I'd say the chances are about nil to occur as you lay it out. As you might expect, defense counsel are very aware that clients who lose will try to claim ineffective counsel or otherwise blame the attorneys for misconduct. Therefore, every competent defense attorney will take steps to document and establish that major decisions (such as taking the stand) are documented with clear proof the client understands her/his rights. Regarding the Adelsons paying for the defense, that was investigated by the prior judge with documentation that was sealed and to his satisfaction that the costs were being paid legitimately. I'm not saying the Adelsons did not fund the defense in some manner, but I'm confident that if they did so it was managed to provide deniability for the attorneys.
I have long been fascinated by the interview of Garcia's attorney in which he flatly states that he had information the police were ready to arrest at least Donna and possibly Wendi if Magbanua had been found guilty last time. That, along with Georgia's statement yesterday, indicates there very well may be another arrest or two soon. I was surprised how confident he was that Magbanua would be still useful to the prosecution in spite of testifying twice that she knew nothing. That would be the case if Katie can help make the case against Wendi.
Let's say Katie is willing to testify that Charlie explained in detail what Wendi's involvement was and that she was directly involved in planning and decision-making with Donna and Charlie. Let's also assume that such testimony would be admissible under the co-conspirator exception to the hearsay rule. We know that Katie would be savaged on cross examination and her credibility would be very suspect. Nevertheless, what the prosecution is going to be focused on is making sure they have enough evidence to arraign Wendi and survive a motion to dismiss the case for insufficient evidence. Katie's testimony, however flawed, very well could be the brick that permits the prosecution to keep Wendi in the case as a co-defendant with Donna and Charlie. The goal of the state would be to have a trial with all three family members in the dock as co-conspirators. Katie's cooperation may be the crucial brick that permits a joint prosecution of the family.
It could very well turn out that a jury decides Charlie and Donna deliberately kept Wendi in the dark. If so, that's the way the system works. However, Wendi is absolutely and obviously the heart of the conspiracy and I believe the prosecution's case would be much stronger with a trial against all three Adelsons as co-conspirators. The defense will fight hard to have separate trials but I don't believe they would succeed. If Katie is going to cut a deal it is going to be very soon, and I would expect arrests quite soon thereafter. Otherwise, the clock is running against Charlie and he potentially could assert his right to a speedy trial and force the state to move forward without joining Donna and/or Wendi. I think we are about to see some new developments that make everything so far just the opening act in this wild ride.
