Motion: deposition admissibility

📄 Motion: deposition admissibility — Wednesday, December 11, 1996

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CIVIL\1996\DEC\11\MOTION-DEPOSITION-ADMISSIBILIT.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 30 of 57

◀ Motion: Gerdes testimony exclusion Motion: Willie Ford video exclusion ▶

Date: Wednesday, December 11, 1996 • Utterances: 27

The court addressed the defense's inability to serve several witnesses (Blasini, Meraz) for deposition purposes, and the plaintiffs' argument that unserved depositions should be admitted anyway. Judge Fujisaki ordered plaintiffs to share witness location information with the defense and reserved rulings on admissibility pending further information.

# 1 THE COURT:

Where Ms. Molinaro?

# 2 MR. GELBLUM:

She's at the office.

# 3 THE COURT:

Where is Mr. Blasini residing?

# 4 MR. GELBLUM:

In Chula Vista. I don't know his address, Your Honor. I have a business phone number for him, where we spoke with him.

# 5 THE COURT:

Give that to the defense.

# 6 MR. GELBLUM:

Be happy to.

# 7 THE COURT:

Give you an opportunity to serve him.

MR. P. BAKER: Okay.

# 8 THE COURT:

Order the plaintiffs to supply you with all of the information they have as to his whereabouts.

MR. P. BAKER: We attempted to serve him, Judge but . . .

# 9 THE COURT:

Yeah.

# 10 MR. BAKER:

They didn't attempt to serve Kardashian. You let that deposition in. Why can't you let this one in?

KEY QUOTE

# 11 MR. GELBLUM:

We have -- it was with the glove photographer in San Francisco, so same point. They had unavailability. You ruled in their favor.

MR. P. BAKER: We served the glove photographer. We haven't been able to serve --

# 12 MR. GELBLUM:

They went to the wrong place. They went to Sun Valley. That's a hundred files miles from Chula Vista.

KEY QUOTE

# 13 THE COURT:

Try to serve him.

# 14 MR. GELBLUM:

Your Honor, they've also filed a declaration on Mr. Meraz. I don't have a declaration. Our investigator told us he verified he worked for the gas company in Santa Monica, Mr. Meraz.

MR. P. BAKER: There's no declaration we tried to serve him. We've been unable to serve him. I'm trying to get this case moving.

# 15 MR. GELBLUM:

Your Honor, there's also -- Mr. Randa says in his declaration, he kept going back to this house. We have no information why he picked this particular house. There's no information this is this guy's address, where he lives. He says he kept going to his address, kept going back; there -- no one was there.

MR. P. BAKER: Let the record reflect we have the county records that we he lives there.

# 16 THE COURT:

Excuse me?

MR. P. BAKER: That's what we have from the county records, that he lives there. We were unable to serve him.

# 17 THE COURT:

What information do you have about his whereabouts?

# 18 MR. GELBLUM:

All I have is that he works for the gas company in Santa Monica.

# 19 THE COURT:

What's the basis of that information?

# 20 MR. GELBLUM:

An investigator's phone call to the gas company, asking for Mr. Meraz, says that he works there, but he wasn't in.

# 21 THE COURT:

Where was he called at?

# 22 MR. GELBLUM:

Excuse me?

# 23 THE COURT:

Which gas company?

# 24 MR. GELBLUM:

I don't have -- I believe it's Southern California Gas Company, an office in Santa Monica; that's where it is. I don't know.

I can find out at a break, Your Honor. I can make a phone call to the office --

# 25 THE COURT:

All right I'll reserve rulings.

KEY QUOTE

# 26 MR. PETROCELLI:

-- And we'll provide it to the defense.

# 27 MR. GELBLUM:

Of course.

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (3)

Robert Baker

They didn't attempt to serve Kardashian. You let that deposition in. Why can't you let this one in?

Defense argues for equal treatment — if plaintiff's unserved depositions were admitted, defense's should be too.

Peter Gelblum

They went to the wrong place. They went to Sun Valley. That's a hundred miles from Chula Vista.

Plaintiffs contest the adequacy of defense's service attempts.

Hiroshi Fujisaki

All right I'll reserve rulings.

Judge declines to decide admissibility until more location information is provided.

Notable Exchanges (1)

Robert Baker•Peter Gelblum

Baker invokes the Kardashian deposition precedent to argue Blasini's deposition should also be admitted despite failed service; Gelblum counters by attacking the adequacy of the defense's service attempt.

strategic

Objections

None recorded

Proceeding 8581 • 27 utterances

Civil Trial

Department 103