The federal case against Sharpe James was built on the testimony of 33 witnesses. His rebuttal comprised of two. And now the public corruption trial against Mr. James, the former mayor of Newark, is poised to move to the only pool of people that matters: the 12-member jury.

When testimony came to an end on Thursday, neither Mr. James, 72, nor his co-defendant and erstwhile companion, Tamika Riley, 39, had taken the witness stand in their own defense, instead relying on about a half-dozen witnesses to fend off fraud and conspiracy charges in their 13-count indictment.

''I put my faith in the court,'' Mr. James told Federal District Judge William J. Martini on Wednesday in explaining why he would not testify.

Mr. James, who was mayor and State Senator from 1986 to 2006, is accused of steering nine city-owned properties, beginning in 2001, to Ms. Riley for $46,000 during a time when they were having an affair. Ms. Riley is accused of quickly reselling the parcels in Newark's South Ward for $665,000 under a redevelopment program, largely without making improvements required by city contracts.