Redirect examination of James Williams (part 2)

📄 Redirect examination of James Williams (part 2) — Wednesday, March 29, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\MAR\29\REDIRECT-EXAMINATION-OF-JAMES-.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 47 of 167

◀ Re-redirect examination of James Williams Recross-examination of James Williams (part 2) ▶

Witness: James Williams
Examiner: Marcia Clark
Called by: Prosecution • Date: Wednesday, March 29, 1995 • Utterances: 25

Marcia Clark briefly redirects airport skycap James Williams, clarifying his sightlines and movements relative to a trash can near the check-in podium where OJ Simpson stood on the night of June 12, 1994. Williams confirms he would have turned toward the trash can when taking the luggage inside, and that he carried the bags by hand after Simpson walked away. A key point is established that the airport trash cans are emptied every night.

# 1

BY MS. CLARK:

# 2 Q:

WHEN MR. SIMPSON WAS STANDING NEAR THE TRASH CAN, SIR, DID YOU HAPPEN TO SEE WHETHER HE HAD ANY ITEM OF -- ANY ITEM OF LUGGAGE OR THAT BLACK DUFFEL BAG ON TOP OF THE TRASH CAN?

# 3 A:

NO, I DIDN'T PAY THAT MUCH ATTENTION TO SEE IF -- WHERE THE BAG WAS. IT WAS ON HIS ARM.

# 4 Q:

OKAY. WAS YOUR -- WAS YOUR BACK TO MR. SIMPSON WHEN HE WAS STANDING NEAR THE TRASH CAN?

# 5 A:

WHEN HE FIRST CAME UP, YES. I DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE IT WAS MR. SIMPSON UNTIL I TURNED AND ASKED THE LIMO DRIVER IF HE -- YOU KNOW, HE NEEDED -- YOU KNOW, IF HE WANTED TO CHECK THE BAGGAGE.

KEY QUOTE

# 6 Q:

AND WHEN YOU CHECKED THE -- WHEN YOU TOOK THE BAGGAGE FROM THE LUGGAGE CARRIER TO PUT IT ONTO YOUR LUGGAGE CARRIER, TO YOUR CONVEYOR BELT, WOULD YOU BE TURNING TOWARD THE TRASH CAN OR AWAY FROM IT TO DO THAT?

# 7 A:

I WOULD HAVE TO TURN TOWARD IT.

# 8 Q:

OKAY. AND -- YOU HAVE THE PICTURES. CAN YOU SHOW US IN THE PHOTOGRAPH, SIR, WHERE IS THE CONVEYOR BELT THAT YOU WOULD BE PUTTING THE LUGGAGE ON?

# 9 A:

UMM --

# 10 THE COURT:

WHICH PHOTOGRAPH ARE YOU USING?

# 11 MS. CLARK:

I'M SORRY, I'M SHOWING THE WITNESS PEOPLE'S 150.

# 12 JAMES WILLIAMS:

I WOULD HAVE TO GO IN THE DOOR AND OVER HERE TOWARDS THIS WAY THERE IS A ESCALATOR, AND BEHIND THE ESCALATOR THERE IS A BIG BELT AND SOME DOORWAYS THAT GO OUT TO THE RAMP, AND I JUST TOOK THE BAGS DOWN THERE.

# 13 Q:

BY MS. CLARK: WOULD YOU CARRY THEM BY HAND OR WOULD YOU PUT THEM ON SOME KIND OF A CART?

# 14 A:

USUALLY I PUT THEM ON A CART, BUT IN THAT SITUATION I JUST CARRIED THEM IN BY HAND.

# 15 Q:

DID YOU IN THIS CASE CARRY THEM IN BY HAND?

# 16 A:

YEAH. THEY WEREN'T THAT HEAVY.

# 17 Q:

OKAY. DID YOU CARRY THEM IN BY HAND BEFORE OR AFTER MR. SIMPSON LEFT YOUR PODIUM?

# 18 A:

IT PROBABLY WOULD HAVE TO BE -- IT WAS BEFORE -- AFTER, AFTER. HE LEFT. HE WAS WALKING AWAY AND I JUST GRABBED THE BAGS.

KEY QUOTE

# 19 Q:

AND WALKED THEM INSIDE?

# 20 A:

YEAH.

# 21 MS. CLARK:

OKAY.

# 22 (DISCUSSION HELD OFF THE RECORD BETWEEN THE DEPUTY DISTRICT ATTORNEYS.)

# 23 Q:

BY MS. CLARK: DO YOU KNOW IF THOSE TRASH CANS ARE EMPTIED EVERY NIGHT, SIR?

# 24 A:

YES, THEY ARE. THEY ARE EMPTIED SOMETIME BECAUSE -- YEAH, THEY ARE EMPTIED EVERY NIGHT BECAUSE THERE IS -- WHEN THE TRASH TRUCK COMES AROUND IT KICKS OUT SO MANY FUMES IT IS PATHETIC. IT KILLS US EVERY NIGHT.

KEY QUOTE

# 25 MS. CLARK:

I HAVE NOTHING FURTHER.

FURTHER RECROSS-EXAMINATION

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (3)

James Williams

WHEN HE FIRST CAME UP, YES. I DIDN'T EVEN NOTICE IT WAS MR. SIMPSON UNTIL I TURNED AND ASKED THE LIMO DRIVER IF HE -- YOU KNOW, HE NEEDED -- YOU KNOW, IF HE WANTED TO CHECK THE BAGGAGE.

Establishes that Williams had his back to Simpson initially, limiting his observation of what Simpson did near the trash can.

James Williams

IT PROBABLY WOULD HAVE TO BE -- IT WAS BEFORE -- AFTER, AFTER. HE LEFT. HE WAS WALKING AWAY AND I JUST GRABBED THE BAGS.

Confirms Williams took the bags only after Simpson had already left the area — meaning Simpson had unobserved time near the trash can.

James Williams

YES, THEY ARE. THEY ARE EMPTIED SOMETIME BECAUSE -- YEAH, THEY ARE EMPTIED EVERY NIGHT BECAUSE THERE IS -- WHEN THE TRASH TRUCK COMES AROUND IT KICKS OUT SO MANY FUMES IT IS PATHETIC. IT KILLS US EVERY NIGHT.

Confirms trash cans are emptied nightly, meaning any item discarded that night would be unrecoverable — critical to the prosecution's black bag theory.

Evidence (1)

People's 150

Photograph of the airport area, used to have Williams identify the location of the conveyor belt relative to the trash can and podium

discussed

Notable Exchanges (1)

Marcia Clark•James Williams

Clark walks Williams through his physical movements step by step — establishing that to carry bags inside he would turn toward the trash can, and that he took the bags only after Simpson had walked away, creating a window of unobserved activity.

strategic

Light Moments (1)

James Williams

Williams volunteers colorful detail about the nightly trash trucks: 'it kicks out so many fumes it is pathetic. It kills us every night.'

Objections

None recorded

Proceeding 5491 • 25 utterances • Prosecution witness

Criminal Trial

Department 103