📄 RFA format discussion — Friday, November 15, 1996
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C:\DEPT103\CIVIL\1996\NOV\15\RFA-FORMAT-DISCUSSION.DOC
TRIAL
▲ Day 16 of 57

RFA format discussion

Date: Friday, November 15, 1996 • Utterances: 17
The jury is being brought back in while Lambert raises procedural points about how to read requests for admissions (RFAs) related to DNA/serology evidence. The parties agree on a format: Lambert will read a time-qualification caveat once at the start and again at the end, rather than repeating it with every individual admission, addressing Baker's concern that piecemeal reading might mislead the jury.
1 THE COURT:

Okay. Bring the jury in.

2 THE CLERK:

They're on the way.

3 MR. LAMBERT:

I -- just to raise a minor point about the request for admissions, while we're having the jury come out.

These are similar to the set of request for admissions. I read in regard to the conventional serology test earlier, in a few of them -- actually more than a few, in many of them, there's in part of their response, there's a qualification as to time that we discussed in some motions earlier, your Honor.

That is: That they say in admitting this request for admission, the defense will adopt the plaintiffs' definition as communicated to the defendant at that point in time when an item was tested by an outside laboratory as opposed to the time of the collection or any other point in time. I'd prefer just to read that ones at the beginning of the request for admission or perhaps to have the Court instruct the jury that that's the point in time qualification, rather than read it in the answer to every single request for admission.

4 THE COURT:

All right.

5 MR. LAMBERT:

Similarly, in a few of them, they define the term "match" to be one that -- to mean cannot be excluded as a contributor as an evidence fragment. I'd just as soon read that.

6 THE COURT:

All right.

7 MR. LAMBERT:

The second point I'd like to raise, Your Honor, these all go to various items of evidence. Their listed by evidence item number. I'd like to put up the boards which list the evidence items numbers as I go through each session so the jury can follow along which evidence item this particular request relates to.

8 THE COURT:

Okay.

9 MR. LAMBERT:

Thank you.

10 MR. BAKER:

All these requests for admissions -- I went through them after lunch -- are cumulative as to what the three persons testified, Cotton, Montgomery and Sims. I'd like to form an objection.

I don't mind saving time. I would prefer that he read all the request for admissions and then we have the response read at one time so that it doesn't mislead the jury that we're admitting things when we have qualifiers.

11 THE COURT:

I didn't understand your last sentence.

MR. P. BAKER: Okay.

In other words, if there's ten requests for admission in a row that have the same qualifier that he just read, for the request of admissions, then we read the one response instead of subtracting the qualifier and an just having it read as "admit" in front of the jury.

12 THE COURT:

Okay.

To satisfy Mr. Baker's concern, you will read a qualification at the beginning. We can read all of the requests for admission and admissions at the conclusion. You may again restate the qualification that it applies to all of these admissions that were made.

13 MR. LAMBERT:

Thank you, Your Honor.

14 THE COURT:

Okay.

How long is this going to take?

15 MR. LAMBERT:

Without having to read the qualifications every time, I think it will be pretty quick because the requests themselves are relatively short.

16 THE COURT:

All right.

17 MR. LAMBERT:

Maybe half an hour, something like that.

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (3)

Tom Lambert
the defense will adopt the plaintiffs' definition as communicated to the defendant at that point in time when an item was tested by an outside laboratory as opposed to the time of the collection or any other point in time
The core dispute — the defense's time-qualification limits when DNA match definitions apply, narrowing the scope of each admission
Robert Baker
I would prefer that he read all the request for admissions and then we have the response read at one time so that it doesn't mislead the jury that we're admitting things when we have qualifiers
Baker's concern is jury perception — he doesn't want bare 'admit' answers read without the qualifying language attached
Hiroshi Fujisaki
you will read a qualification at the beginning. We can read all of the requests for admission and admissions at the conclusion. You may again restate the qualification that it applies to all of these admissions that were made
The court's practical compromise resolving the format dispute

Evidence (2)

Informal
Requests for admissions related to conventional serology tests — multiple items listed by evidence item number
discussed, format of presentation negotiated
Informal
Defense definition of 'match' as 'cannot be excluded as a contributor as an evidence fragment'
discussed as qualifier to be read to jury

Notable Exchanges (1)

Tom LambertRobert BakerHiroshi Fujisaki
Lambert proposes reading qualifications once at the start; Baker counters he wants all RFAs read first then all responses together; Fujisaki splits the difference — qualification at start and restated at end
strategic

Objections

1 objections (0 sustained, 0 overruled)
Proceeding 8289 • 17 utterances
Civil Trial
Department 103
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