Sidebar: hearsay letter evidence

📄 Sidebar: hearsay letter evidence — Wednesday, January 25, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\JAN\25\SIDEBAR-HEARSAY-LETTER-EVIDENC.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 6 of 167

◀ Opening statement — Johnnie Cochran (part 4) Opening statement — Johnnie Cochran (part 5) ▶

Date: Wednesday, January 25, 1995 • Utterances: 33

During opening statements, Hodgman objected on hearsay grounds when Cochran displayed a three-page letter dated July 28, 1994 — sent from the medical examiner to Hodgman — detailing 16 changes made to the coroner's report after a meeting with defense expert Dr. Michael Baden. Cochran argued it was a business record and an official addendum to the coroner's report, and that it had already been reviewed in a pre-trial 'show and tell' session. Judge Ito overruled the objection after reviewing the letter and confirming it had already been litigated.

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

# 2 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT. BILL?

# 3 MR. HODGMAN:

YES, YOUR HONOR.

# 4 THE COURT:

AT SIDEBAR.

# 5 MR. HODGMAN:

YOUR HONOR, I OBJECT TO THIS ON THE GROUNDS OF HEARSAY. THIS IS PURE HEARSAY, THIS LETTER. AND THE OBJECTION CAN BE INTERPOSED AT TRIAL WITH REGARD TO THIS, BUT AT THE MOMENT, THIS IS PURE HEARSAY.

# 6 THE COURT:

WHAT IS THIS LETTER? I CAN'T TELL.

# 7 MR. COCHRAN:

I AM SORRY, YOUR HONOR. WE WENT OVER THIS BEFORE WE DID ARGUMENT, YOUR HONOR. THIS IS A LETTER. AND WHAT I'M GOING TO DO -- LETTER SENT TO BILL HODGMAN IN THE ORDINARY COURSE OF BUSINESS. IT BECAME PART OF THE CORONER'S REPORT. THEY MADE 16 CHANGES AFTER THEY MET WITH MICHAEL BADIN. THAT'S WHAT THE EVIDENCE IS GOING TO BE. THIS LETTER HIGHLIGHTS THOSE CHANGES, LIKE THEY DIDN'T KEEP THE STOMACH CONTENTS. THIS IS IN SUPPORT OF THEIR RECORD SIGNED BY THE MEDICAL EXAMINER. WE TALKED ABOUT IT. WE PRESENTED IT TO THEM EARLY LAST FRIDAY.

# 8 THE COURT:

THIS WAS PART OF THE SHOW AND TELL?

# 9 MR. COCHRAN:

YES. IT WAS PART OF THE SHOW AND TELL, YES, IT WAS.

# 10 MR. HODGMAN:

YOUR HONOR, THE COURT DOESN'T RECALL SEEING IT. THIS IS NOT A PART OF THE OFFICIAL RECORD OF THE CORONER'S OFFICE. IT IS A LETTER THAT WAS SENT TO ME DETAILING CERTAIN THINGS. IT'S NOT A PART OF ANY OFFICIAL RECORD. WE ARE GOING TO HAVE TO LITIGATE THIS WHEN THE TIME COMES.

# 11 MR. COCHRAN:

JUDGE, WE WANT TO USE THIS. IF THEY DON'T CALL HIM, WE WANT TO USE THIS. WHEN WE TALKED TO DR. MIKE BADIN AND DR. WOLF, THEY POINTED OUT ALL THESE THINGS THEY HADN'T DONE. THIS LETTER CAME FROM THE MEDICAL EXAMINER. IT CAME TO BILL HODGMAN. THEY KNEW ABOUT IT. WE ARE GOING TO USE IT. THIS IS PART OF THEIR BUSINESS RECORDS, OFFICIAL RECORD, OFFICIAL ADDENDUM TO THE CORONER'S REPORT, JUDGE.

# 12 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT. LET ME SEE IT. DO YOU HAVE THE ORIGINAL OR A COPY?

# 13 MR. COCHRAN:

I HAVE TO GET A COPY.

# 14 (BRIEF PAUSE.)

# 15 THE COURT:

IS SOMEBODY GETTING ME A COPY OF THIS?

# 16 MR. COCHRAN:

YES. IT MAY NOT BE THE ORIGINAL. BUT I ASKED FOR A COPY.

# 17 THE COURT:

I DON'T RECALL HAVING SEEN THIS.

# 18 MR. COCHRAN:

WE DID HAVE IT ON THE BOARD. IT HAS 16 POINTS. IT CAME AS AN AMENDMENT TO THE CORONER'S REPORT.

# 19 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT. I'VE READ THE LETTER, WHICH IS A THREE-PAGE LETTER DATED JULY 28, 1994. I DO RECALL HAVING SEEN SOME OF THESE SPECIFIC ITEMS.

# 20 MR. COCHRAN:

THAT'S WHAT WE WANT TO PRESENT.

# 21 MR. HODGMAN:

MY POINT IS, YOUR HONOR, THIS LETTER WILL BE THE SUBJECT OF LITIGATION. WITH REGARD TO OPENING STATEMENT TODAY, COUNSEL CAN STATE, "YOU WILL HEAR EVIDENCE," BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH, BLAH WITH REGARD TO A NUMBER OF POINTS. BUT TO TREAT THIS -- WHICH IS PURE RANK HEARSAY -- IN OPENING STATEMENT IS INAPPROPRIATE AND BEYOND THE PROPER SCOPE OF OPENING.

# 22 MR. COCHRAN:

THEY THINK IF THEY MAKE THESE OBJECTIONS, YOUR HONOR, THEY'LL THROW ME OFF. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO THROW ME OFF. I'VE BEEN DOING THIS 33 YEARS. IT DOESN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE. BY CONTINUALLY OBJECTING, THEY ONLY HURT THEMSELVES WITH THIS JURY. I ONLY WANT TO USE THIS LETTER TO TRY TO COUCH MY STATEMENTS THIS AFTERNOON, IN THAT VEIN.

KEY QUOTE

# 23 THE COURT:

THIS PARTICULAR DOCUMENT, I THOUGHT THIS WAS ON A DIFFERENT DISPLAY.

# 24 MR. COCHRAN:

WHAT YOU SAW WAS -- LET ME TELL YOU WHAT IT IS, YOUR HONOR, AND YOU WILL RECALL THIS NOW. THEY JUST -- THEY SHOWED THE WHOLE DOCUMENT THAT YOU COULD HARDLY READ. THEY PUT UP I THINK MR. HODGMAN'S NAME. THEN I ASKED THEM TO GO IMMEDIATELY TO THE 16 POINTS. THAT'S THE WHOLE THING. AND I'M GOING TO SAY, "THIS IS WHAT WE EXPECT THE EVIDENCE TO SHOW." I'M NOT MISLEADING THE JURY TALKING ABOUT THIS. IF THEY'RE GOING TO OBJECT TO EVERY ONE OF OUR EXHIBITS WHICH WE WENT OVER, WE'LL BE HERE FOREVER.

# 25 MR. HODGMAN:

YOUR HONOR, THIS IS DIFFERENT. I INFORMED THE COURT THIS AFTERNOON AND I INFORMED COUNSEL THAT IF SOMETHING IS ARGUMENTATIVE, I WILL OBJECT. IF SOMETHING IS HEARSAY, I WILL OBJECT. I TRIED TO GIVE EVERYONE FAIR NOTICE.

# 26 THE COURT:

MY RECOLLECTION THOUGH IS, WE HAD ALREADY GONE OVER THIS PARTICULAR ITEM IN OUR SHOW AND TELL.

# 27 MR. COCHRAN:

WE DID, JUDGE.

# 28 MR. SCHECK:

EVERY POINT WAS PUT UP ON THAT SCREEN.

# 29 MR. COCHRAN:

EVERY ONE.

# 30 THE COURT:

NOW THAT I READ IT, I RECOGNIZE THE POINTS.

# 31 MR. COCHRAN:

IT'S NOT FAIR, JUDGE, FOR HIM TO KEEP DOING THIS. WE WENT THROUGH EVERYTHING. IF THEY'RE GOING TO REARGUE EVERYTHING WE'VE ALREADY DONE, THAT'S NOT FAIR.

# 32 MR. HODGMAN:

I DON'T INTEND TO DO THAT, MR. COCHRAN. I DON'T. I INTEND TO MAKE OBJECTIONS WHEN APPROPRIATE. AND, YOUR HONOR, I HAVE STATED I DON'T INTEND TO JUMP UP AND DOWN, BUT --

# 33 THE COURT:

MR. HODGMAN, AT THE SHOW AND TELL, WE DID GO THROUGH THESE POINTS. WE'VE ALREADY LITIGATED THIS. OBJECTION IS OVERRULED.

KEY QUOTE

Temperature

tense

Key Quotes (4)

William Hodgman

TO TREAT THIS -- WHICH IS PURE RANK HEARSAY -- IN OPENING STATEMENT IS INAPPROPRIATE AND BEYOND THE PROPER SCOPE OF OPENING.

Prosecution's core argument: referencing an unadmitted hearsay document during opening exceeds proper bounds.

Johnnie Cochran

THEY THINK IF THEY MAKE THESE OBJECTIONS, YOUR HONOR, THEY'LL THROW ME OFF. THEY'RE NOT GOING TO THROW ME OFF. I'VE BEEN DOING THIS 33 YEARS. IT DOESN'T MAKE A DIFFERENCE. BY CONTINUALLY OBJECTING, THEY ONLY HURT THEMSELVES WITH THIS JURY.

Cochran turns the objection into a meta-argument about jury perception, explicitly framing Hodgman's tactics as self-defeating.

Lance A. Ito

MR. HODGMAN, AT THE SHOW AND TELL, WE DID GO THROUGH THESE POINTS. WE'VE ALREADY LITIGATED THIS. OBJECTION IS OVERRULED.

Court's ruling, grounded in the prior show-and-tell session — Hodgman's objection was too late.

Johnnie Cochran

THIS LETTER CAME FROM THE MEDICAL EXAMINER. IT CAME TO BILL HODGMAN. THEY KNEW ABOUT IT. THIS IS PART OF THEIR BUSINESS RECORDS, OFFICIAL RECORD, OFFICIAL ADDENDUM TO THE CORONER'S REPORT, JUDGE.

Defense's business-records exception argument — positioning the letter as an official document, not informal hearsay.

Evidence (1)

Informal

Three-page letter dated July 28, 1994, sent from the medical examiner to William Hodgman, listing 16 changes made to the coroner's report following a meeting with defense expert Dr. Michael Baden. Defense characterized it as a business record and official addendum.

displayed during opening statement, hearsay objection overruled

Notable Exchanges (2)

Johnnie Cochran•William Hodgman

Cochran accused Hodgman of using objections to disrupt the defense's opening, arguing it would backfire with the jury. Hodgman maintained he was objecting only on legitimate grounds and had given fair notice.

heated

Lance A. Ito•Johnnie Cochran

Ito initially couldn't identify the letter, then after reading it confirmed he recognized the 16 points from the pre-trial show-and-tell session, validating Cochran's account.

procedural

Credibility Attacks (1)

⚔ Coroner's Office / Medical Examiner

documentary evidence of post-hoc record changes

Cochran argued the letter proved the coroner made 16 changes to the official report after meeting with Michael Baden, implying the report was altered — including failure to preserve stomach contents.

Objections

1 objections (0 sustained, 1 overruled)

Proceeding 4489 • 33 utterances

Criminal Trial

Department 103