Redirect examination of Danny Mandel

📄 Redirect examination of Danny Mandel — Tuesday, July 11, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\JUL\11\REDIRECT-EXAMINATION-OF-DANNY-.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 112 of 167

◀ Cross-examination of Danny Mandel (part 2) Recross-examination of Danny Mandel ▶

Witness: Danny Mandel
Examiner: Robert Shapiro
Called by: Defense • Date: Tuesday, July 11, 1995 • Utterances: 121

Shapiro uses redirect to rehabilitate Danny Mandel, a man who walked past Nicole Brown Simpson's Bundy condo around 10:30 PM on June 12, 1994 and neither saw nor heard a dog. Shapiro introduces credit card receipts from Mezzaluna to anchor the timeline, then closes by having Mandel reaffirm — with certainty — that he had no dog sighting, no dog sounds, and no motive to shade his testimony.

# 1 MR. SHAPIRO:

Thank you very much, your Honor.

REDIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. SHAPIRO

# 2 MR. SHAPIRO:

Mr. Mandel, the first person in an official capacity that you talked to about this case was a member of the Los Angeles Police Department?

# 3 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, that's true.

# 4 MR. SHAPIRO:

And when you talked to that person did you tell them that you went by the location of Nicole Brown Simpson's condominium on June the 12th?

# 5 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 6 MR. SHAPIRO:

And did you tell them it was approximately 10:30?

# 7 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 8 MR. SHAPIRO:

And did you tell them that you did not hear any dog bark?

# 9 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 10 MR. SHAPIRO:

Did you tell them that you did not hear any dog wail?

# 11 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 12 MR. SHAPIRO:

Did you tell them that you did not see any dog?

# 13 MR. MANDEL:

Correct.

# 14 MR. SHAPIRO:

And that person asked you to get a copy of your receipt for dinner?

# 15 MR. MANDEL:

Yes.

# 16 MR. SHAPIRO:

Did you do that?

# 17 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 18 MR. SHAPIRO:

Your Honor, may I mark as Defense next a--

# 19 MR. SHAPIRO:

Did you call the credit card company?

# 20 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 21 MR. SHAPIRO:

And did they send you back correspondence with a copy of your credit card receipt?

# 22 MR. MANDEL:

Yeah, that is what they did.

# 23 MR. SHAPIRO:

May that be--may this be marked--

# 24 THE COURT:

1241.

# 25 MR. SHAPIRO:

1241.

# 26 THE COURT:

Excuse me. 1231.

# 27 MR. SHAPIRO:

1231.

# 28 (Deft's 1231 for id = document)

# 29 MR. SHAPIRO:

I have given a copy to Miss Clark. And 1232.

# 30 (Deft's 1232 for id = document)

# 31 MR. SHAPIRO:

And do you have a copy of that receipt at your office?

# 32 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I do.

# 33 MR. SHAPIRO:

And at the break did we have a conversation?

# 34 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, we did.

# 35 MR. SHAPIRO:

Did you approach me?

# 36 MR. MANDEL:

No, you approached me.

# 37 MR. SHAPIRO:

Okay. And what was the conversation about?

# 38 MR. MANDEL:

If I could retrieve that receipt.

# 39 MR. SHAPIRO:

And did you?

# 40 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 41 MR. SHAPIRO:

All right. Let me--may I approach, your Honor?

# 42 THE COURT:

You may.

# 43 MR. SHAPIRO:

We will substitute later.

# 44 MR. SHAPIRO:

Do you have the original of that receipt now?

# 45 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I do. I have it in my office.

# 46 MR. SHAPIRO:

Can you have that forwarded here and we can exchange that?

# 47 MR. MANDEL:

Sure.

# 48 MR. SHAPIRO:

Is this a copy of the letter, no. 1231, that came back with that receipt?

# 49 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, it is.

# 50 MR. SHAPIRO:

And this is a copy of the receipt there?

# 51 MR. MANDEL:

Correct.

# 52 MR. SHAPIRO:

Is there a date on that receipt?

# 53 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, there is.

# 54 MR. SHAPIRO:

What is the date?

# 55 MR. MANDEL:

June 12, 1994.

# 56 MR. SHAPIRO:

And is there a name of a restaurant on that receipt?

# 57 MR. MANDEL:

It is the Mezzaluna cafe.

# 58 MR. SHAPIRO:

And is there an amount on that receipt?

# 59 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, there is.

# 60 MR. SHAPIRO:

What is the amount?

# 61 MR. MANDEL:

47.48.

# 62 MR. SHAPIRO:

I know it is a fax copy, but can you decipher what the time is on that receipt?

# 63 MR. MANDEL:

The time is printed 8:55.

KEY QUOTE

# 64 MR. SHAPIRO:

When you saw that the first time, did you think that was an error?

# 65 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 66 MR. SHAPIRO:

What did do you after seeing that?

# 67 MR. MANDEL:

I called the restaurant.

# 68 MR. SHAPIRO:

And as a result of that did you determine that it was an error?

# 69 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, I did.

# 70 MR. SHAPIRO:

And that the time clock was an hour off?

# 71 MR. MANDEL:

Correct.

# 72 MS. CLARK:

Objection, that calls for hearsay.

# 73 THE COURT:

Sustained.

# 74 MS. CLARK:

Motion to strike.

# 75 THE COURT:

The answer is stricken. However--

# 76 MR. SHAPIRO:

There is testimony.

# 77 THE COURT:

--the record from the Mezzaluna witnesses is already in existence.

# 78 MR. SHAPIRO:

The People established that.

# 79 THE COURT:

Proceed.

# 80 MR. SHAPIRO:

Thank you, your Honor.

# 81 MR. SHAPIRO:

Do you know O.J. Simpson?

# 82 MR. MANDEL:

No, I don't.

# 83 MR. SHAPIRO:

Have you ever met him?

# 84 MR. MANDEL:

No, I haven't.

# 85 MR. SHAPIRO:

Do you have any interest in the outcome of this case?

# 86 MR. MANDEL:

No, I don't.

# 87 MR. SHAPIRO:

Are you here to testify for any particular side?

# 88 MR. MANDEL:

No, I'm not.

# 89 MR. SHAPIRO:

Are you here to testify for any particular point of view?

# 90 MR. MANDEL:

No, I'm not.

# 91 MR. SHAPIRO:

Why are you here?

# 92 MR. MANDEL:

Because I was in that area that evening and I felt it might be relevant.

KEY QUOTE

# 93 MR. SHAPIRO:

And you were subpoenaed to come to court by the Defense?

# 94 MR. MANDEL:

And I was subpoenaed, correct.

# 95 MR. SHAPIRO:

Miss Clark asked you about other dates. I mean, has there ever been another date you have been somewhere something this horrendous happened?

# 96 MR. MANDEL:

No.

# 97 MR. SHAPIRO:

Would it be fair to say that is why this event is fresh in your mind?

# 98 MS. CLARK:

Well, objection. That is leading.

# 99 THE COURT:

Sustained.

# 100 MR. SHAPIRO:

You told Miss Clark that you weren't sure how you got to Mezzaluna?

# 101 MR. MANDEL:

Correct.

# 102 MR. SHAPIRO:

From Miss Aaronson's apartment. Did she lead the way?

# 103 MR. MANDEL:

Yes, she did.

# 104 MR. SHAPIRO:

However, coming back, how sure are you that you passed the condominium where Nicole Brown Simpson lived?

# 105 MR. MANDEL:

I'm positive.

# 106 MR. SHAPIRO:

No question about it whatever?

# 107 MR. MANDEL:

No question.

# 108 MR. SHAPIRO:

How certain are you that you passed that area shortly in the area of 10:30 P.M.?

# 109 MR. MANDEL:

I'm certain.

# 110 MR. SHAPIRO:

How certain are you that there was not a dog barking?

# 111 MR. MANDEL:

I have no recollection of one, so I'm certain.

KEY QUOTE

# 112 MR. SHAPIRO:

How certain are you that there was not a dog wailing?

# 113 MR. MANDEL:

I'm certain.

# 114 MR. SHAPIRO:

How certain that there was not a dog in the area?

# 115 MR. MANDEL:

I'm certain.

# 116 MR. SHAPIRO:

Is there any reason why you would come and in any way shade the truth to this jury?

# 117 MR. MANDEL:

No.

# 118 MR. SHAPIRO:

May I just have a moment, your Honor?

# 119 THE COURT:

Certainly.

# 120 (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)

# 121 MR. SHAPIRO:

I have nothing further. Thank you very much.

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (4)

Danny Mandel

I'm positive.

Mandel's unequivocal certainty that he passed Nicole's condo on the return walk — the foundation of his testimony's value to the defense.

Danny Mandel

Because I was in that area that evening and I felt it might be relevant.

Shapiro lets Mandel articulate his own motivation for coming forward, neutralizing any bias argument from the prosecution.

Danny Mandel

The time is printed 8:55.

The Mezzaluna receipt time, which Mandel immediately flagged as wrong — the restaurant's clock was an hour off, placing dinner at ~9:55 PM and supporting the defense timeline.

Danny Mandel

I have no recollection of one, so I'm certain.

Mandel's honest framing of certainty — absence of memory as the basis for certainty — is credible rather than overreaching.

Evidence (2)

Defense 1231

Letter from credit card company accompanying a copy of Mandel's Mezzaluna receipt dated June 12, 1994

Introduced and identified by witness

Defense 1232

Copy of Mezzaluna credit card receipt showing date, restaurant name, $47.48 charge, and printed time of 8:55 PM

Introduced and identified by witness; original to be substituted later

Notable Exchanges (2)

Robert Shapiro•Lance A. Ito•Marcia Clark

Shapiro elicits that the restaurant confirmed its clock was an hour off; Clark objects on hearsay and moves to strike. Ito sustains but notes the Mezzaluna witnesses already established this on the record, effectively neutralizing the damage.

strategic

Robert Shapiro•Danny Mandel

Shapiro walks Mandel through a rapid-fire certainty sequence — positive he passed the condo, certain it was ~10:30, certain there was no barking, no wailing, no dog — building a definitive wall of denial.

methodical

Credibility Attacks (1)

⚔ Danny Mandel

Preemptive rehabilitation — Shapiro addresses bias before Clark can revisit it

Shapiro explicitly asks whether Mandel knows OJ, has any interest in the outcome, or is testifying for any particular side — eliciting clean denials to inoculate against cross-examination inferences.

Objections

2 objections (2 sustained, 0 overruled)

Proceeding 6730 • 121 utterances • Defense witness

Criminal Trial

Department 103