I think AL is experienced enough to know that, even factoring the percentage of possible wrongfully accused defendants in a capital case, the odds are generally that the accused is guilty after a seasoned grand jury has convened. She is not a crusader for anything but exchanging DP for LWOP. Frankly, I'm not all that sure she really cares if her clients are guilty or not, as long as she checks all the boxes to make sure the trial is fair and unlikely to blow up in an ineffective counsel claim and she can make sure the sentence is LWOP not death, she's pretty much done her job.
Twice now, she has mentioned the "pressure" a DP case puts on a defendant to plea (both at the last motion and in her recent NBC am interview). This may be a harbinger of what is to come - laying the groundwork for a plea in the capital case and she is simply outlining the euphemistic excuse that will be given as to why.
Since JB recently mentioned to KB he wanted to plea out the check fraud trial IIRC, I'd imagine it was his client being recalcitrant on that count and he had been trying for some time to get her to go in that direction (unless he was lying to make it look better). Somehow I think she enjoys the limelight and is a bit jealous of the notoriety her parents seem to seek. I'm thinking someone had to very patiently explain to her how her appearance at this trial would backfire and could impact her upcoming murder trial. This also leads me to believe that this may be the most prudent thing for JB.
As our dear Little Bitty and I have frequently discussed, he could either recuse himself at the last minute, saying his client will not listen to his advice and he cannot in clear conscience continue to represent her (which would preserve the last modicum of a future reputation for him anywhere in the legal field) or get his client to plea out. I think he has always been about milking this to further his own reputation - when it gets to the point that it becomes a liability, I'd say he will cut the cord and get her to plea rather than be associated with the case. It's already served his purpose to him.
Obviously he was hoping to do that in the check fraud case because no one was deposed. But how about the capital case? Is the reason we haven't seen much of anything on his dime being done, after the preliminary depos, because he doesn't want to pay for something that will be unnecessary?
Seriously, if it turns out he meant to have his client plea at the murder trial, but took us, the state of Florida and its good citizens on this Mr. Toad's Wild Media Ride simply to further his own career, I hope somebody somewhere changes something about the system so that attorneys cannot exploit clients (particularly those who have exploited the victim for their own financial benefit) without serious consequences. Officers of the court need to be above and beyond that level of scumminess, even if our politicians aren't.