Sidebar: witness examination scheduling

📄 Sidebar: witness examination scheduling — Friday, May 12, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\MAY\12\SIDEBAR-WITNESS-EXAMINATION-SC.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 73 of 167

◀ Morning session opening Cross-examination of Dr. Robin Cotton (part 1) ▶

Date: Friday, May 12, 1995 • Utterances: 12

Defense attorney Peter Neufeld sought to ask the expert witness whether reading a scientific letter overnight changed her opinion about the controversy surrounding population genetics assumptions used in DNA analysis. Judge Ito narrowed the permissible question significantly. The attorneys also handled a scheduling issue around expert witness Dr. Cotton's availability due to her daughter's wedding.

# 1 (The following proceedings were held at the bench:)

# 2 THE COURT:

All right.

# 3 MR. NEUFELD:

All I was going to say is actually the letter, that is a cover letter, this is the letter and those are the people who signed it. What I was going to ask her was whether or not having now, you know, read that letter--

# 4 THE COURT:

Uh-huh.

# 5 MR. NEUFELD:

--that was shown to her, and having thought about it over the evening, would that change her opinion that there are only a few scientists in the population geneticist--I was going to ask her one question--geneticists and statistics communities who find your assumptions about the inherited independence of these genetic markers controversial? And I was not going to refer to the content of the letter or anything else about it, but just ask her, having read the letter and considered it, whether or not that would change her opinion.

# 6 THE COURT:

What you can do is you can ask her if she has read the letter and if she has considered it in forming her opinion, yes or no. That is all you can ask her. Depending on what the answer is, we will see where it goes.

KEY QUOTE

# 7 MR. CLARKE:

Do you want to do that quick scheduling item?

# 8 THE COURT:

Yes.

# 9 MR. CLARKE:

Dr. Cotton is leaving next week for her daughter's wedding. She can stay, as kind of a last minute, Wednesday through noon. Mr. Neufeld assures me he will be done Monday, in which case--

# 10 MR. NEUFELD:

I expect to be done by late Monday. Definite as definite as I can be.

# 11 MR. CLARKE:

I want to let you know.

# 12 THE COURT:

Well, I was trying to get her out of here earlier.

KEY QUOTE

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (3)

Peter Neufeld

I was not going to refer to the content of the letter or anything else about it, but just ask her, having read the letter and considered it, whether or not that would change her opinion.

Neufeld frames his question narrowly to avoid the letter's contents coming in as evidence while still using it to undermine the expert's stated view on scientific consensus.

Lance A. Ito

What you can do is you can ask her if she has read the letter and if she has considered it in forming her opinion, yes or no. That is all you can ask her.

Ito further restricts Neufeld's already-narrowed question, limiting the attack on the expert to a binary yes/no with no elaboration.

Lance A. Ito

Well, I was trying to get her out of here earlier.

Reveals the judge's frustration with the pace of examination and his preference for moving faster than the schedule allows.

Evidence (1)

Informal

A scientific letter signed by multiple population geneticists and statisticians, apparently challenging the expert witness's assumptions about the inherited independence of genetic markers used in DNA statistics

discussed — defense sought to use it to impeach expert opinion; judge limited its use

Notable Exchanges (2)

Peter Neufeld•Lance A. Ito

Neufeld proposed a carefully worded question about whether the scientific letter changed the expert's opinion on the breadth of controversy in her field. Ito accepted the premise but stripped it down to a simple yes/no question about whether she read and considered the letter.

strategic

George Clarke•Peter Neufeld•Lance A. Ito

Clarke flagged that Dr. Cotton has a hard out Wednesday at noon due to her daughter's wedding. Neufeld committed to finishing Monday; Ito expressed mild exasperation that Cotton couldn't be released sooner.

routine

Light Moments (1)

Lance A. Ito

Ito's dry comment that he had been 'trying to get her out of here earlier' undercuts the scheduling discussion with a note of judicial impatience.

Credibility Attacks (1)

⚔ DNA expert witness (unnamed in this proceeding, likely Dr. Cotton or similar)

prior inconsistent statement / bias via scientific community letter

Neufeld attempted to use a letter signed by population geneticists and statisticians to suggest the expert's assumptions about genetic marker independence are more controversial than she has testified. Judge limited the attack to asking only whether she read and considered the letter.

Objections

None recorded

Proceeding 7903 • 12 utterances

Criminal Trial

Department 103