Redirect examination of Philip Vannatter (part 2)

📄 Redirect examination of Philip Vannatter (part 2) — Tuesday, December 10, 1996

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CIVIL\1996\DEC\10\REDIRECT-EXAMINATION-OF-PHILIP.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 29 of 57

◀ Sidebar: video evidence Redirect examination of Philip Vannatter ▶

Witness: Det. Philip Vannatter
Examiner: John Kelly
Called by: Plaintiff • Date: Tuesday, December 10, 1996 • Utterances: 97

John Kelly questioned Detective Vannatter using two videotapes: one of the south walkway fence at Rockingham (Exhibit 821) to establish the glove's location near the air conditioner, and another of Vannatter's arrival at Rockingham (Tape 228) showing him carrying Simpson's blood specimen envelope to criminalist Dennis Fung. Kelly also elicited that Simpson had a 20-30 minute closed-door meeting with attorneys Weitzman and Taft at Parker Center before his police interview.

# 1 (The following proceedings were held in open court in the presence of the jury.)

# 2 MR. BAKER:

Judge, I take it we're not going to have any audio on this tape.

# 3 MR. PETROCELLI:

There's no audio.

# 4 MR. FOSTER:

There is audio.

# 5 MR. PETROCELLI:

Turn the audio down.

# 6 MR. KELLY:

This is Exhibit 821, by the way, Your Honor.

# 7 THE COURT:

8 what?

# 8 MR. KELLY:

821.

# 9 (The instrument herein described as a videotape of side of fence was marked for identification as Plaintiffs' Exhibit No. 821.)

# 10 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) Detective, do you recognize this as this south walkway?

# 11 A:

Yes, I do.

# 12 THE COURT:

Is that the best quality the tape is?

# 13 MR. PETROCELLI:

Steve?

# 14 MR. FOSTER:

Yes.

# 15 MR. KELLY:

That's the way it was produced, Your Honor.

# 16 MR. BAKER:

Phil's focusing it, Your Honor.

# 17 (Tape is played.)

# 18 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) Detective Vannatter, did you observe, first of all, the air conditioner on the left-hand side of the screen there?

# 19 A:

Yes.

# 20 Q:

And is it your testimony that the glove was a couple of feet, or just short west of that air conditioner when you observed it?

# 21 A:

It was slightly west. I don't know exactly how far because I never went all the way up there.

# 22 Q:

Okay.

Now, that night when you stopped four, five feet short of the glove, did you observe this opening in the foliage right next to the air conditioner that night?

# 23 MR. BAKER:

I object, that's an opening, I object to him leading this witness.

# 24 THE COURT:

Sustained.

# 25 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) Did you observe that area above the fence depicted in the video that night when you were there, Detective?

# 26 MR. BAKER:

And the point is to lead.

# 27 THE COURT:

Overruled.

# 28 A:

I did not.

# 29 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) And with regard to these --

# 30 MR. BAKER:

Then I move -- in view of that answer, I move that the testimony of this witness, any further testimony relative to this be stricken and that the tape -- the jury be admonished not to take into account anything they just saw on the tape.

# 31 THE COURT:

The jury is admonished that pending any further foundational evidence that must be produced, you will hold your judgment of this photograph in abeyance. I'll give you instructions if and when we get, or don't get foundation.

KEY QUOTE

# 32 MR. BAKER:

Can we take that off the monitor?

# 33 THE COURT:

Yes, we may.

# 34 MR. PETROCELLI:

We will have foundation, Your Honor.

# 35 THE COURT:

Okay.

# 36 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) Just a couple other things.

Mr. Vannatter, when you arrived at Parker Center early afternoon on the 13th with Mr. Simpson, you had testified that he road down with you in your car; is that correct?

# 37 A:

Yes.

# 38 Q:

Did anybody else arrive there for Mr. Simpson, shortly after you arrived down there at Parker Center?

# 39 A:

Yes.

# 40 Q:

Who did that happen to be?

# 41 A:

His two attorneys, Howard Weitzman and Skip Taft.

# 42 Q:

And what, if anything, did Mr. Simpson do with his two attorneys, Howard Weitzman and Skip Taft, after their arrival down there at Parker Center?

# 43 A:

They had a closed-door meeting, out of our presence, for 20 to 30 minutes.

KEY QUOTE

# 44 Q:

Okay.

Just the three of them?

# 45 A:

Yes.

# 46 Q:

Did you provide them a room?

# 47 A:

Yes.

# 48 Q:

The door was closed?

# 49 A:

Yes.

# 50 Q:

You weren't privy to that discussion, were you?

# 51 A:

No.

# 52 Q:

That was prior to your interview of Mr. Simpson that day?

# 53 A:

That's correct.

# 54 Q:

Last thing. Your arrival at Rockingham at about 5:15 the night of June 13, you were asked a number of questions by Mr. Baker regarding that?

# 55 A:

Yes.

# 56 Q:

And what, if anything, did you have Mr. Simpson's specimen of blood in at that time, upon your arrival at Rockingham?

# 57 A:

In an analyzed evidence envelope.

# 58 Q:

Was that a gray evidence envelope?

# 59 A:

Yes.

# 60 Q:

Okay. Okay.

Where in the car was it upon your arrival there?

# 61 A:

The front seat beside me.

# 62 Q:

And what did you do with that envelope when you exited the car?

# 63 A:

I hand carried it to Dennis Fung.

KEY QUOTE

# 64 Q:

Was there -- what -- would it be fair to say there was a large number of media there when you arrived at Rockingham?

# 65 A:

There was a large number, yes.

# 66 Q:

People with still cameras?

# 67 A:

Yes.

# 68 Q:

Video equipment?

# 69 A:

Yes.

# 70 Q:

Number of other uniform police officers there?

# 71 A:

Yes.

# 72 MR. KELLY:

Can I play one other video.

# 73 MR. FOSTER:

228.

# 74 MR. KELLY:

228 would be the same time frame of Mr. Vannatter's arrival at Rockingham.

# 75 (Tape played from 17:16:29 to 17:18:52.)

# 76 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) That's the envelope in your right hand, Detective?

# 77 A:

Yes.

# 78 Q:

Okay.

That's you exiting -- entering the Rockingham foyer at that time?

# 79 A:

I really can't see from here.

# 80 Q:

Okay.

Can you step up and -- by the way, was that Mr. Simpson's black grip you were returning?

# 81 A:

Yes, it was.

# 82 MR. KELLY:

And if you could stop that for a second.

# 83 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) You able to see Dennis Fung in there at that time?

# 84 MR. KELLY:

If you back up a second, Steve.

# 85 A:

Yes, I see Mr. Fung.

# 86 Q:

(BY MR. KELLY) Is that where you handed him the evidence envelope?

# 87 A:

Yes, sir.

# 88 (Video tape reference is 17:18:59.)

# 89 Q:

You can have a seat.

One other thing, Mr. Vannatter, going back to Rockingham early that morning, you indicated after you viewed the glove that -- that after -- Detective Fuhrman had gone back to Bundy to make an observation of the first glove there; is that correct?

# 90 A:

That's correct.

# 91 Q:

And did you make any observations in the driveway area of Rockingham, after he had left the scene?

# 92 A:

I did.

# 93 Q:

What was that?

# 94 A:

I discovered a number of blood drops leading from the rear of the Bronco to the front door of the residence.

KEY QUOTE

# 95 Q:

Okay.

And upon Mr. Fung's arrival there, the criminalist, did you point those blood drops out?

# 96 MR. BAKER:

I'm going to object. This is all beyond the scope.

# 97 THE COURT:

Sustained.

Temperature

tense

Key Quotes (4)

Phillip Vannatter

They had a closed-door meeting, out of our presence, for 20 to 30 minutes.

Establishes that Simpson conferred privately with counsel before giving his police interview, potentially relevant to the reliability or voluntariness of that interview.

Phillip Vannatter

I discovered a number of blood drops leading from the rear of the Bronco to the front door of the residence.

Key blood evidence testimony about Rockingham — Baker's sustained objection cut this off before it could be developed further.

Phillip Vannatter

I hand carried it to Dennis Fung.

Directly addresses chain of custody for Simpson's blood specimen, which the defense had attacked as potentially planted.

Hiroshi Fujisaki

The jury is admonished that pending any further foundational evidence that must be produced, you will hold your judgment of this photograph in abeyance.

Judge split the difference when Baker moved to strike — jury told to suspend judgment rather than disregard entirely, keeping the video in play pending foundation.

Evidence (3)

Plaintiffs' 821

Videotape of south walkway / side of fence at Rockingham, showing air conditioner and surrounding foliage

played for jury; Baker moved to strike for lack of foundation; judge admonished jury to hold judgment pending foundation

Tape 228

Surveillance or news video showing Vannatter arriving at Rockingham at approximately 17:16–17:18, carrying blood evidence envelope and Simpson's black grip

played; Vannatter identified himself, Dennis Fung, and the handoff of the envelope on screen

Informal

Gray analyzed-evidence envelope containing Simpson's blood specimen

discussed; Vannatter testified he carried it on front seat and hand-delivered it to Fung upon arriving at Rockingham

Notable Exchanges (2)

Robert Baker•Hiroshi Fujisaki

After Vannatter said he did not observe the foliage opening that night, Baker moved to strike all related testimony and have the jury admonished to disregard the tape entirely. Fujisaki declined to strike outright but issued a conditional admonishment — jury to suspend judgment pending foundation evidence.

strategic

John Kelly•Phillip Vannatter

Kelly walked Vannatter through Tape 228 frame by frame to visually confirm the blood envelope handoff to Fung in real time, directly rebutting defense suggestions of improper handling.

methodical

Credibility Attacks (1)

⚔ Phillip Vannatter

foundation challenge / prior omission

Baker successfully obtained Vannatter's admission that he never observed the foliage opening near the air conditioner when he was at the scene, then moved to strike the video as lacking foundation — attacking the inference that anyone could have thrown the glove over the fence.

Objections

4 objections (2 sustained, 1 overruled)

Proceeding 8571 • 97 utterances • Plaintiff witness

Civil Trial

Department 103