Sidebar: opening statement objections

📄 Sidebar: opening statement objections — Monday, January 30, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\JAN\30\SIDEBAR-OPENING-STATEMENT-OBJE.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 8 of 167

◀ Opening statement — Johnnie Cochran (part 1) Opening statement — Johnnie Cochran (part 2) ▶

Date: Monday, January 30, 1995 • Utterances: 20

During a sidebar break in opening statements, Clark objected to Cochran referencing Simpson's police statement, arguing it was hearsay unless Simpson would testify. Judge Ito resolved the dispute by telling Cochran to reframe the statement as accounting for Simpson's time without implying the police statement would be introduced. Clark then raised a second objection that Cochran had misrepresented her timeline in his opening, claiming she said Simpson returned at 10:45, not 10:15-10:30 as Cochran implied; Ito declined to correct the record, trusting the jury to remember both statements.

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

# 2 THE COURT:

WE ARE OVER AT SIDEBAR. MISS CLARK, YOU HAD AN OBJECTION.

# 3 MS. CLARK:

YES, YOUR HONOR. COUNSEL DOESN'T KNOW WHETHER OR NOT THE PROSECUTION IS GOING TO PRESENT THAT STATEMENT. AND COUNSEL FOR THE DEFENSE CANNOT PRESENT IT BECAUSE IT'S HEARSAY AS TO THE DEFENDANT UNLESS HE CAN TELL THE JURY RIGHT HERE AND NOW MR. SIMPSON WOULD TAKE THE WITNESS STAND AND SO TESTIFY, UNLESS MR. COCHRAN --

# 4 MR. COCHRAN:

I DON'T HAVE TO TELL THE JURY THAT HERE. YOU WANT TO KNOW EVERYTHING IN MY MIND. JUDGE, IT'S CLEAR -- YOU AGREE WITH THAT. JUDGE, I'M NOT GOING TO GO INTO THE STATEMENT. I'M JUST GOING TO SAY WHAT SHE SAYS, THIS TIME WAS UNACCOUNTED FOR. I'M PRIVILEGED TO SAY HE TALKED TO THE POLICE. ALL I AM SAYING IS, HE TALKED TO THE POLICE AND I THINK THE EVIDENCE WILL SHOW HIS TIME IS ACCOUNTED FOR.

# 5 THE COURT:

BUT THE INFERENCE "TALKED TO THE POLICE" IMPLIES THAT STATEMENT IS GOING TO COME IN. YOU CAN SAY THE EVIDENCE IS GOING TO SHOW WE ARE GOING TO BE ABLE TO ACCOUNT FOR HIS TIME. IT'S A DIFFERENT STATEMENT THEN.

# 6 MR. COCHRAN:

THAT'S ALL I'M TRYING TO SAY. I'M NOT GIVING A STATEMENT, JUDGE.

# 7 MS. CLARK:

THEN I THINK THE REFERENCE TO THE POLICE SHOULD BE DELETED.

# 8 MR. DARDEN:

I THINK WE SHOULD --

# 9 THE COURT:

WE GET ONE GLADIATOR.

KEY QUOTE

# 10 MR. COCHRAN:

I'LL ADDRESS IT IN THAT FASHION, IF I MIGHT, SO WE CAN TRY TO --

# 11 MS. CLARK:

ALSO, YOUR HONOR, WHILE WE ARE AT SIDEBAR -- I DID NOT WANT TO INTERRUPT MR. COCHRAN EARLIER, BUT HE MADE A BLATANT MISREPRESENTATION ABOUT THE NATURE OF MY OPENING STATEMENT IN TERMS OF TIME, REPRESENTING TO THE JURY THAT I SAID HE CAME BACK AT 10:15 OR 10:20, 10:30. I NEVER SAID ANY SUCH THING.

# 12 MR. COCHRAN:

YOU SAID THE KILLING WAS AT 10:15 AND HE HAD TO RUSH BACK.

# 13 MS. CLARK:

HE GOT BACK -- 10:45 IS WHEN I SAID HE CAME BACK.

# 14 MR. COCHRAN:

THAT'S YOUR THEORY, OKAY.

# 15 MS. CLARK:

THAT'S WHAT I SAID. I'M JUST SAYING -- TELLING THE JURY THE TRUTH.

# 16 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT.

# 17 MS. CLARK:

YOUR HONOR, COULD WE HAVE THAT CORRECTED?

# 18 THE COURT:

NO.

# 19 MS. CLARK:

COUNSEL WAS ALLOWED TO MISREPRESENT MY STATEMENT.

# 20 THE COURT:

COUNSEL, THEY REMEMBER WHAT YOU SAID AND THEY REMEMBER WHAT HE SAID. THEY KNOW THE DIFFERENCE. IF HE WANTS TO CORRECT THAT, HE'LL PROBABLY GO BACK NOW AND SAY MAYBE I MISSPOKE MYSELF ABOUT THIS.

KEY QUOTE

Temperature

tense

Key Quotes (4)

Lance A. Ito

WE GET ONE GLADIATOR.

Ito cuts off Darden when both prosecutors start speaking simultaneously — a memorable line capturing his no-nonsense courtroom management.

Lance A. Ito

COUNSEL, THEY REMEMBER WHAT YOU SAID AND THEY REMEMBER WHAT HE SAID. THEY KNOW THE DIFFERENCE.

Ito refuses Clark's request to have the record corrected, deferring to jury memory rather than judicial intervention.

Marcia Clark

HE MADE A BLATANT MISREPRESENTATION ABOUT THE NATURE OF MY OPENING STATEMENT IN TERMS OF TIME.

Clark directly accuses Cochran of misrepresenting her timeline argument to the jury during his own opening statement.

Johnnie Cochran

YOU WANT TO KNOW EVERYTHING IN MY MIND.

Cochran pushes back against Clark's demand that he reveal whether Simpson would testify, asserting defense strategy privilege.

Evidence (2)

Informal

Simpson's statement to police — whether it would be introduced at trial

disputed — Cochran told to avoid implying it would come in

Informal

Clark's timeline from her own opening statement (Simpson returning at 10:45)

disputed — Cochran characterized it as 10:15-10:30

Notable Exchanges (2)

Marcia Clark•Johnnie Cochran

Clark demands Cochran delete any reference to Simpson talking to police; Cochran argues he is merely saying time is accounted for, not introducing the statement itself. Ito sides with Clark's framing but allows Cochran to rephrase rather than strike.

strategic

Marcia Clark•Lance A. Ito

Clark asks Ito to correct Cochran's alleged misrepresentation of her 10:45 timeline; Ito flatly refuses, saying the jury remembers both statements.

tense

Light Moments (1)

Lance A. Ito

Judge Ito shuts down both prosecutors talking at once with 'WE GET ONE GLADIATOR.'

Objections

2 objections (0 sustained, 1 overruled)

Proceeding 4436 • 20 utterances

Criminal Trial

Department 103