📄 Sidebar: document admissibility — Wednesday, August 16, 1995
Address:
C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\AUG\16\SIDEBAR-DOCUMENT-ADMISSIBILITY.DOC
TRIAL
▲ Day 137 of 167

Sidebar: document admissibility

Date: Wednesday, August 16, 1995 • Utterances: 19
A brief sidebar in the civil trial where defense attorney Peter Neufeld sought to introduce document 1319, a handout given to SID criminalists, specifically limiting his use to instruction no. 14. After Darden initially raised concerns about scope and authentication, Ito ruled that Neufeld must lay a proper foundation, and Darden ultimately withdrew any objection once the scope was confined to item 14 only.
1 (The following proceedings were held at the bench:)
2 MR. NEUFELD:

Judge, unlike the other documents in the guide, when I received--this was discovered, this is one of the items--in fact, this was--they noted on the bottom of it that it's a handout given to the criminalist, and all I'm going to ask about is one particular sentence.

3 THE COURT:

Keep your voice down.

4 MR. NEUFELD:

One particular sentence, instruction no. 14. That's it.

5 THE COURT:

All right. What was the previous objection?

6 MR. DARDEN:

First of all, I asked him if he's going into the whole thing. I asked him that, and he said yes. So if I can have a moment to look at item 14.

7 MR. NEUFELD:

Item 14.

8 THE COURT:

You need to ask some foundational questions, ask if she knows what it is and if she agrees with this policy.

KEY QUOTE
9 MR. NEUFELD:

This is something SID handed out to their criminalists.

10 THE COURT:

I'm just saying you need to lay a foundation for it.

11 MR. NEUFELD:

Okay. I will.

12 THE COURT:

That's all. All right.

13 MR. DARDEN:

Can I ask one question? What was counsel's representation as to the--

14 MR. NEUFELD:

Item 14.

15 MR. DARDEN:

As to the--

16 MR. NEUFELD:

That was on there before I received it. That was written on the item before I received it as discovery.

17 MR. DARDEN:

Are we going to go into the issue at all, the authentication of this?

18 THE COURT:

No. Just item 14.

19 MR. DARDEN:

No objection to item 14.

KEY QUOTE

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (3)

Peter Neufeld
all I'm going to ask about is one particular sentence. Instruction no. 14. That's it.
Neufeld narrowed his intended use of the document to defuse authentication and scope objections.
Lance A. Ito
You need to ask some foundational questions, ask if she knows what it is and if she agrees with this policy.
The court's condition for admission — foundation must be laid before the document can be used.
Christopher Darden
No objection to item 14.
Once scope was limited and authentication question resolved, prosecution dropped its opposition entirely.

Evidence (1)

1319
A document handed out by SID to its criminalists, containing numbered instructions; defense sought to use instruction no. 14 specifically.
discussed, conditionally approved pending foundation

Notable Exchanges (1)

Peter NeufeldChristopher DardenLance A. Ito
Darden initially objected based on Neufeld's earlier representation that he would use the whole document; once Neufeld clarified he only wanted item 14, Ito conditioned admission on proper foundation and Darden withdrew his objection.
strategic

Objections

1 objections (0 sustained, 0 overruled)
Proceeding 7325 • 19 utterances
Criminal Trial
Department 103
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📂 AUG 16, 1995 📄 Sidebar: document admissibilit
AUG 16, 1995 KRT DvH TD