📄 Sidebar: video evidence — Tuesday, December 10, 1996
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C:\DEPT103\CIVIL\1996\DEC\10\SIDEBAR-VIDEO-EVIDENCE.DOC
TRIAL
▲ Day 29 of 57

Sidebar: video evidence

Date: Tuesday, December 10, 1996 • Utterances: 28
Petrocelli sought to play a videotape made on June 28, 1994 by Gary Randa (son of Simpson's personal secretary) showing the south walkway, fence, and bushes near where the glove was found. Baker objected strenuously, arguing the witness had no foundation with the tape and that changed conditions since the June 12-13 murders made it inadmissible — particularly since the judge had previously denied a jury view on the same changed-circumstances grounds. Fujisaki overruled the objection, allowing the tape, after Petrocelli argued Baker had opened the door by eliciting testimony that the fence area showed no evidence of anyone crossing.
1 (The following proceedings were held at the bench with the reporter.)
2 THE COURT:

Whose video is it?

3 MR. KELLY:

It was made by Gary Randa, who is the son of Kathy Randa, Mr. Simpson's personal secretary/administrative assistant for 20-odd years, Your Honor. It was made in June, 1994, shortly after Mr. Simpson's arrest, depicting the south walkway, the fence, the bushes and conditions.

4 THE COURT:

How did you get it?

5 MR. KELLY:

Pursuant to --

6 MR. PETROCELLI:

Court order. Your court order.

7 THE COURT:

Okay.

8 MR. PETROCELLI:

And here's --

9 THE COURT:

Is that who he is --

10 MR. PETROCELLI:

Gary Randa's under his control.

11 THE COURT:

Overruled.

12 MR. BAKER:

Wait. Wait a minute. I want to make a record.

This witness has never seen this tape, unless they played it to him. This witness has testified as to his percipient knowledge. They can not now put on a tape as affirmative evidence, without any foundation that it was played on June 28.

I'd like the rules of evidence in this courtroom to be equal to both sides. I'd like it to start now.

And I think this is ridiculous, that you can allow them to play a videotape without any -- without one bit of foundation, and put it on to a witness who says I didn't -- I didn't see this. This videotape was done on June 28, and for you to put this on -- on this witness without the witness's -- after they've rested their case is absolutely ridiculous.

You wouldn't even let me have a jury view. Now you're saying they can put on a tape when their case has rested, and a guy that says I didn't see it, I didn't even look.

I think it's ridiculous. I think there ought to be some -- some --

13 MR. PETROCELLI:

Keep your voice down.

Let me explain.

14 THE COURT:

How are you going to connect up the videotape with this witness?

15 MR. PETROCELLI:

If you go back and look in the record, through his leading questions yesterday, he got this witness to say that he didn't see anything on a heavy wooded area down the south side, that he observed no evidence that anybody could -- could come over the fence, and that he looked all the way down as far as he can look. He went through this in some detail yesterday on his examination.

This is the area right where the glove was found.

Okay, Your Honor.

And we're going to ask him whether he saw or didn't see that opening in the fence. Mr. Baker elicited testimony suggesting that he saw the area and did not see any evidence, any opening, any holes in the foliage, and he opened this matter wide open. We're allowed to cross-examine this witness on this point.

16 MR. BAKER:

The witness just testified --

17 MR. PETROCELLI:

He can't have it both ways.

And for the record, I want to object to these outrageous comments about the rules of evidence not applying evenhandedly. This is out of line.

18 MR. BAKER:

I don't care what you like, I'll tell you that, number one.

Number two, this witness has just testified that he didn't look. Now they're going to say look at this after I've got change of circumstances. It is change of circumstances --

19 MR. PETROCELLI:

A week or two --

20 MR. BAKER:

Let me finish.

21 MR. PETROCELLI:

Keep your voice down, Mr. Baker.

22 MR. BAKER:

On June 12 -- these murders occurred on June 13. The morning of June 13 is when -- the evening of June 12, morning of June 13 is when somebody would have to have gone over that fence. This video was taken on 6/28/94. They opposed, and you upheld the fact that we can't have a jury view because of change of circumstances. They had detectives traipsing all through there between the 12th and the 28th.

And I object to it. I think there's no foundation for it.

You can stop a hummingbird's wings in flight --

23 MR. PETROCELLI:

This is right where the glove was found, Your Honor.

KEY QUOTE
24 MR. BAKER:

It's a photo taken to accentuate exactly what he wants to show, and with a Nikkon, I can stop a hummingbird's wings flapping, I can't see them.

25 MR. PETROCELLI:

You can see the top -- top of the fence posts are bent down. I asked Mr. Simpson at his -- his examination. He denied all this. He specifically went in with this witness, he asked four, five, six questions, you can go back and ask, yesterday he led him to say there's no evidence that anybody could come over that fence. He said it was heavy, thick, wooden, he used all these words to suggest that -- that Mr. Vannatter was able to definitively demonstrate that there was no break.

26 THE COURT:

When was this photograph made?

27 MR. PETROCELLI:

This photograph was taken -- and it's even better on the video. This was taken when we viewed the property about, when was it, in September or August of this year.

But the video is like two weeks after the murders. It's even better than this.

28 THE COURT:

Okay.

Overruled.

Temperature

heated

Key Quotes (4)

Robert Baker
You wouldn't even let me have a jury view. Now you're saying they can put on a tape when their case has rested, and a guy that says I didn't see it, I didn't even look.
Baker's sharpest argument — the judge's own prior ruling on changed circumstances cuts against admitting the video.
Daniel Petrocelli
He got this witness to say that he didn't see anything on a heavy wooded area down the south side, that he observed no evidence that anybody could come over the fence... He opened this matter wide open.
The 'opening the door' theory that prevails — Baker's own cross-examination invited the rebuttal.
Robert Baker
You can stop a hummingbird's wings in flight -- ... with a Nikkon, I can stop a hummingbird's wings flapping, I can't see them.
Baker's colorful but somewhat incoherent argument that the video's photography could be manipulated to show what wasn't really there.
Daniel Petrocelli
This is right where the glove was found, Your Honor.
Cuts to the heart of why this evidence matters — the fence area being crossable is central to the defense's alternative perpetrator access theory.

Evidence (2)

Informal
Video made June 28, 1994 by Gary Randa showing south walkway, fence, and bushes near where glove was found
disputed admission, ultimately allowed
Informal
Photograph of fence area taken by plaintiffs' counsel during September or August 1996 property view
referenced as backup to video

Notable Exchanges (2)

Robert BakerDaniel Petrocelli
Baker delivers an extended, agitated objection about foundational requirements and changed circumstances; Petrocelli repeatedly tells him to 'keep your voice down' and invokes the opened-door doctrine; Baker refuses to be managed and continues.
heated
Robert BakerHiroshi Fujisaki
Baker points out the internal inconsistency of denying a jury view on changed-circumstances grounds but allowing the tape made 16 days after the murders — the judge does not address this contradiction, simply overrules.
strategic

Light Moments (1)

Robert Baker
Baker's 'hummingbird wings' metaphor — an attempt to argue the Nikon video could freeze motion and misrepresent reality — comes across as rambling and odd mid-objection.

Credibility Attacks (1)

⚔ Unnamed percipient witness (likely a detective or officer)
prior inconsistent statement / opened door
Petrocelli argued Baker had elicited testimony that the witness saw the fence area and found no evidence of crossing — the video was admitted to contradict or contextualize that testimony.

Objections

2 objections (0 sustained, 2 overruled)
Proceeding 8570 • 28 utterances
Civil Trial
Department 103
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📂 DEC 10, 1996 📄 Sidebar: video evidence
DEC 10, 1996 KRT DvH TD