Gage update--to sue or not to sue (that is not a question when the negligent doctor conspires with you)

A Review-Journal editorial this weekend suggested the government's opening witness John Thalgott came off like a scumbag. The writer wonders whether that dirt will rub off on Gage or discredit Thalgott.

Dirt rub off on Gage? Wasn't he thought of as a scumbag before this trial?