📄 Blood vial exhibit discussion — Thursday, May 4, 1995
Address:
C:\DEPT103\CRIMINAL\1995\MAY\4\BLOOD-VIAL-EXHIBIT-DISCUSSION.DOC
TRIAL
▲ Day 67 of 167

Blood vial exhibit discussion

Date: Thursday, May 4, 1995 • Utterances: 45
Judge Ito sustained an objection to a defense exhibit related to the blood vial on foundational grounds and Evidence Code 352, citing the speculative nature of how the item was found and when it came to police attention. After back-and-forth negotiation, Blasier revealed he had a modified version of the exhibit with the contested text removed, and Ito allowed it subject to a motion to strike. The proceeding centered on a demonstrative board showing blood amounts drawn from the EDTA blood vial, with the prosecution arguing the displayed measurements were inaccurate or misleading.
1 THE COURT:

All right. Back on the record in the Simpson matter. All parties are again present. I've had the opportunity to review the stack of reports, and I'm going to at this time sustain the objection first on the basis of foundation, secondly on the basis of evidence code section 352 given the, at this point, speculative nature as to where this particular item came from, how it was found, how it came to the police attention at a date significantly past the relevant dates where these locations were previously searched. I'll sustain the objection.

2 MR. BLASIER:

Your Honor--

3 THE COURT:

As to the--

4 MR. BLASIER:

Sorry.

5 THE COURT:

As to the exhibit, Mr. Blasier, the Court's concern is the initial assumption as to the initial amount. What I'm saying to you and what I've indicated to you is that at this point, I don't think you have the foundation for it. At some later point in time, I suspect you will.

6 MR. BLASIER:

You know, I thought maybe that's what you were getting at.

7 THE COURT:

Yes. Yes.

8 MR. BLASIER:

What I wanted to do though and is do that subject to connection. And obviously I can make an offer of proof that the nurse testified at the prelim it was eight millimeters, and the People have been allowed to introduce test results from that blood vial subject to connection and I'm simply asking for the same.

9 (Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)
10 MR. BLASIER:

And all exhibits were subject to connection as well.

11 THE COURT:

My problem though with this one, Mr. Blasier, is that it is in the form of argument, and since it is demonstrative evidence--

12 MR. BLASIER:

Actually, your Honor, I have a plate to cover up that. I have a plate so there's no text on it at all. Can I use it under those circumstances?

13 THE COURT:

Let me see it. You've modified it since yesterday morning?

14 MR. BLASIER:

I'm sorry?

15 THE COURT:

You've modified it since yesterday morning?

16 MR. BLASIER:

No. Actually, I had a plate in case there was a problem with that particular entry.

17 (Brief pause.)
18 MR. BLASIER:

Works for me.

19 THE COURT:

Works for me. You know, if you anticipate these things to begin with, Mr. Blasier, I mean, why do we have these pitch battles over things that you--well, never mind. Never mind.

20 MR. GOLDBERG:

Your Honor, is the Court now reversing its ruling as to the use of the board?

21 THE COURT:

I said that that could not be used given the way it was marked because I didn't think it was factually correct. All right?

22 MR. GOLDBERG:

But there's still some factual inaccuracies that I mentioned to the Court yesterday which I don't think the Court felt that I could get to such as the fact that the dates are--

23 THE COURT:

I thought all of that--

24 MR. GOLDBERG:

The amounts were approximations on the business records that have the little squiggly.

25 THE COURT:

No, I understand that. All right.

26 MR. GOLDBERG:

And--

27 THE COURT:

Given the modifications--I'm sorry. Mr. Goldberg.

28 MR. GOLDBERG:

And on one of them, it indicated that Mr. Matheson had removed blood on the 25th when it was Mr. Yama--excuse me--Mr. Matheson had removed blood on the 25th when in fact it was Mr. Yamauchi.

29 THE COURT:

I thought all the notations had been withdrawn from that.

30 MR. GOLDBERG:

Are all of them withdrawn?

31 MR. BLASIER:

I won't put anything up there--

32 THE COURT:

All I saw was a test tube and amounts. I saw no dates, times, places, people.

33 MR. BLASIER:

I did have some tact. I only do what he agrees with, certainly. I won't do the one with--

34 THE COURT:

Just out of curiosity, given the magnetic nature of that, how heavy is that?

KEY QUOTE
35 MR. BLASIER:

Actually it's not too heavy.

36 MR. GOLDBERG:

Well, the amounts are--don't designate that they're approximates and there is no designation of the amount that Mr. Matheson used during his testing.

37 MR. BLASIER:

If Mr. Goldberg will tell me how to make an approximate blank for that, I'll be happy to do it. I don't know how.

38 THE COURT:

All right.

39 (Discussion held off the record between the Deputy District Attorneys.)
40 MR. BLASIER:

He's going to testify they're approximations.

41 THE COURT:

All right. Any other comment, Mr. Goldberg?

42 MR. GOLDBERG:

Well, the problem with the amounts is that they're asserted to be definite. They're not approximations. And also, there's no foundation from the witnesses as to how they measured them. We heard from Mr. Matheson how he made his estimations when he came up with an approximation, but the blood vial contained two milliliters at a point in time that we know it had to have at least 3.8 milliliters. And from that, he concluded that he at least has a margin of error of greater than--equal to or greater than 1.3 milliliters. So to put before this jury what is at this point an argument asserting precise numbers when we don't know how the measurement was made, we don't know under what circumstances, we don't know what the margin of error was on the measurements is misleading. And also, this doesn't calculate the amount of blood that stuck to the pipetters and the micro centrifuge tubes, which can be fairly considerable when you add it all up.

43 THE COURT:

Uh-huh. All right. Well, here's the thing though. The Court controls the order of proof. I'll allow this subject to a motion to strike. It's the same situation. The foundation for the blood itself, I've allowed subject to a motion to strike. I'll allow this, which is the same topic, subject to a motion to strike since all of this--excuse me--this particular exhibit has been completely modified to take away all of the other notations other than the amounts. All right. Let's proceed. Let's have the jurors, please.

44 MR. GOLDBERG:

Your Honor, we did check on the photographs--I'm sorry--and we did not get the particular photographs the Defense introduced in discovery.

45 THE COURT:

All right. We'll take that up at the noon break. We'll take that up at the noon break.

Temperature

procedural

Key Quotes (5)

Lance A. Ito
I'll sustain the objection first on the basis of foundation, secondly on the basis of evidence code section 352 given the, at this point, speculative nature as to where this particular item came from, how it was found, how it came to the police attention at a date significantly past the relevant dates where these locations were previously searched.
Ito's ruling on the blood vial exhibit grounds the defense's missing-blood argument in foundational problems — they can't yet establish how the vial was found.
Robert Blasier
The People have been allowed to introduce test results from that blood vial subject to connection and I'm simply asking for the same.
Blasier invokes symmetry: if the prosecution can use vial evidence subject to connection, the defense should get the same treatment for their demonstrative exhibit.
Hank Goldberg
The blood vial contained two milliliters at a point in time that we know it had to have at least 3.8 milliliters. And from that, he concluded that he at least has a margin of error of greater than--equal to or greater than 1.3 milliliters.
Goldberg articulates the prosecution's counter-argument to the missing-blood theory: measurement uncertainty undermines the defense's precise accounting of the vial contents.
Lance A. Ito
Just out of curiosity, given the magnetic nature of that, how heavy is that?
A rare moment of casual curiosity from Ito about the demonstrative exhibit, lightening the procedural tension briefly.
Lance A. Ito
If you anticipate these things to begin with, Mr. Blasier, I mean, why do we have these pitch battles over things that you--well, never mind. Never mind.
Ito expresses mild exasperation that Blasier had a fix ready all along, suggesting the preceding argument was at least partially avoidable.

Evidence (3)

Informal
Demonstrative board showing blood amounts drawn from the EDTA reference blood vial, with a cover plate to hide text annotations
challenged, then conditionally allowed subject to motion to strike after modification
Informal
The EDTA reference blood vial and associated test results
discussed — prosecution's prior admission of test results used by defense to argue for equal treatment
Informal
Photographs referenced by Goldberg at the end, not produced in discovery
flagged by prosecution; deferred to noon break

Notable Exchanges (2)

Robert BlasierLance A. Ito
Blasier reveals he had a cover plate to remove the contested text from the demonstrative board all along, prompting Ito to allow the exhibit while mildly chiding Blasier for not producing it sooner and avoiding the argument.
strategic / mildly sardonic
Hank GoldbergLance A. Ito
Goldberg presses residual factual objections to the board — wrong analyst name (Matheson vs. Yamauchi), approximate vs. definite amounts, missing measurement methodology — but Ito cuts through and allows the stripped-down exhibit subject to a motion to strike.
procedural / prosecutorial persistence

Light Moments (2)

Lance A. Ito
Ito, apparently charmed by the magnetic demonstrative board, asks 'Just out of curiosity, given the magnetic nature of that, how heavy is that?' in the middle of a heated evidentiary dispute.
Robert Blasier / Lance A. Ito
After Blasier produces his pre-made cover plate, both Blasier and Ito independently say 'Works for me,' followed by Ito's half-suppressed 'why do we have these pitch battles...well, never mind. Never mind.'

Witness Demeanor

(Discussion held off the record between Defense counsel.)
(Brief pause.)
(Discussion held off the record between the Deputy District Attorneys.)

Objections

1 objections (1 sustained, 0 overruled)
Proceeding 5909 • 45 utterances
Criminal Trial
Department 103
⚖️ Start
📂 MAY 4, 1995 📄 Blood vial exhibit discussion
MAY 4, 1995 KRT DvH TD