While the persecution lawsuit against Scott Lively comes to federal court today, down the road at Hampden Superior Court a second high-profile case kicks off: the retrial of Charles Wilhite.

Two years ago, Wilhite and a second man, Angel Hernandez, were convicted of first-degree murder in the 2008 shooting death of Alberto Rodriguez. Subsequently, a prosecution witness who had identified Wilhite as being at the scene of the crime recanted his testimony, leading a Superior Court judge to grant Wilhite a new trial.

Supporters of Wilhite, who’ve organized a group called Justice for Charles, had hoped that the charges against him would be dropped. This morning, they’ll be at the courthouse, where jury selection is to begin.