dealing with suspects, especially after Abu Gharaib and Guantanamo abuses?

Savannah Guthrie: I think this is one of the reasons the judge is so upset. It's not just that attempting to coach witnesses is unfair to the defendant. It puts a taint on the integrity of the process. You get the feeling the judge is trying to prove to the world that America will treat a criminal defendant fairly and give him due process, even if he is a loathsome terrorist, as Moussaoui has acknowledged he is. This detracts from the integrity of the process and the system, and that's a shame because many people, including the prosecutor, the judge and the defense attorney have worked very hard to be professional. And I feel bad for 9/11 survivors and victims for whom this forum was important. They wanted their day in court, and if the judge feels forced to drop this case, it will be very hard on many victims and survivors. Thanks for all the good questions. It's very encouraging to know that people are watching so closely. I'll be on the air in ten minutes - there, you have a sneak preview.