Once again, the usual order of things went topsy-turvy in the Ryan Widmer murder retrial last week.

The first part of any trial should be show time for prosecutors - their chance to put the best spin on their best evidence before defense lawyers have a chance to present evidence supporting their side of the story.

But that wasn't what happened last week in Warren County Common Pleas Court. Widmer, 29, is on trial for a second time in the 2008 bathtub-drowning of his new wife, Sarah, 24. The case, fraught with controversy from the start, was sent to a retrial because of jury misconduct in Widmer's 2009 trial.

Now three experts agree: the first week of Widmer's retrial on a murder charge didn't go well for prosecutors - and defense lawyers scored significant gains.

"The state bears the burden of proof - and so far, at least, it is just not there," said Mike Allen, former Hamilton County prosecutor.