It might just be a case of ordinary, everyday prosecutor incompetence. I am serving today as a member of a panel that has been put together to instruct young prosecutors on how to put together a winning case. One of the things I will discuss with them is the concept, "less is more." A successful prosecution gets straight to the point as efficiently and powerfully as possible and keeps the jurors' attention from straying into byways and alleys. It appears here that the prosecutor took the jury on a five month turtle crawl through every back alley and cul-de-sac in a very dull city.
My mother always said to do that with my children, and to note when they're eyes glazed over : )