Sidebar (3)

📄 Sidebar (3) — Tuesday, May 23, 1995

Address:

C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\MAY\23\SIDEBAR-3-.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 80 of 167

◀ Cross-examination of Renee Montgomery (part 5) Cross-examination of Renee Montgomery (part 6) ▶

Date: Tuesday, May 23, 1995 • Lines: 32

At sidebar, Harmon argues that a system can take away data and misleadingly suggest that nothing is present. The court and attorneys compare visual materials that do not match in size; Ito says he sees something faint, and Clark argues that a printout distorts an original marked for evidence. Ito anticipates a 352 objection on redirect when the materials are offered into evidence.

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

# 2 THE COURT:

All right. We are over at the side bar.

# 3 MR. HARMON:

The problem that exists is when you are using systems to show that something is not there when it really is and you allow something that takes away data, you are really misleading the jury.

# 4 THE COURT:

Show me what is--what is not where.

# 5 MR. COCHRAN:

What is not where.

# 6 MR. HARMON:

Well, the whole point of this is to question whether or not there is anything there.

# 7 THE COURT:

Okay.

# 8 MR. HARMON:

Somehow Howard put the arrows because he is looking at this.

# 9 MR. BLASIER:

No, because 24 is a marker lane.

# 10 MR. HARMON:

How does he know?

# 11 MR. BLASIER:

I told him. This is just to help them locate what to look for on here.

# 12 MR. HARMON:

So you are saying that there is something faint here?

# 13 MR. HARMON:

Sure.

# 14 THE COURT:

Okay. Right there, (Indicating).

# 15 MR. HARMON:

Right.

# 16 THE COURT:

All right. Have you got that turned around right? Why don't you superimpose it.

# 17 MR. HARMON:

You are right.

# 18 THE COURT:

Turn it around.

# 19 MR. HARMON:

I'm getting dizzy here.

KEY QUOTE

# 20 (Brief pause.)

# 21 MR. HARMON:

Ours is the photo from Blake's.

# 22 THE COURT:

This is 297, 297.

# 23 MR. HARMON:

I guess you really can't because they are different sizes, but it is right in here, (Indicating).

# 24 MR. HARMON:

It is okay to just illustrate something that is there, but when you are trying to demonstrate that something is not there and you have the system that--

# 25 THE COURT:

I don't know. I see something faint there, (Indicating).

KEY QUOTE

# 26 MS. CLARK:

Your Honor, the problem is really if you lay this over the top of this, they don't match up and this printout is such a distortion of what the original is, you have the original marked for evidence, why in the world would you allow a distortion like that? It is kind of like the People have a picture of a Defendant killing a victim and they took it and blew it up as big as they could because it gets so fuzzy it was indistinct. What is the value?

# 27 THE COURT:

I assume on redirect examination you are going to go over there and I assume when they are offered into evidence you will make a 352 objection.

# 28 MR. HARMON:

We just didn't want to waste a lot of time.

# 29 THE COURT:

Okay, okay.

# 30 (Discussion held off the record.)

# 31 (Brief pause.)

# 32 (Pages 29044 through 29044, volume 152A, transcribed and sealed under separate cover.)

Temperature

tense

Key Quotes (4)

Rockne Harmon

when you are using systems to show that something is not there when it really is and you allow something that takes away data, you are really misleading the jury.

Harmon's argument that a system taking away data can mislead the jury by making something appear absent.

Marcia Clark

It is kind of like the People have a picture of a Defendant killing a victim and they took it and blew it up as big as they could because it gets so fuzzy it was indistinct. What is the value?

Clark's analogy that making an image fuzzy or indistinct can reduce its evidentiary value.

Lance A. Ito

I don't know. I see something faint there, (Indicating).

Ito reported seeing something faint in the material being examined.

Rockne Harmon

I'm getting dizzy here.

Rare moment of levity during a dense technical dispute over overlay alignment.

Evidence (2)

297

Exhibit 297; the discussion also refers to an original marked for evidence

discussed, physically examined by judge at bench

Informal

Photo from 'Blake's'; during comparison of differently sized materials, Clark described a printout as a distortion of the original and Ito said he saw something faint

described by Harmon as misleading and challenged by Clark as a distortion

Notable Exchanges (3)

Rockne Harmon•Robert Blasier

Harmon questions how Howard placed the arrows; Blasier explains that lane 24 is a marker lane and that he told Howard where to look, with the arrows helping locate what to examine.

adversarial

Lance A. Ito•Rockne Harmon

Judge and Harmon physically handle the exhibits, attempt to superimpose them, and discover they are different sizes and cannot be aligned — judge tells Harmon to turn it around.

procedural

Marcia Clark•Lance A. Ito

Clark presses for exclusion of the distorted printout; Ito signals he will let it proceed subject to a 352 objection on redirect rather than ruling now.

strategic

Light Moments (1)

Rockne Harmon

Harmon, struggling to physically orient overlapping exhibit photos at the bench, says 'I'm getting dizzy here.'

Objections

1 objections (0 sustained, 0 overruled)

Proceeding 6154 • 32 lines

Criminal Trial

Department 103