Redirect examination of Pablo Fenjves (part 1)

📄 Redirect examination of Pablo Fenjves (part 1) — Tuesday, February 7, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\FEB\7\REDIRECT-EXAMINATION-OF-PABLO-.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 14 of 167

◀ Cross-examination of Pablo Fenjves Sidebar: prior statements ▶

Witness: Pablo Fenjves
Examiner: Marcia Clark
Called by: Prosecution • Date: Tuesday, February 7, 1995 • Utterances: 44

Marcia Clark conducts redirect of neighbor Pablo Fenjves, clarifying that his reference to 'Bundy and Dorothy' was a general geographic reference point, not an exact location. She also gives Fenjves a chance to explain a police report discrepancy — the report incorrectly suggested he went outside and saw a Jeep on the night of the murders, when in fact this occurred during a later visit with officers. The examination ends at a sidebar after Cochran blocks Clark's attempt to introduce a prior consistent statement from the July 1994 preliminary hearing.

# 1 THE COURT:

REDIRECT.

# 2 MS. CLARK:

YES, THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR,

# 3

REDIRECT EXAMINATION

# 4

BY MS. CLARK:

# 5 Q:

ALL RIGHT. SIR, WHEN YOU INDICATED THAT THE BARKING SEEMED TO COME FROM THE AREA OF BUNDY AND DOROTHY, DID YOU MEAN PRECISELY THAT CORNER, THE VERY CORNER WHERE BUNDY AND DOROTHY INTERSECT?

# 6 MR. COCHRAN:

OBJECT TO THE FORM OF THAT QUESTION, YOUR HONOR.

# 7 THE COURT:

SUSTAINED. IT'S LEADING.

# 8 Q:

BY MS. CLARK: WHAT DID YOU MEAN BY THAT?

# 9 MR. COCHRAN:

THE QUESTION HAS BEEN ASKED AND ANSWERED.

# 10 THE COURT:

OVERRULED. YOU CAN ANSWER THE QUESTION.

# 11 PABLO FENJVES:

BASICALLY, THAT THAT WAS THE GENERAL AREA THAT THE SOUND WAS COMING FROM. IT WOULD BE VERY HARD TO PINPOINT THE EXACT LOCATION. SO THAT IS THE CLOSEST CORNER AND THAT'S WHAT I USED AS MY -- YOU KNOW, MY GEOGRAPHICAL PINPOINT.

KEY QUOTE

# 12 Q:

BY MS. CLARK: AS A REFERENCE POINT?

# 13 A:

THAT'S ALL IT WAS, YES, MA'AM.

# 14 Q:

AND IN YOUR OPINION, IS THE LOCATION OF 875 SOUTH BUNDY IN THE GENERAL AREA OF BUNDY AND DOROTHY?

# 15 A:

YES, IT IS.

# 16 Q:

NOW, YOU WERE ATTEMPTING -- YOU ASKED FOR PERMISSION TO EXPLAIN TO US THAT STATEMENT IN THE POLICE REPORT ABOUT SEEING THE JEEP.

# 17 MR. COCHRAN:

OBJECT TO THE FROM OF THE QUESTION. IT'S ARGUMENTATIVE TO START WITH.

# 18 THE COURT:

OVERRULED.

# 19 Q:

BY MS. CLARK: AND WOULD YOU LIKE A CHANCE TO EXPLAIN THAT?

# 20 A:

YES. VERY BRIEFLY, WHAT HAPPENED WAS, THE TWO OFFICERS ASKED ME IF WE COULD GO OUT ON THE DECK AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE HOUSE, AND WE DID THIS. AND I ASSUME THE CONFUSION AROSE FROM THE FACT THAT WE WERE OUT ON THE DECK AND THAT THERE WAS A GREEN JEEP THAT WAS BEING DUSTED FOR FINGERPRINTS IN FRONT OF THE NICOLE BROWN SIMPSON RESIDENCE. AND IN THEIR REPORT, YOU KNOW, THEY MADE A SMALL MISTAKE AND ASSUMED THAT I HAD GONE OUT ON THE NIGHT IN QUESTION.

# 21 MR. COCHRAN:

YOUR HONOR, I MOVE TO STRIKE THAT AS SPECULATIVE.

# 22 THE COURT:

OVERRULED.

# 23 Q:

BY MS. CLARK: AND DO YOU RECALL GIVING THAT EXPLANATION AT THE PRELIMINARY HEARING WHEN YOU WERE ASKED ABOUT THIS ISSUE PREVIOUSLY BACK IN JULY?

# 24 A:

I MAY HAVE TRIED GIVING THAT EXPLANATION. I MAY NOT HAVE MADE MYSELF AS CLEAR AS I WOULD HAVE LIKED TO HAVE MADE MYSELF.

# 25 Q:

DO YOU RECALL ALSO BEING ASKED AT THE PRELIMINARY HEARING BACK IN JULY ABOUT THE PORTION OF THE POLICE REPORT THAT INDICATES THAT YOU WENT OUT ON THE REAR PORCH AND WHEN YOU HEARD THE BARKING? DO YOU REMEMBER THAT?

# 26 A:

YES. I REMEMBER BEING SHOWN THAT REPORT ALSO.

# 27 Q:

AND DID YOU EXPLAIN THE DISCREPANCY THERE AS WELL?

# 28 A:

YES, I ATTEMPTED TO.

# 29 Q:

AND DO YOU RECALL WHAT YOU EXPLAINED TO COUNSEL BACK IN JULY OF 1994 ABOUT THAT DISCREPANCY?

# 30 MR. COCHRAN:

OBJECTION TO THE USE OF THE WORD "COUNSEL". I WAS NOT THERE.

# 31 MS. CLARK:

MR. SHAPIRO WAS.

# 32 MR. COCHRAN:

UNCERTAIN.

# 33 THE COURT:

OVERRULED.

# 34 PABLO FENJVES:

COULD YOU REPEAT THE QUESTION? I AM SORRY.

# 35 THE COURT:

I THOUGHT WE ALREADY EXPLAINED THAT DISCREPANCY.

# 36 MS. CLARK:

YOUR HONOR, WHAT I'M TRYING TO DO IS POINT OUT A PRIOR CONSISTENT STATEMENT.

KEY QUOTE

# 37 THE COURT:

I AM SORRY?

# 38 MS. CLARK:

PRIOR CONSISTENT STATEMENT.

# 39 MR. COCHRAN:

YOUR HONOR, ASKED AND ANSWERED. WE ALREADY COVERED IT.

# 40 MS. CLARK:

NOT BY ME.

# 41 MR. COCHRAN:

CUMULATIVE.

# 42 THE COURT:

IT'S CUMULATIVE AT THIS POINT.

# 43 MS. CLARK:

MAY WE APPROACH?

# 44 THE COURT:

SURE.

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (4)

Pablo Fenjves

BASICALLY, THAT THAT WAS THE GENERAL AREA THAT THE SOUND WAS COMING FROM. IT WOULD BE VERY HARD TO PINPOINT THE EXACT LOCATION. SO THAT IS THE CLOSEST CORNER AND THAT'S WHAT I USED AS MY -- YOU KNOW, MY GEOGRAPHICAL PINPOINT.

Rehabilitates his testimony against cross-examination that tried to make his location estimate seem imprecise or inconsistent.

Pablo Fenjves

IN THEIR REPORT, YOU KNOW, THEY MADE A SMALL MISTAKE AND ASSUMED THAT I HAD GONE OUT ON THE NIGHT IN QUESTION.

Fenjves attributes the police report discrepancy about the Jeep to officer error — he went outside with detectives during a subsequent visit, not on the night of the murders.

Marcia Clark

YOUR HONOR, WHAT I'M TRYING TO DO IS POINT OUT A PRIOR CONSISTENT STATEMENT.

Clark reveals her legal strategy for the line of questioning Cochran is blocking — she wants to show Fenjves gave the same explanation at the preliminary hearing, bolstering his credibility.

Johnnie Cochran

OBJECTION TO THE USE OF THE WORD 'COUNSEL'. I WAS NOT THERE.

Cochran objects to being implicitly associated with the preliminary hearing cross-examination; Clark corrects that it was Shapiro, not Cochran.

Evidence (1)

Informal

Police report containing discrepancy — states Fenjves went out on rear porch on the night in question and observed a green Jeep being dusted for fingerprints

discussed; witness explains it as officer error conflating two separate visits

Notable Exchanges (2)

Marcia Clark•Johnnie Cochran•Lance A. Ito

Clark attempts to elicit Fenjves's prior consistent statement from the July 1994 preliminary hearing. Cochran objects as asked-and-answered and cumulative; Ito sustains on cumulativeness. Clark requests a sidebar to argue the prior consistent statement exception.

strategic

Johnnie Cochran•Marcia Clark

Cochran objects to the word 'counsel' implying he was at the preliminary hearing; Clark clarifies it was Shapiro. Cochran's response is 'UNCERTAIN.'

procedural with mild friction

Light Moments (1)

Johnnie Cochran / Marcia Clark

Cochran objects to being called 'counsel' at the preliminary hearing since he wasn't there; Clark flatly replies 'Mr. Shapiro was.' Cochran's only rejoinder is 'UNCERTAIN.'

Credibility Attacks (1)

⚔ Pablo Fenjves

prior inconsistent statement (rehabilitation)

Clark rehabilitates Fenjves against cross-examination challenges to his police report statements — the Jeep sighting and the rear porch detail — by eliciting his explanation that officers conflated two separate occasions in their report.

Objections

6 objections (2 sustained, 4 overruled)

Proceeding 4717 • 44 utterances • Prosecution witness

Criminal Trial

Department 103