But crucial witnesses refused to testify, and the suspect, who was 17, was released.

Both became crucial witnesses for the prosecution, although their credibility was attacked by the defendants' lawyers.

He will be a crucial witness at trial, assuming the case gets that far.

Mrs. Fastow was long viewed by prosecutors as a potential crucial witness.

By court order, the woman, like other crucial witnesses, cannot be identified.

By that time, memories of the living had faded and three crucial witnesses were dead.

The absence of this crucial witness seemed likely to weaken the case against Papandreou.

The Tomassos were the last of the crucial witnesses to fight in court over whether they had to comply with subpoenas served by the committee.

It has developed numerous procedures for presenting key evidence in secret and protecting the identities of crucial witnesses.

We had lost a potentially crucial witness, but Kito's credibility would have caused problems.