OPENING SHOTS

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The second prong of Jones' defense is the argument that only skilled terrorists could have made the bomb, not two drifters like McVeigh and Nichols. Jones and a team of investigators traveled to Belfast to speak with experts about ammonium nitrate bombs. Says Jones: "I talked to a bunch of them, and they said to me, 'I'm not saying your man couldn't have done it. What I'm saying to you is that no one else has ever done it.'"

So the elements of the Oklahoma City trial are coming into focus. As the bloody glove, the sock and O.J. Simpson's Rockingham estate finally pass from the scene, the American public will soon become immersed in fresh minutiae: Elliott's Body Shop, ammonium nitrate, the Panthers cap. In this case, as in O.J.'s, the defendant won't be the only one on trial. Citizens will be watching to see how well the government presents its case and how well the legal system serves justice.

--Reported by Patrick E. Cole/Los Angeles and Elaine Shannon/Washington

With reporting by PATRICK E. COLE/LOS ANGELES AND ELAINE SHANNON/WASHINGTON

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