📄 Witness list and discovery — Tuesday, July 18, 1995
Address:
C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\JUL\18\WITNESS-LIST-AND-DISCOVERY.DOC
TRIAL
▲ Day 117 of 167

Witness list and discovery

Date: Tuesday, July 18, 1995 • Utterances: 25
The prosecution complained that the defense witness list was constantly changing and that expert reports were being delivered late, making preparation nearly impossible. Cochran responded by noting the defense had the same complaints during the prosecution's case, prompting a 'deja vu' quip from Judge Ito. The judge resolved to meet with counsel at noon to hammer out a schedule.
1 MR. GORDON:

Very briefly, your Honor. Your Honor, with regard to witness list and some discovery issues, the witness list we have been getting has been at best fluid, changing, ebbing as the tides go each hour, if not day. The ability to prepare for such is next to impossible. That was difficult enough when we had the civilian witnesses with that type of testimony, but as we are moving into this arena of scientific evidence with this fluid witness list where we have different personnel involved, coupled with the fact that we are receiving reports on work that was done literally months and months ago, dated today, dated yesterday and those reports contain numerous issues that are going to have to be litigated. One, it is not complying with discovery. Two, I don't think it is--

2 THE COURT:

Do you want to give me some specific examples?

3 MR. GORDON:

Just a moment.

4 (Discussion held off the record between the Deputy District Attorneys.)
5 MR. GORDON:

Specifically with regard to reports, speaking of the recent reports we received from MacDonell--Dr. MacDonell and Doctors Lee, both of which contain information that--with regard to preparation, without knowing when these witnesses are going to testify, when we have other DA's have to do it.

6 (Discussion held off the record between the Deputy District Attorneys.)
7 MR. GORDON:

Secondarily, there is all sorts of experimental type of information contained that is going to require litigation. Counsel should know that. Miss Clark informs me we just received a report today from Dr. Rieders, and in getting these reports there is no specific time when these witness are going to testify, so the ebb and flowing witness list, coupled with this type of discovery at this date, is, a, not fulfilling with the Court's orders, and two, it is going to take a lot of Court time, our time, in making it very difficult to be prepared and ready to go for the Court.

8 THE COURT:

All right. Well, I see Mr. Douglas is not here, who is our discovery compliance person.

9 MR. COCHRAN:

That is all right.

10 MR. GORDON:

We would like specifically at least a concrete witness list in compliance with the Court's order, so we can prepare what is occurring; not at six o'clock on Sunday we may call some people or some time later today a cryptic remark of a specific concrete list. Thank you, sir.

11 THE COURT:

Mr. Cochran.

12 MR. COCHRAN:

Good morning, your Honor. You know, that sounded very similar to what we were always saying when they were putting on their case, didn't it?

13 THE COURT:

Deja vu.

14 MR. COCHRAN:

Deja vu all over again. The trial is a dynamic process that does in fact change. The Court will recall that last week Mr. Douglas, over my objections, gave them 24 witnesses. He was so far out in front it was amazing. We did cover 22 witnesses last week. Then we dealt with Mr. Kelberg and we have been stymied yesterday. Because I want to move this trial, we are going to be--and I told Mr. Darden just before we came out, perhaps he didn't talk to Mr. Gordon--I told him who the witnesses will be today. They know who the witnesses are today. I will be glad to tell them. I told them that we decided to move Maltz back because I don't want to spend the rest of this week on doctor's testimony that doesn't mean anything and we want to move on. And so I will be glad to cooperate with them from that point.

KEY QUOTE
15 MS. CLARK:

Motion to strike, your Honor.

16 MR. COCHRAN:

Well, I'm talking, your Honor. So at any rate--so that is the point I think. With regard to discovery, Mr. Douglas will be here just momentarily.

17 THE COURT:

All right, counsel. I will meet with counsel at the noon hour and we will hammer out the schedule for the next several days.

18 MR. GORDON:

Thank you.

19 MR. COCHRAN:

Sure. We will be glad to.

20 MR. DARDEN:

Can we place on the record, your Honor, what is the witness list for today?

21 MR. COCHRAN:

I will be glad to, your Honor, as best I can. I think that after this witness, whenever he is finished finally, we expect to call Juanita Moore. Counsel is aware of. We expect to call--

22 MS. CLARK:

Can we get an offer of proof as to Juanita Moore? We have no idea who she is.

23 MR. COCHRAN:

Your Honor, may I address this? Juanita Moore. I expect to call Mr. Meraz, Kelly Mulldorfer, the LAPD officer, Mr. Walsh, the man who made this video. And while we are wasting all this time, I think he will clear that up for them. We expect to call--we are going to see at lunchtime a photographer, Rokahr. We would also like to talk to Willie Ford, the other photographer who did the civil liability video.

24 THE COURT:

All right.

25 MR. COCHRAN:

Umm, there may be one that I am missing out on, your Honor, but we always try to have more than enough witnesses for the day. So I think those are the witnesses Mr. Darden and I talked about. In fact, Rokahr and Ford, he is going to make available. We will probably, right after Juanita Moore, Officer Don Thompson, the officer who handcuffed Mr. Simpson like at twelve o'clock on June 13th. He was here yesterday, so they know who the witnesses are, your Honor.

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (4)

Scott Gordon
The witness list we have been getting has been at best fluid, changing, ebbing as the tides go each hour, if not day.
Captures the prosecution's core frustration — late and shifting defense witness disclosures compounding preparation difficulties during the scientific evidence phase.
Johnnie Cochran
You know, that sounded very similar to what we were always saying when they were putting on their case, didn't it?
Cochran deflects the complaint entirely by invoking symmetry — the defense endured the same from the prosecution, undercutting the moral weight of Gordon's argument.
Lance A. Ito
Deja vu.
The judge's dry one-word response signals he's heard this complaint from both sides and is unmoved by it.
Johnnie Cochran
Deja vu all over again. The trial is a dynamic process that does in fact change.
Cochran's framing of witness-list fluidity as inherent to trial dynamics rather than a discovery violation.

Evidence (4)

Informal
Report from Dr. Herbert MacDonell (defense expert, hair and fiber/blood evidence)
referenced as late discovery — report dated recently but covering work done months ago
Informal
Report from Dr. Henry Lee (defense forensic expert)
referenced as late discovery with experimental information requiring litigation
Informal
Report from Dr. Fredric Rieders (defense toxicology expert)
referenced — Clark notes it arrived the same day as the hearing
Informal
Civil liability video filmed by Walsh
discussed — Walsh identified as upcoming witness who made the video

Notable Exchanges (3)

Johnnie CochranMarcia Clark
Cochran begins explaining the defense's position on the witness list; Clark interjects with 'Motion to strike, your Honor' — apparently objecting to Cochran's editorial about the prosecution's own witness-list problems. Cochran brushes past it.
strategic
Marcia ClarkJohnnie Cochran
Clark demands an offer of proof on Juanita Moore, stating the prosecution has no idea who she is. Cochran simply names her and moves on without providing substantive detail.
tense
Lance A. ItoJohnnie Cochran
After Gordon's complaint about the fluid witness list, Cochran turns the table on the prosecution and Ito responds with a dry 'Deja vu.' Cochran echoes it: 'Deja vu all over again.'
light

Light Moments (2)

Lance A. Ito
Ito's one-word response 'Deja vu' to Cochran's observation that the prosecution was now complaining about the same things the defense complained about during the People's case.
Johnnie Cochran
Cochran's 'Deja vu all over again' — a Yogi Berra-ism deployed in open court to dismiss the prosecution's grievance with a touch of humor.

Objections

1 objections (0 sustained, 0 overruled)
Proceeding 6879 • 25 utterances
Criminal Trial
Department 103
⚖️ Start
📂 JUL 18, 1995 📄 Witness list and discovery
JUL 18, 1995 KRT DvH TD