STAMFORD, Conn. -- Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel is poised to make his first court appearance in nearly five years Tuesday.

Skakel will be in Stamford Superior Court seeking a new trail.

Channel 3 Eyewitness News reporter Al Terzi reported that Skakel's cousin, Robert F. Kennedy Jr., may be the first to testify Tuesday morning. The defense is also expected to call Skakel's trial lawyer, Mickey Sherman.

Skakel is currently in prison for the bludgeoning death of his Greenwich neighbor, Martha Moxley, in 1975. Both Skakel and Moxley were 15 years old at the time of her death.

Skakel's petition for a new trial is based on what his lawyers argue is new evidence implicating two other men in the slaying.

Terzi reported that Kennedy is the one who, the year after the trial, alerted Skakel's lawyers to the evidence. He claims that the two men were in Greenwich the night Moxley was killed, and made suspicious comments about her.

Sherman's testimony in the case is considered critical because in order for Skakel to win, the defense must convince the judge that Sherman didn't know anything about the claim until after the trial, and that the verdict would probably have been different had the jury heard the evidence.

The hearing is expected to last several days, and cameras are being allowed in the courtroom.

Watch Eyewitness News for the latest updates as the hearing unfolds.

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