海角大神

It鈥檚 been a long time coming, thanks to a manhunt that took 16 years, but the trial of James 鈥淲hitey鈥� Bulger is about to begin.

Mr. Bulger, long at the top of the FBI鈥檚 Most Wanted list, sat before a US District Court judge Monday for a pretrial hearing, dressed in an orange jumpsuit with a long-sleeved white shirt underneath.

He is alleged to have maintained a lucrative crime racket in South Boston through a quarter-century reign of terror ending in the mid-1990s. Federal prosecutors are charging him with 19 murders, extortion, money laundering, and other crimes.

The 83-year-old Bulger showed little expression Monday, staring forward with his arms folded in front of him for much of the hearing. He wore eyeglasses and, unlike when he was captured at a California apartment in 2011, the defendant was clean-shaven.

But the case is packed with emotion. Victims鈥� families are eager for justice. For residents of the region, the trial embodies a years-long effort to root out entrenched organized crime.

The trial also dredges up boatloads of controversy for the FBI, which for years partnered with Bulger as a 鈥渢op echelon鈥� informant in its battle against the Mafia 鈥� a relationship that went sour as the FBI handler devolved into aiding Bulger.

鈥淭he FBI is on trial along with Whitey,鈥� says Dick Lehr, who teaches journalism at Boston University and is the author of several books on Bulger.

Bulger鈥檚 former handler has already been convicted of crimes tied to the affair, but the Bulger trial could bring out new details about flawed behavior within the bureau鈥檚 Boston office.

And Bulger himself isn鈥檛 going to remain silent and on the sidelines.

Instead, he鈥檚 expected to take the witness stand, even as some of his former associates testify against him. According to recent reports in The Boston Globe, Bulger hopes to refute both the 鈥渋nformant鈥� label and the charge that he killed two women.

The trial could last through the summer, with dozens of witnesses on each side. It will put a national spotlight on a man who grew up in Irish-American South Boston, did time in prisons including Alcatraz, and then rose to become a feared presence in New England鈥檚 largest city.

On Monday, some of the trial鈥檚 likely narratives were evident in pretrial motions being weighed by Judge Denise Casper.

The defense will seek to cast doubt on various prosecution witnesses, on the basis of their background as criminals-turned-informants or, in the case of FBI supervisor John Morris, having cut immunity deals.

Federal prosecutors will seek to prove Bulger鈥檚 guilt, and they hope to build their case in part by portraying his relationship with the FBI since the 1970s.

Prosecuting attorney Fred Wyshak told Judge Casper Monday that FBI agent John Connolly (who handled Bulger as an informant) accepted payment from Bulger and was engaged in a 鈥渟ymbiotic relationship鈥� from which both sides benefited.

Mr. Wyshak said the FBI agent gained stature by gathering information from Bulger and his associate, Stephen 鈥渢he Rifleman鈥� Flemmi, that helped to dismantle Boston鈥檚 arm of La Cosa Nostra.

Bulger gained, too, Wyshak said, rising to the 鈥渢op of the [criminal] food chain鈥� in the area, thanks to his protected status and information passed to him by the FBI.

Many legal experts expect some form of guilty verdict. But with a courtroom drama that draws together Bulger and his former partners, victims鈥� families, and law enforcement into the same relatively small room, the trial could feel like a roller-coaster ride all the same.

Jury selection alone could take most of this week, in a bid to find locals who aren鈥檛 already so steeped in the story that their impartiality is in doubt.