Colorado Springs anti-tax activist Bruce Nozolino strode into Judge William Sylvester’s courtroom Friday with a new attorney.

But it’s doubtful Josh Tollini will ever utter a word in his defense.

Instead, Tollini, is more likely to be a witness against Nozolino, who has been jailed for allegedly killing his ex-wife’s lover and trying to kill her divorce attorney and the judge who heard the case.

At Nozolino’s previous hearing, March 18, Sylvester ruled the former Lockheed Martin software engineer’s assets exceeded the eligibility for a publicly-funded defense attorney.

Nozolino had been represented by the Colorado Public Defender’s office since an El Paso County grand jury indicted him in July.

Nozolino is accused of attempting to kill John Ciccolella, who was shot the night of Jan. 23, 2002, as he worked in his downtown law office. Tollini was working in the basement of the same building that night and was detained by SWAT officers as they searched for the shooter.

Nozolino told Sylvester he had no objection to Tollini defending him despite what appeared to be an obvious conflict of interest.

Deputy District Attorney Jeff Lindsey, however, said he wasn’t sure he was OK with it, and Sylvester set a hearing at 9 a.m. on May 6 to discuss it further.

Tollini also asked Sylvester to consider whether Nozolino can apply for a public defender if he becomes indigent as a result of trial expenses. He said Nozolino will be dipping into retirement funds to pay his legal fees and he was uncertain how long that money would last.

That request also will be addressed at the May hearing.

Prosecutors previously have argued that Nozolino has assets of $221,556, including his condominium and his retirement fund, and could hire a private attorney.

Public defenders normally defend people who cannot afford a lawyer.

Nozolino’s lawyers have argued he may go into debt hiring a competent criminal defense lawyer, given the complexity of the case. The 31-count indictment covers four shootings over a nine-year period.

Sylvester, the chief judge in Arapahoe and Douglas counties, is hearing the case because one of the people Nozolino is accused of trying to kill is 4th Judicial District Judge Gilbert Martinez.

Nozolino is being held on a $10 million bond, the highest bond in El Paso County in recent memory.

Bruce Nozolino Photo by