Cross-examination of Ronald Shipp (afternoon, part 2)

📄 Cross-examination of Ronald Shipp (afternoon, part 2) — Thursday, February 2, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\FEB\2\CROSS-EXAMINATION-OF-RONALD-SH.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 11 of 167

◀ Sidebar: Cathy Randa hearsay Redirect examination of Ronald Shipp (part 1) ▶

Witness: Ron Shipp
Examiner: Carl Douglas
Called by: Prosecution • Date: Thursday, February 2, 1995 • Utterances: 42

Carl Douglas wraps up his cross-examination of Ronald Shipp by probing Shipp's close personal relationship with Nicole Brown Simpson and suggesting he harbored romantic interest in her — a line of attack aimed at bias. Douglas also elicits that Shipp saw OJ at the House of Blues with Paula Barbieri a week or two before the murders, and that OJ appeared happy.

# 1 (THE FOLLOWING PROCEEDINGS WERE HELD IN OPEN COURT:)

# 2 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU, COUNSEL. MR. DOUGLAS, YOU MAY CONTINUE.

# 3 MR. DOUGLAS:

THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR.

# 4 Q:

MR. SHIPP, AS I WAS ASKING BEFORE THE OBJECTION, DO YOU RECALL AN OCCASION IN 1994 WHEN YOU HAD A CONVERSATION WITH CATHY RANDA AND MISS RANDA ASKED YOU TO STOP DROPPING BY MR. SIMPSON'S HOME UNANNOUNCED?

# 5 A:

NEVER.

# 6 Q:

IT DIDN'T OCCUR IN APRIL OR MAY OF 1994 OVER LUNCH?

# 7 A:

NO ONE HAS EVER ASKED ME TO STOP DROPPING BY THAT HOUSE.

# 8 Q:

OKAY. LET'S TALK ABOUT THE NATURE OF YOUR RELATIONSHIP WITH MRS. SIMPSON. YOU AND SHE MET BEFORE THE SIMPSONS WERE MARRIED, CORRECT?

# 9 A:

CORRECT.

# 10 Q:

AND YOU AND SHE BECAME CLOSE, CORRECT?

# 11 A:

GOOD FRIENDS.

# 12 Q:

IN 1989 YOU SAID THAT YOU SPOKE TO HER ALMOST DAILY AT ONE PERIOD OF TIME, TRUE?

# 13 A:

YOU MEAN AFTER THE INCIDENT?

# 14 Q:

AFTER THE INCIDENT IN '89?

# 15 A:

YEAH, PRETTY MUCH.

# 16 Q:

AND YOU CONTINUED TO HAVE CONVERSATIONS WITH HER EVEN AFTER SHE AND MR. SIMPSON BROKE UP, CORRECT?

# 17 A:

YES, I DID.

# 18 Q:

YOU WOULD HAVE OCCASIONS WHEN YOU WOULD VISIT HER AT HER HOME ON GRETNA GREEN IN LOS ANGELES, DIDN'T YOU?

# 19 A:

TWICE. I THINK I WAS OVER THERE TWICE.

# 20 Q:

THERE WERE OTHER OCCASIONS WHEN YOU WOULD SPEAK TO HER ON THE TELEPHONE, CORRECT?

# 21 A:

CORRECT.

# 22 Q:

YOU WOULD SPEAK WITH HER WHEN SHE MOVED TO THE LOCATION ON BUNDY, DIDN'T YOU?

# 23 A:

YES, I DID.

# 24 Q:

YOU CONSIDERED HER A CLOSE FRIEND?

# 25 A:

YES, I DID.

# 26 Q:

DURING THE COURSE OF THEIR MARRIAGE YOU NEVER HAD AN OCCASION TO PERSONALLY OBSERVE ANY ARGUMENTS BETWEEN MR. AND MRS. SIMPSON, DID YOU?

# 27 A:

NONE WHATSOEVER.

# 28 Q:

ISN'T IT TRUE, SIR, THAT YOU HAVE IN THE PAST TOLD MR. SIMPSON'S FRIENDS THAT IF MR. SIMPSON WEREN'T AROUND YOU MIGHT HAVE A SHOT AT NICOLE BROWN SIMPSON YOURSELF?

# 29 A:

NO, I DID NOT.

# 30 Q:

YOU HAVE NEVER SAID THAT TO ANY OF MR. SIMPSON'S FRIENDS?

# 31 A:

EXCUSE ME FOR SMILING, BUT NO, I DID NOT. I'M SORRY.

KEY QUOTE

# 32 Q:

IT IS TRUE, THOUGH, THAT YOU HAD AN OCCASION TO SEE MR. SIMPSON OUT PUBLICLY A WEEK OR TWO BEFORE THE DEATHS, DIDN'T YOU?

# 33 A:

I SURE DID.

# 34 Q:

YOU SAW HIM AT A NIGHT SPOT THAT IS CALLED THE HOUSE OF BLUES, DIDN'T YOU?

# 35 A:

SURE DID.

# 36 Q:

HE WAS THERE WITH HIS GIRLFRIEND, PAULA BARBIERI, WASN'T HE?

# 37 A:

CORRECT.

# 38 Q:

THEY APPEARED TO BE HAPPY TO YOU, DIDN'T THEY?

# 39 A:

HE DID.

# 40 MR. DOUGLAS:

NOTHING FURTHER.

# 41 THE COURT:

ANY REDIRECT?

# 42 MR. DARDEN:

YES, YOUR HONOR.

Temperature

tense

Key Quotes (3)

Ronald Shipp

EXCUSE ME FOR SMILING, BUT NO, I DID NOT. I'M SORRY.

Shipp's visible amusement while denying he told Simpson's friends he'd 'have a shot at Nicole' undercuts the insinuation but also shows he understood the implication — that romantic feelings could have biased his damaging testimony.

Ronald Shipp

NONE WHATSOEVER.

Shipp admits he never personally witnessed any arguments between OJ and Nicole during their marriage, weakening the foundation for his insider-witness narrative.

Ronald Shipp

HE DID.

Asked whether OJ and Paula Barbieri appeared happy together at the House of Blues shortly before the murders, Shipp answers only 'he did' — not 'they did' — a subtle distinction the jury could read as Shipp still being protective of Nicole.

Notable Exchanges (3)

Carl Douglas•Ronald Shipp

Douglas asks whether Shipp ever told Simpson's friends that 'if Mr. Simpson weren't around you might have a shot at Nicole Brown Simpson yourself.' Shipp smiles before denying it — a moment Douglas likely planted to suggest romantic jealousy as a motive for Shipp's damaging testimony.

strategic

Carl Douglas•Ronald Shipp

Douglas establishes that Shipp spoke with Nicole almost daily after the 1989 incident, visited her at her Gretna Green home, and continued contact after she moved to Bundy — building a portrait of unusual closeness to the victim.

methodical

Carl Douglas•Ronald Shipp

Shipp confirms he saw OJ at the House of Blues with Paula Barbieri a week or two before the murders and that OJ appeared happy — a detail favorable to the defense suggesting no imminent crisis.

strategic

Light Moments (1)

Ronald Shipp

Shipp laughs slightly and apologizes for smiling when asked if he ever said he'd 'have a shot at Nicole' if OJ weren't around.

Credibility Attacks (3)

⚔ Ronald Shipp

bias — romantic interest in victim

Douglas suggests Shipp told Simpson's friends he'd 'have a shot at Nicole' if OJ weren't around, implying Shipp's damaging testimony was motivated by jealousy or personal feelings toward Nicole rather than truthful recollection.

⚔ Ronald Shipp

bias — close personal relationship with victim

Douglas methodically establishes the depth of Shipp's friendship with Nicole — near-daily calls after the 1989 incident, home visits, ongoing contact at Bundy — to frame him as more loyal to Nicole than to objective truth.

⚔ Ronald Shipp

prior inconsistent omission

Douglas elicits that Shipp never personally witnessed any arguments between OJ and Nicole during their marriage, undermining the credibility of his testimony about OJ's confessed fears and dreams.

Witness Demeanor

(The witness smiles involuntarily when asked about romantic interest in Nicole, then apologizes)

Objections

None recorded

Proceeding 4564 • 42 utterances • Prosecution witness

Criminal Trial

Department 103