Sidebar: calendar foundation

📄 Sidebar: calendar foundation — Thursday, February 2, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\FEB\2\SIDEBAR-CALENDAR-FOUNDATION.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 11 of 167

◀ Redirect examination of Ronald Shipp (part 1) Redirect examination of Ronald Shipp (part 2) ▶

Date: Thursday, February 2, 1995 • Utterances: 14

Defense attorney Carl Douglas objected to a witness testifying about OJ Simpson's personal calendar on foundation grounds, arguing the witness had never seen or participated in preparing the calendars. Judge Ito quickly cut through Douglas's lengthy argument, distilled the objection to its core (foundation/competency), and sustained it, shutting down further argument from both sides.

# 1 (THE FOLLOWING PROCEEDINGS WERE HELD AT THE BENCH:)

# 2 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT. WE ARE OVER AT THE SIDE BAR. MR. DOUGLAS, DO YOU HAVE AN OBJECTION?

# 3 MR. DOUGLAS:

I HAVE SEVERAL OBJECTIONS, YOUR HONOR. ONE, THIS WITNESS CANNOT TESTIFY ON HEARSAY GROUNDS TO ANYTHING CONCERNING ANY CALENDARS BECAUSE THIS WITNESS HAS NEVER SEEN THE CALENDARS. THIS -- IT WOULD BE HEARSAY. HE MAY HAVE SEEN THEM NOW, BUT YOUR HONOR AS WELL, THERE WAS THIS WHOLE PROBLEM ABOUT TWO DIFFERENT CALENDARS AND THEY ARE SAYING DIFFERENT THINGS AND WHETHER ONE CALENDAR WAS CATHY RANDA'S CALENDAR OR WHETHER ONE CALENDAR WAS MR. SIMPSON'S CALENDAR. I HAVE, JUST FOR COMPARISON, A COPY OF TWO DIFFERENT CALENDARS.

# 4 THE COURT:

BUT MR. DOUGLAS, BEFORE WE GO INTO ALL THAT ARGUMENT, ISN'T YOUR OBJECTION FOUNDATION, THAT IF HE HAS NEVER SEEN THE CALENDAR OR PARTICIPATED IN ITS PREPARATION, THEN HE CAN'T TESTIFY TO WHAT IT IS? HE IS INCOMPETENT TO TESTIFY? IS THAT WHAT YOUR OBJECTION IS?

# 5 MR. DOUGLAS:

YES, YOUR HONOR. THAT IS WHY I'M OBJECTING TO IT BEING PRESENTED TO HIM.

# 6 MR. DARDEN:

I'M GOING TO SHOW HIM THE CALENDAR. IS THIS THE DATE? IS THIS YOUR NAME? I'M GOING TO CALL CATHY RANDA AND STRAIGHTEN OUT --

# 7 THE COURT:

YOU CAN JUST SAY -- YOU CAN ESTABLISH, BUT NOT USING THE CALENDAR. HE CAN'T TESTIFY TO WHAT THIS IS UNLESS HE HAS SEEN IT OR DONE SOMETHING WITH IT.

# 8 MR. DARDEN:

OKAY.

# 9 MR. DOUGLAS:

HE HASN'T SEEN --

# 10 MR. DARDEN:

HE HAS RULED.

# 11 MS. CLARK:

YOUR HONOR, WE COULD --

# 12 MR. COCHRAN:

HE HAS RULED.

# 13 THE COURT:

I HAVE RULED. BYE.

# 14 MR. COCHRAN:

HE HAS RULED.

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (3)

Lance A. Ito

I HAVE RULED. BYE.

Unusually blunt dismissal from the bench — Ito's no-nonsense style on full display.

Lance A. Ito

ISN'T YOUR OBJECTION FOUNDATION, THAT IF HE HAS NEVER SEEN THE CALENDAR OR PARTICIPATED IN ITS PREPARATION, THEN HE CAN'T TESTIFY TO WHAT IT IS? HE IS INCOMPETENT TO TESTIFY?

Judge cuts through Douglas's multi-part argument and reframes it cleanly as a foundation objection.

Christopher Darden

HE HAS RULED.

Darden concedes and signals to co-counsel to stop arguing — rare moment of prosecution accepting a loss quickly.

Evidence (1)

Informal

Two versions of OJ Simpson's personal calendar, one possibly belonging to Cathy Randa (Simpson's personal secretary), with conflicting entries

challenged on foundation grounds; excluded from witness testimony

Notable Exchanges (2)

Lance A. Ito•Carl Douglas

Ito interrupts Douglas's sprawling multi-part objection and reduces it to a single clean legal basis — foundation — cutting off the longer argument before it could develop.

efficient/controlling

Marcia Clark•Johnnie Cochran•Lance A. Ito

Clark attempts to speak after the ruling; Cochran twice repeats 'HE HAS RULED' and the judge closes with 'BYE,' ending the sidebar.

light/firm

Light Moments (1)

Lance A. Ito

Judge Ito ends the sidebar with a curt 'BYE.' after ruling, cutting off any further argument.

Objections

1 objections (1 sustained, 0 overruled)

Proceeding 4566 • 14 utterances

Criminal Trial

Department 103