Sidebar: questioning procedures

📄 Sidebar: questioning procedures — Wednesday, March 8, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\MAR\8\SIDEBAR-QUESTIONING-PROCEDURES.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 33 of 167

◀ Recross-examination of Tom Lange (part 1) Recross-examination of Tom Lange (part 2) ▶

Date: Wednesday, March 8, 1995 • Utterances: 32

At sidebar, Marcia Clark objects that Cochran has been asserting facts — specifically that Caucasian hairs were found on both gloves — and moving on as if the witness confirmed them, when in fact no answer was given. The exchange turns sharp when Cochran accuses Clark of lying about what was said, she threatens to seek sanctions, and Judge Ito cuts through the chaos by ordering Cochran to start the line of questioning over from scratch.

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

# 2 THE COURT:

WE'RE AT SIDEBAR.

# 3 MS. CLARK:

HE ASKED GENERALLY, GOING BACK A COUPLE OF QUESTIONS -- WHAT HAD HAPPENED AND WHAT CONTINUES TO HAPPEN WITH MR. COCHRAN IS THAT HE ASKS -- KIND OF TESTIFIES, GETS NO ANSWER FROM THE WITNESS AND THEN GOES ON AS THOUGH HE GOT AN AFFIRMATIVE ANSWER. IT JUST HAPPENED NOW. HE SAID THAT THERE WERE CAUCASIAN HAIRS ON BOTH GLOVES. THERE WAS NO ANSWER. THEN MR. COCHRAN CONTINUED AS THOUGH THERE HAD BEEN AN AFFIRMATIVE ANSWER, WHICH THERE WASN'T BECAUSE THE DETECTIVE HAS CONTINUALLY INDICATED HE DOESN'T KNOW. I WOULD LIKE FOR THE RECORD TO BE READ BACK, GO BACK TO THE POINT WHEN COUNSEL SAID THAT THERE WERE CAUCASIAN HAIRS ON BOTH GLOVES.

# 4 MR. COCHRAN:

I ASKED HIM WHETHER OR NOT THERE WERE CAUCASIAN HAIRS. HE SAYS, "YOU'VE INDICATED THAT TO ME THE OTHER TIME." THAT'S WHAT HIS RESPONSE WAS. YOUR HONOR, MAY I PROCEED?

# 5 MS. CLARK:

RIGHT AFTER THAT. COULD WE PLEASE HAVE THE RECORD READ BACK?

# 6 THE COURT:

ARE THERE CAUCASIAN HAIRS ON BOTH THESE GLOVES?

# 7 MS. CLARK:

I DON'T REMEMBER.

# 8 MR. COCHRAN:

YOUR HONOR, SHE'S NOT TELLING THE TRUTH.

KEY QUOTE

# 9 MS. CLARK:

I DON'T REMEMBER.

# 10 THE COURT:

WAIT, WAIT.

# 11 MS. CLARK:

YOU KNOW SOMETHING? I'M GOING TO START ASKING THE COURT FOR SANCTIONS IF MR. COCHRAN DOESN'T STOP THESE FALSITIES.

KEY QUOTE

# 12 MR. COCHRAN:

THAT'S PREPOSTEROUS.

# 13 THE COURT:

WAIT, WAIT.

# 14 MS. CLARK:

THEY'RE SO INAPPROPRIATE.

# 15 THE COURT:

WAIT, WAIT, WAIT. THE QUESTION LOOKS PRETTY BENIGN TO ME; ARE YOU AWARE OF ANY TESTS THAT WERE DONE ON THE HAIRS ON THE GLOVE.

# 16 MS. CLARK:

THE PROBLEM IS THE ASSERTION BY COUNSEL -- THAT THE WITNESS WAS NOT ALLOWED TO ANSWER. HE PUT WORDS IN HIS MOUTH WITHOUT AN ANSWER AS THOUGH HE --

# 17 THE COURT:

MISS CLARK, HERE IS THE QUESTION. DO YOU KNOW IF THERE'S CAUCASIAN HAIRS ON THE GLOVES.

# 18 MS. CLARK:

I HONESTLY CAN'T REMEMBER ON BOTH GLOVES. I KNOW ROCKINGHAM, THERE ARE. ON THE BUNDY GLOVE, I DO NOT. I DO NOT RECALL. I WOULD JUST ASK THAT THE RECORD BE READ BACK WITH RESPECT TO THAT QUESTION, YOUR HONOR.

# 19 THE COURT:

HOLD ON.

# 20 MS. CLARK:

IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT MR. BLASIER SAYS. I'M OBJECTING TO THE MANNER IN WHICH THIS WITNESS IS BEING QUESTIONED AND NOT ALLOWED TO GIVE ANSWERS.

# 21 THE COURT:

HOLD ON.

# 22 MR. COCHRAN:

MAY I PROCEED, YOUR HONOR?

# 23 (DISCUSSION HELD OFF THE RECORD BETWEEN DEFENSE COUNSEL.)

# 24 MR. COCHRAN:

WE'LL GET THE REPORT.

# 25 MS. CLARK:

THEY DON'T REMEMBER EITHER.

# 26 THE COURT:

YOU GUYS ARE A BIG HELP.

KEY QUOTE

# 27 MS. CLARK:

COUNSEL SAYS, "ON BOTH GLOVES," AND THEN -- "ON BOTH GLOVES, CORRECT," NO ANSWER GIVEN BY THE WITNESS, AND THEN COUNSEL CONTINUES, "HAVE TESTS BEEN CONDUCTED," AND THAT'S WHAT I'M OBJECTING TO.

# 28 THE COURT:

ALL RIGHT.

# 29 MS. CLARK:

MAY THE WITNESS BE ALLOWED TO ANSWER THE QUESTION?

# 30 MR. COCHRAN:

I GAVE HIM A CHANCE TO ANSWER. I THOUGHT HE ANSWERED THE QUESTION.

# 31 THE COURT:

WHY DON'T YOU STOP AND TAKE IT FROM THE TOP.

KEY QUOTE

# 32 MR. COCHRAN:

OKAY. SURE. I'LL BE GLAD TO.

Temperature

heated

Key Quotes (5)

Johnnie Cochran

YOUR HONOR, SHE'S NOT TELLING THE TRUTH.

Direct accusation against opposing counsel at sidebar — an unusually aggressive move that escalates the dispute beyond procedural disagreement.

Marcia Clark

I'M GOING TO START ASKING THE COURT FOR SANCTIONS IF MR. COCHRAN DOESN'T STOP THESE FALSITIES.

Clark escalates to a sanctions threat, reflecting how seriously she views Cochran's questioning technique as misconduct rather than mere style.

Marcia Clark

COUNSEL SAYS, 'ON BOTH GLOVES, CORRECT,' NO ANSWER GIVEN BY THE WITNESS, AND THEN COUNSEL CONTINUES, 'HAVE TESTS BEEN CONDUCTED,' AND THAT'S WHAT I'M OBJECTING TO.

Clearest articulation of Clark's actual objection — Cochran using the 'question-assert-move on' technique to embed unconfirmed facts into the record.

Lance A. Ito

YOU GUYS ARE A BIG HELP.

Dry judicial sarcasm when both sides admit they can't remember the details they've been fighting about.

Lance A. Ito

WHY DON'T YOU STOP AND TAKE IT FROM THE TOP.

The judge's resolution: sidestep the dispute about what was said and simply restart the questioning cleanly.

Evidence (2)

Informal

Rockingham glove — Caucasian hairs reportedly found on it

discussed

Informal

Bundy glove — disputed whether Caucasian hairs were found on it

discussed

Notable Exchanges (2)

Marcia Clark•Johnnie Cochran

Cochran accuses Clark of lying about what was said in testimony; Clark responds with a sanctions threat and calls his conduct 'falsities.' Both then reveal neither of them actually remembers the specific record.

heated

Lance A. Ito•Marcia Clark•Johnnie Cochran

Judge asks both sides whether Caucasian hairs were on both gloves; neither can confidently answer, prompting Ito's sarcastic 'big help' comment.

wry

Light Moments (1)

Lance A. Ito

After both Clark and Cochran admit they don't remember the very facts they've been arguing about, Ito deadpans: 'YOU GUYS ARE A BIG HELP.'

Credibility Attacks (1)

⚔ Marcia Clark

direct accusation

Cochran tells the judge Clark 'is not telling the truth' about what the witness said — an attack on opposing counsel rather than a witness, which Ito shuts down immediately.

Objections

1 objections (0 sustained, 0 overruled)

Proceeding 5207 • 32 utterances

Criminal Trial

Department 103