Who is Asa Briggs?

Asa Briggs is the defense attorney for James King. Although he is a minor character in the novel, Briggs asserts that the prosecution has failed to find any concrete evidence that ties King to the murder. Briggs points out that Bobo and Osvaldo's testimonies are clouded by their own desires to lessen their respective sentences. However, Briggs loses the case, and James is ultimately found guilty of the murder of Alguinaldo Nesbitt.