YOUR HONOR, I OBJECT. SHE'S SITTING RIGHT IN FRONT OF MARCIA. SHE'S SEATED RIGHT IN FRONT OF THE JURORS AND ALTERNATES. IT'S A SMALL COURTROOM. SHE SHOULD NOT BE DOING THAT.
YOUR HONOR, I WANT TO INDICATE, I'VE MET WITH HER FOUR OR FIVE TIMES. SO I DID NOT NECESSARILY ASK SPECIFIC QUESTIONS.
OKAY. SHE HEARD YOU THINKING. I ASKED HER IF SHE WANTED TO LEAVE, AND SHE SAID SHE JUST WANTED TO SIT FOR A MINUTE.
THE POINT I WANTED TO MAKE IS, THIS IS GOING TO BE A LONG TRIAL AND I TRIED TO PROTECT THIS FROM HAPPENING, YOUR HONOR. TIMING IS EVERYTHING. I MEAN THIS WAS LIKE -- WE'RE NOT -- THAT WAS PLANNED. THE THING IS, SHE'S JUST SOPHISTICATED. LOOK AT THIS WOMEN AND THEN LOOK AT THEM. THEY'RE NOT FOOLING ANYBODY WITH THIS STUFF. AND I THINK THE RECORD SHOULD SO INDICATE. THAT WITNESS GETS UP THERE -- AND HE'S SPENT A LOT OF TIME WITH HER, AND SHE KEEPS VOLUNTEERING THIS STUFF. I MEAN, I'M TELLING THEM IT'S GOING TO BACKFIRE ON THEM. THEY KEEP DOING IT AND IT'S NOT RIGHT. WE COMPLAIN CONTINUOUSLY ABOUT INVESTIGATING OFFICERS, WHATEVER, FUHRMAN, THEN THEY SIT HERE IN HER SEAT NO MORE THAN TWO FEET FROM THIS JURY. SHE CAN'T LOOK AT THEM. IT'S JUST NOT FAIR, JUDGE, AND IT WAS DONE BY DESIGN. AND WE'LL BE HERE FOR FOREVER WITH THIS KIND OF THING. I WOULD ASK THAT THE COURT INSTRUCT COUNSEL WHEN WE COME BACK ON MONDAY -- SHE CAN CRY ALL SHE WANTS TO IN QUESTIONS, BUT SHE SHOULD NOT BE CLOSE TO THE JURY AND THEY SHOULD STICK TO THE INCIDENTS AND THAT SHE SHOULD STOP VOLUNTEERING INFORMATION. AND I WANTED TO MAKE SURE ON THE RECORD THAT FOR EACH OF THE INCIDENTS, THAT MY OBJECTION WAS CLEAR FOR THE RECORD.
YOUR HONOR, IN RESPONSE, I WOULD SAY THAT COUNSEL HAS EXHIBITED A COMPLETE LACK OF SENSITIVITY FOR THIS WOMAN WHO HAS SUFFERED A LOSS. WHETHER OR NOT HE WANTS TO STATE PUBLICLY THAT IT'S AS A RESULT OF VIOLENCE DONE BY HIS CLIENT OR NOT, AND I THINK HER CONDUCT IS COMPLETELY UNDERSTANDABLE AND I THINK THE JURY RECOGNIZES THAT HER SISTER IS DEAD. MR. COCHRAN, HOW ELSE DO YOU EXPECT HER TO REACT, ESPECIALLY GIVEN THESE CIRCUMSTANCES, GIVEN HER RELATIONSHIP TO THE DEFENDANT, GIVEN HOW LONG SHE'S KNOWN HIM? SHE IS GRIEVING, MR. COCHRAN. IT HAPPENS WHEN PEOPLE LOSE THEIR LOVED ONES. AND I CAN'T CONTROL THAT. I CAN'T STOP THAT. I DIDN'T WIELD THE KNIFE. I DIDN'T KILL HER. I HAVE TAKEN TIME, A LOT OF TIME TO SIT WITH HER AND TRY TO -- YOU KNOW, TRY TO HELP HER THROUGH THIS AND TRY TO ACQUAINT HER WITH TYPES OF THINGS THAT ARE GOING TO BE ASKED HER IN THIS CASE THAT MAYBE SHE WON'T BREAK DOWN ON THE STAND, OKAY. BUT HEY, I'M NOT A PSYCHIATRIST.
COUNSEL, THE ONE OBSERVATION I WILL MAKE, MR. COCHRAN, YOU KNOW, AS I MENTIONED HERE TODAY -- AND I AM FAMILIAR WITH WHO THIS WITNESS IS AND MY COMMENT IS, TIMING IS EVERYTHING. I MEAN THIS IS JUST ONE OF THOSE NUMBER OF DRAWS THAT GOES TO THE PROSECUTION'S TACTICAL BENEFIT TODAY. THERE'S NO WAY TO PREVENT WHERE THE COURT DAY IS GOING TO START OR END. BUT, MR. DARDEN, I WILL MAKE THIS OBSERVATION TO YOU. I THINK I HAVE GIVEN YOU BROAD LEEWAY ON THESE 1101(B) INCIDENTS TO BRING FROM A WIDE RANGE OF INCIDENTS. HOWEVER, I WOULD APPRECIATE IF YOU WOULD STICK TO THE SUM AND SUBSTANCE OF THOSE INCIDENTS AND NOT EMBELLISH UPON THEM. THE ISSUE IS THE DOMESTIC VIOLENCE. THESE GRATUITOUS COMMENTS ABOUT HIS BIG EGO, PEOPLE BUYING HIM DRINKS DON'T ADD TO THAT. AT LEAST NOT IN THIS CONTEXT WITH THIS WITNESS. SO THE COURT I THINK HAS BEEN MORE THAN GENEROUS TO YOU AS FAR AS THOSE PERIMETERS ARE CONCERNED. BUT I WOULD ASK YOU TO STAY WITHIN THOSE PERIMETERS.
DON'T TRY. DO IT. I REALIZE THIS IS A DIFFICULT WITNESS. AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO SIT HER DOWN AND ENCOURAGE HER TO TAKE A BREATH AFTER SHE HEARS EVERY QUESTION BEFORE SHE STARTS TO ANSWER AND ANSWER THE EXACT QUESTION. OTHERWISE, WE WILL BE HERE FOR THREE DAYS.
KEY QUOTEYOU KNOW, I WENT OVER TO DEFENSE COUNSEL AND I INDICATED TO THEM THAT I WAS GOING TO LEAD HER A LITTLE BIT, AT LEAST UP TO THE AREAS, YOU KNOW, OF INQUIRY AND TRY TO CONTROL THIS. BUT, YOU KNOW, SHE BLURT THESE OUT. BUT GEEZ, FRANKLY I'M TOUCHED BY IT. I FEEL BAD ABOUT IT. MAYBE I'M A LITTLE SLOW TO STOP HER, BUT I WILL ATTEMPT TO DO BETTER. I WILL SAY HOWEVER THAT MR. COCHRAN HAS BEEN MY MENTOR FOR YEARS AND I'VE LEARNED --
WELL, HE'S GOING TO SEE WHAT EFFECT IT HAS ON THE JURY. I DON'T THINK IT'S GOING TO HAVE THE EFFECT YOU THINK YOU ARE HAVING. THESE PEOPLE ARE SOPHISTICATED.
WATCH THEM, SEE IF THEY'RE MANIPULATED OR NOT. YOU GUYS KEEP TRYING THIS AND SEE HOW IT ENDS UP IN JUNE. I'LL REMIND YOU ABOUT IT. YOU SAY YOU'RE WORRIED ABOUT ME. I THINK IT'S OUTRAGEOUS. YOU AND YOU GUYS -- I MEAN EVERYBODY UNDERSTANDS SHE IS A VICTIM. WE UNDERSTAND THAT AS MUCH AS ANYBODY ELSE. BUT OUR CLIENT HASN'T HAD A CHANCE TO GRIEVE EITHER. YOU TALK ABOUT KNIVES AND THINGS. OUR CLIENT SAID HE DIDN'T WIELD THAT KNIFE. HE DIDN'T HAVE A CHANCE TO GRIEVE EITHER.
LET ME JUST SAY THIS IN RESPONSE. I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT YOU, OKAY. I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT YOU AT ALL.
KEY QUOTELOOK AT THIS WOMEN AND THEN LOOK AT THEM. THEY'RE NOT FOOLING ANYBODY WITH THIS STUFF... SHE CAN'T LOOK AT THEM. IT'S JUST NOT FAIR, JUDGE, AND IT WAS DONE BY DESIGN.
I DIDN'T WIELD THE KNIFE. I DIDN'T KILL HER. I HAVE TAKEN TIME, A LOT OF TIME TO SIT WITH HER AND TRY TO HELP HER THROUGH THIS.
DON'T TRY. DO IT. I REALIZE THIS IS A DIFFICULT WITNESS. AND I WOULD ENCOURAGE YOU TO SIT HER DOWN AND ENCOURAGE HER TO TAKE A BREATH AFTER SHE HEARS EVERY QUESTION BEFORE SHE STARTS TO ANSWER.
OUR CLIENT HASN'T HAD A CHANCE TO GRIEVE EITHER. YOU TALK ABOUT KNIVES AND THINGS. OUR CLIENT SAID HE DIDN'T WIELD THAT KNIFE. HE DIDN'T HAVE A CHANCE TO GRIEVE EITHER.
LET ME JUST SAY THIS IN RESPONSE. I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT YOU, OKAY. I'M NOT WORRIED ABOUT YOU AT ALL.