📄 Cross-examination of Renee Montgomery (part 6) — Tuesday, May 23, 1995
Address:
C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\MAY\23\CROSS-EXAMINATION-OF-RENEE-MON.DOC
TRIAL
▲ Day 80 of 167

Cross-examination of Renee Montgomery (part 6)

Witness: Renee Montgomery
Examiner: Robert Blasier
Called by: Prosecution • Date: Tuesday, May 23, 1995 • Utterances: 208
Defense attorney Robert Blasier cross-examined FBI DNA analyst Renee Montgomery on technical artifacts and weaknesses in the D1S80 gel electrophoresis results for Bronco and Rockingham glove samples. Blasier systematically got Montgomery to concede that gel artifacts (shadow bands, stray dots) in OJ Simpson's reference lane were not supposed to occur, that the 18 and 25 alleles linking Simpson to evidence were present in very small quantities (around 1 nanogram), and that she had no way of determining when those alleles were deposited relative to other DNA on the same samples. The cross ended with Montgomery admitting she cannot tell if the 25 allele found only in the glove's wrist area got there at the same time as the other alleles.
1 (The following proceedings were held in open court:)
2 THE COURT:

All right. Mr. Blasier.

3 MR. BLASIER:

Your Honor, I would like to show 275-B on the elmo.

4 THE COURT:

People's 275-B.

5 MR. BLASIER:

Miss Montgomery, this is the gel that shows 30, 31, 293 and 305. Do you have that in mind?

6 MS. MONTGOMERY:

What AG number was that?

7 MR. BLASIER:

174.

8 THE COURT:

What is the reference samples? 275-B is reference samples, correct?

9 MR. HARMON:

Yes.

10 MR. BLASIER:

Now, do you see in the reference sample lane for Mr. Simpson there appears to be three bands, would you agree?

11 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I will refer to my copy.

12 MR. BLASIER:

Okay. Can we zoom in on that a little bit more? Actually there appears to be four bands, I think. Would you agree there appears to be actually four bands in that reference lane?

13 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes. Those--that is a shadow band effect.

14 MR. BLASIER:

That is not supposed to happen, is it?

15 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Well, sometimes you see it in this center section of these acrylomite gels.

16 MR. BLASIER:

That is not supposed to happen, is it?

17 MS. MONTGOMERY:

It is not supposed to happen? Umm, to optimize you would prefer that it did not happen. It does happen on occasion, though.

18 MR. BLASIER:

What do you mean to optimize you would prefer it not happen? You don't want it to happen, do you?

19 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No, you don't want it to happen.

20 MR. BLASIER:

Something went wrong with this particular gel that caused it to happen?

21 MR. HARMON:

Objection, that is argumentative and she didn't complete her answer.

22 THE COURT:

Sustained.

23 MR. BLASIER:

Did something go wrong with this particular gel that caused these bands to show up?

24 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Well, something didn't go wrong with the gel. What--sometimes we see these--these shadow bands in the inside region of the gel, just in the center section, and as you could see, it is isolated to this center section of the gel. If, umm--if it was an issue, the sample should be rerun. If there is a potential that these were mixed samples or something such as that, then you would want to rerun these. It doesn't change any of the results of the analysis on this gel.

KEY QUOTE
25 MR. BLASIER:

Isn't one of the shortcomings of this system is that that sometimes happens, that you get extra bands on that that are shadow bands?

26 MR. HARMON:

Objection. That is argumentative, your Honor.

27 THE COURT:

Sustained. Rephrase the question.

28 MR. BLASIER:

Is that a characteristic of this system--let me ask you this: How frequently does this happen?

29 MS. MONTGOMERY:

It depends on who is doing the analysis. Different people--this is a very techniquey system. Some individuals tend to see it a little more often than others. In our laboratory we have been able to minimize it, so we rarely see it any more.

30 MR. BLASIER:

How often do you get it in tests that you conduct?

31 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I would say less than five percent of my gels would see them.

32 MR. BLASIER:

Now, would you also agree that the band on Mr. Simpson's reference sample at 24 is uneven in the sense that it is not even the same intensity across the band?

33 (No audible response.)
34 MR. BLASIER:

It appears to be kind of very bright on the left side of that band?

35 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Well, there is the artifact, that little dot right on the end of the 24 band, but by looking at this copy, this copy also has that little dot, but it appears to be relatively equal intensity across the length of the well.

36 MR. BLASIER:

That little dot is not supposed to be there either, is it?

37 MS. MONTGOMERY:

You are saying not supposed to be there. The dot is not part of the sample, no.

38 MR. BLASIER:

So it is not supposed to be there, correct?

39 MS. MONTGOMERY:

One wouldn't want it to be there, no.

40 MR. BLASIER:

Could we have photo no. 96 and I have an additional photo that will be marking as 1178.

41 THE COURT:

All right.

42 (Deft's 1178 for id = photograph)
43 (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)
44 MR. BLASIER:

Could we have photo 1174 and 1178 side-by-side, please.

45 (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)
46 MR. BLASIER:

Does the photograph on the right appear to be your run 299?

47 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No, it does not.

48 MR. BLASIER:

What run does that appear to be?

49 MS. MONTGOMERY:

24--294.

50 MR. BLASIER:

Okay. And is it correct that these--the photo on the right has the samples 303 and 304 from the Bronco on them?

51 (No audible response.)
52 MR. BLASIER:

I'm sorry, it is the one on the left.

53 THE COURT:

The one on the left what?

54 MR. BLASIER:

On the left of the screen is the--the run that has samples 303 and 304?

55 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Correct.

56 MR. BLASIER:

And the one on the right is the run that has the samples for 30 and 31 from the Bronco and 293 from the carpeting in the Bronco?

57 MS. MONTGOMERY:

That's correct.

58 MR. BLASIER:

Now, 303 and 304, you read those as containing very weak 18 allele, I believe; is that correct?

59 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Once again I will look up my notes.

60 (Brief pause.)
61 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes. For the two Bronco samples, dna-52 and dna-53, there was a weak 18 detected.

62 MR. BLASIER:

Now, I'm going to try and blow up that area, and the area that we have indicated is approximately in here, (Indicating); is that correct?

63 MR. HARMON:

Your Honor, I have the same objection that we lodged earlier. That is a distortion.

64 THE COURT:

Overruled.

65 MR. BLASIER:

And here, (Indicating)?

66 (No audible response.)
67 MR. BLASIER:

Have I circled the right areas?

68 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes. As you could see, the 18 allele is--the 18 ladder allele is--I'm sorry, yes, that is correct.

69 MR. BLASIER:

Okay. And it is a very faint band, correct?

70 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No, it is a weak band.

71 MR. BLASIER:

Weak band. And it is a weak band on your original as well, correct?

72 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes, it is a weak band.

73 MR. BLASIER:

And that would indicate a very small amount of DNA being present, correct?

74 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Well, it is relative to the amount that is present in the whole sample, yes.

75 MR. BLASIER:

Okay. And were you able to quantify the amount of DNA present that was contributed by the 18 allele?

76 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No. What we do is a total quant to determine the total amount of DNA. We can't tell the difference between different alleles, contribution for the sample.

77 MR. BLASIER:

Would you agree that the band intensity of the 18 band that I have circled is about the same as the one nanogram standard, or maybe less, or just what is your assessment of the relative intensities?

78 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I would say that is a--umm--

79 THE COURT:

Pull the microphone closer.

80 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I'm sorry. This is approximately equal to the one nanogram, slightly less, umm, than the one nanogram for dna-53.

81 MR. BLASIER:

And the intensity of that is far less than the 24 allele and the 25 allele, correct?

82 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Well, yes, it is less than either the 24 or the 25 alleles.

83 MR. BLASIER:

Now, samples 30 and 31 are on the right picture, correct?

84 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes, they are.

85 MR. BLASIER:

And you did not see any 18 alleles on those samples, correct?

86 MS. MONTGOMERY:

For item 30 and 31, no, I did not see an 18 allele.

87 MR. BLASIER:

And I'm going to circle the area where you would expect to see that. And would you agree that I have made little squiggles there about where the 18 band would be?

88 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes, the upper portion of that, that's correct.

89 MR. BLASIER:

Okay. And you indicated there was nothing there that you saw that could be a band?

90 MS. MONTGOMERY:

That's correct.

91 MR. BLASIER:

Could we have that printed, please.

92 MR. BLASIER:

Now, I want you to assume for a minute that 30 and 303 came from the same general area.

93 MR. HARMON:

Objection. That is an improper hypothetical, misstates the testimony.

94 THE COURT:

Sustained.

95 MR. BLASIER:

If you had a mixed stain that had alleles present in part of the stain that weren't present in another part of the stain--do you have that in mind?

96 MS. MONTGOMERY:

So what you are saying is a bloodstain where one person is bleeding here and one person is bleeding here and some of one person's diffuse into another?

97 MR. BLASIER:

No. Let's just stay you have a stain, a fairly relatively large stain, and you test one area of the stain and you find some alleles and you test another area of the stain and you find some additional alleles. Do you have that in mind?

98 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes.

99 MR. BLASIER:

Would that be an indication--would one explanation be that those stains were put there at different times?

100 MR. HARMON:

Objection, calls for speculation.

101 THE COURT:

Sustained.

102 MR. HARMON:

Inadequate foundation.

103 THE COURT:

Sustained.

104 MR. BLASIER:

Would that be consistent with two different stains being put on that surface at different times?

105 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I couldn't make a determination as to that, no.

106 MR. BLASIER:

Okay. Could we have photo 90 back on.

107 MR. BLASIER:

Now, you have no personal information about what happened between when sample 30 and 31 was collected and when sample 303 and 304 were collected, do you?

108 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No, I don't.

109 MR. BLASIER:

Now, the appearance of the 18 allele on 303 and 304, the very faint band, would you agree that the children of O.J. Simpson and Nicole Brown Simpson both would have an 18 allele?

110 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No, that is incorrect.

111 MR. BLASIER:

Why is it incorrect?

112 MS. MONTGOMERY:

You are saying they would or--

113 MR. BLASIER:

They would have an 18 allele?

114 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I'm sorry, you are correct. If the mother is an 18 homozygote, then the children will all have an 18 allele present.

115 MR. BLASIER:

And there is a strong likelihood that those children might also have a 24 or a 25?

116 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Correct.

117 MR. BLASIER:

And that is because you inherit these alleles from your parents?

118 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Correct.

119 MR. BLASIER:

And if there were stains mixed in with a bloodstain that--from the children, you might expect to see some of the children's alleles in the stain, correct?

120 MS. MONTGOMERY:

If you had individuals with the same type?

121 MR. BLASIER:

Yes.

122 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes, that is possible.

123 MR. BLASIER:

And you have no way of telling whether the 18 allele in samples 303 and 304 was put there or got into that sample at the same time as the 24, 25 alleles, do you?

124 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No, I don't.

125 MR. BLASIER:

You have no way of aging how old the sample is from looking at the gel, correct?

126 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Well, some indication can be obtained by the--if a yield gel is done on a sample. You can obtain some information if degradation has occurred, but by looking at strictly the D1S80 results, no.

127 MR. BLASIER:

But you might be able to tell if there is degradation but you can't tell how old the stain is, can you?

128 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No.

129 MR. BLASIER:

Could we have--I have two more photos, your Honor. One would be 11--

130 THE COURT:

1179 and 1180.

131 (Deft's 1179 for id = photograph)
132 (Deft's 1180 for id = photograph)
133 MR. BLASIER:

1179 and 1180. Could we have photo 97 and 98.

134 (Brief pause.)
135 MR. BLASIER:

Now, the photograph on the left, would you agree that that appears to be the gel with the samples from the glove, Bundy glove--I'm sorry, the Rockingham glove, G11, 12 and 13?

136 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes.

137 MR. BLASIER:

And the one on the right, which is photograph--which is exhibit 1180, appears to be stains G1, 2, 3, 4, 9 and 10, correct?

138 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes, that's correct.

139 MR. BLASIER:

And would you agree that you interpreted those--the three stains, G10, 11 and 13, as having a weak 25 allele?

140 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Once again I'm--I will refer to the report.

141 (Brief pause.)
142 (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)
143 MS. MONTGOMERY:

It is a weaker 25 allele; it is not a weak 25 allele.

KEY QUOTE
144 MR. BLASIER:

It is much less intensity than the other alleles on those lanes, correct?

145 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes. It is less intense than the 24 allele.

146 MR. BLASIER:

And let me circle 11 and 13. Have I got those about right?

147 THE COURT:

Why don't you do the second one again. Encroach on the band itself.

148 MR. BLASIER:

Let me circle both of them.

149 MR. BLASIER:

Okay. And the 25 band is here, (Indicating), and here, (Indicating), for those two samples, correct?

150 MS. MONTGOMERY:

That's correct.

151 MR. BLASIER:

And the fact that it is so much less intense than the 24 band would indicate that if there was a contribution from a 24, 25 genotype, that that person's contribution is very, very small compared to other contributors?

152 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes. The 24, 25 or--if--the 25 is--well, the 25 is the minor component along with an 18 on those samples and the 24, 24 is the major contribution, so the minor contribution would be less than the major contribution.

153 MR. BLASIER:

And the same is true over on the picture at the right of G10 with respect to the 25 allele, correct?

154 MS. MONTGOMERY:

That's correct, but in that situation there isn't an 18 allele present.

155 MR. BLASIER:

But you call it a 25 that is much less intense than a 24, correct?

156 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I called a major type and a minor type--a major type and a minor allele in that particular sample.

157 MR. BLASIER:

Can we print that, please. Save it and print it later. And could I have slide--first slide.

158 (Brief pause.)
159 MR. BLASIER:

The three stains from the glove, G10, 11 and 13, were the only stains on the glove where you found genotypes in the D1S80 system consistent with Mr. Simpson, correct?

160 MS. MONTGOMERY:

That's correct. Those are the only--those are the three areas where a 25 allele was detected along with the 24 allele.

161 MR. BLASIER:

And this is 1173-A. Could we have B, please.

162 (Brief pause.)
163 MR. BLASIER:

And the indication that you have on your paperwork is that those three stains all came from the wrist area of the Rockingham glove, correct?

164 MS. MONTGOMERY:

That's correct.

165 MR. BLASIER:

And--may we have the next slide, please.

166 MR. BLASIER:

You tested a number of different stains from the rest of the Bundy glove--the Rockingham glove, correct?

167 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Correct.

168 MR. BLASIER:

And isn't it accurate that you were able to exclude Mr. Simpson as a contributor to every stain that you looked at on that glove, other than G10, 11 and 13 in the wrist area?

KEY QUOTE
169 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes. There was no 25 allele detected on the other stains.

170 MR. BLASIER:

And there was--when you received this glove, do you know whether it was turned inside out?

171 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I--Gary Sims did all the examination of the evidence in this case, so I don't recall.

172 MR. BLASIER:

As a forensic specialist, if you got a glove as a piece of evidence and you wanted to turn it inside out, how do you do that?

173 (No audible response.)
174 MR. BLASIER:

Do you have to handle the wrist area a lot to get it turned inside out?

175 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Well, I think it is not just a forensic analyst, but how would an individual in general turn a glove inside out if it were out the opposite direction.

176 MR. BLASIER:

Would you agree it would involve considerable manipulation of the wrist area of the glove?

177 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes, I would.

178 MR. HARMON:

Objection. That calls for speculation, your Honor.

179

THE COURT: Sustained. It is vague. (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)

180 MR. BLASIER:

Your Honor, this would be an appropriate time to break.

181 THE COURT:

Finish.

182 (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)
183 MR. BLASIER:

Do you have any way of quantifying the amount of DNA attributable to the 25 allele in G10, 11 and 13?

184 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No.

185 MR. BLASIER:

Do you have any way of placing an upper limit on it?

186 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes, I could, umm, by looking at the relative intensity of the 25 compared to the major contributor of a 24 homozygote, I could tell you the extremes that it could be and for the sensitivity of our system what we find is beyond 1 to 20, you can't see the minor components--you typically cannot see the minor contribution in a sample.

187 MR. BLASIER:

But you have no way of quantifying how much DNA was present that caused the 25 allele to appear?

188 MS. MONTGOMERY:

The exact amount? No.

189 MR. BLASIER:

It could be a very small amount?

190 MR. HARMON:

Objection, that calls for speculation.

191 THE COURT:

It is vague. Sustained

192 (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)
193 MR. BLASIER:

It could be below one nanogram, couldn't it?

194 MS. MONTGOMERY:

The total DNA or of DNA on the--

195 MR. BLASIER:

DNA on the gel?

196 MS. MONTGOMERY:

On the gel. Well, in this case what I could do is compare the one nanogram standard, the 25 allele to the one nanogram standard, and would you like me to do that?

197 MR. BLASIER:

Yes.

198 (Brief pause.)
199 MS. MONTGOMERY:

That 25 allele is approximately equal intensity to the one nanogram control that is on the gel.

200 MR. BLASIER:

I'm sorry, which sample were you looking at?

201 MS. MONTGOMERY:

I'm looking at G11 and also G13.

202 MR. BLASIER:

How about G10?

203 MS. MONTGOMERY:

G10 is also approximately equal to the one nanogram standard.

204 MR. BLASIER:

It is a much smaller amount compared to the other alleles on the gels, correct?

205 MS. MONTGOMERY:

Yes. The other--the other band in those samples looks a little greater than the four nanogram standard.

206 MR. BLASIER:

You have no way of telling from this test whether or not that 25 allele got on that glove at the same time as the other alleles on the glove, do you?

KEY QUOTE
207 MS. MONTGOMERY:

No, I don't.

208 MR. BLASIER:

That's all I have.

Temperature

tense

Key Quotes (5)

Ms. Montgomery
It is a weaker 25 allele; it is not a weak 25 allele.
Montgomery attempts to resist Blasier's framing by making a subtle distinction, but it highlights that the 25 allele — the only allele on the glove consistent with Simpson — was a minor component.
Robert Blasier
Isn't it accurate that you were able to exclude Mr. Simpson as a contributor to every stain that you looked at on that glove, other than G10, 11 and 13 in the wrist area?
Blasier establishes that Simpson's DNA was only found in the wrist area of the Rockingham glove — the area most handled when turning a glove inside out.
Ms. Montgomery
You have no way of telling from this test whether or not that 25 allele got on that glove at the same time as the other alleles on the glove, do you? ... No, I don't.
The final exchange of the cross — Blasier ends on the concession that the DNA cannot be temporally placed, leaving open contamination or planting as possibilities.
Ms. Montgomery
If the mother is an 18 homozygote, then the children will all have an 18 allele present.
Montgomery confirms that Nicole Brown Simpson's children would carry the same 18 allele found in the Bronco samples, opening an alternative source for that DNA.
Ms. Montgomery
Something didn't go wrong with the gel. What--sometimes we see these--these shadow bands in the inside region of the gel, just in the center section.
Montgomery defends the artifact while simultaneously confirming it is anomalous and that samples with this issue should ideally be rerun.

Evidence (6)

People's 275-B
Gel showing D1S80 reference samples for runs 30, 31, 293, and 305, including OJ Simpson's reference lane with shadow band artifacts
displayed and challenged
Defense 1178
Photograph of gel run 294, containing Bronco samples 303 and 304
introduced and displayed side-by-side with 1174
Defense 1174
Photograph of gel containing Bronco samples 30, 31, and 293 from Bronco carpeting
displayed for comparison
Defense 1179
Photograph of gel showing Rockingham glove stains G11, G12, and G13
introduced and displayed
Defense 1180
Photograph of gel showing glove stains G1, G2, G3, G4, G9, and G10
introduced and displayed
1173-A/B
Slides summarizing glove stain results and wrist area localization
discussed

Notable Exchanges (4)

Robert BlasierMs. Montgomery
Blasier repeatedly pressed Montgomery on whether gel artifacts (shadow bands, stray dots) were 'supposed to happen.' Montgomery deflected with 'one wouldn't want it to happen' rather than agreeing directly, but ultimately conceded the point.
strategic
Robert BlasierMs. Montgomery
Blasier raised the possibility that the weak 18 allele in Bronco samples 303/304 — but not in 30/31 — could be explained by DNA from OJ Simpson's children with Nicole, who would carry both 18 and 24/25 alleles. Montgomery confirmed this was possible.
revealing
Robert BlasierMs. Montgomery
Blasier established that all three stains on the glove consistent with Simpson (G10, G11, G13) came exclusively from the wrist area, then asked whether turning a glove inside out would require 'considerable manipulation' of that area. Harmon objected and was sustained.
strategic
Robert BlasierMs. Montgomery
Montgomery confirmed that the 25 allele in glove stains G10, G11, and G13 was approximately equal in intensity to the 1-nanogram standard, while the major contributor bands were at roughly 4 nanograms — making the Simpson-consistent contribution a small minority of total DNA.
procedural

Credibility Attacks (3)

⚔ DNA evidence integrity
technical challenge to methodology
Blasier systematically exposed gel artifacts (shadow bands, stray dots) in OJ Simpson's reference lane, getting Montgomery to admit these were anomalous and that affected samples ideally should be rerun.
⚔ Glove stain interpretation
alternative source hypothesis
Blasier established that Simpson's DNA profile only appeared in the wrist area of the Rockingham glove — the area most handled during turning inside out — and that Montgomery cannot determine when any allele was deposited relative to others.
⚔ Bronco sample interpretation
alternative source hypothesis
Blasier got Montgomery to confirm that OJ Simpson's children would carry the same 18 allele found in Bronco samples 303/304, and that she cannot distinguish between blood deposited at different times.

Witness Demeanor

(No audible response.) — multiple instances where Montgomery paused before answering questions about gel images
(Brief pause.) — Montgomery referred to her notes/report multiple times before answering allele-specific questions

Objections

8 objections (7 sustained, 1 overruled)
Proceeding 6155 • 208 utterances • Prosecution witness
Criminal Trial
Department 103
⚖️ Start
📂 MAY 23, 1995 📄 Cross-examination of Renee Mon
MAY 23, 1995 KRT DvH TD