Redirect examination of Mark Fuhrman

📄 Redirect examination of Mark Fuhrman — Tuesday, July 5, 1994

Address:

C:\DEPT103\PRELIMINARY\1994\JUL\5\REDIRECT-EXAMINATION-OF-MARK-F.DOC

TRIAL

▲ Day 3 of 6

◀ Cross-examination of Mark Fuhrman Scheduling and afternoon recess ▶

Witness: Det. Mark Fuhrman
Examiner: Marcia Clark
Called by: Prosecution • Date: Tuesday, July 5, 1994 • Lines: 41

On redirect, Mark Fuhrman explained the bloody heel print shown in Defendant's B and described the darkness and concealed spaces along the Rockingham path where he found the glove. He said the Bundy blood trail and blood on the Bronco suggested a possible left-side injury but did not necessarily identify a suspect, and he defended the warrantless entry as an emergency effort to find victims and save lives.

# 1

REDIRECT EXAMINATION

# 2

BY MS. CLARK:

# 3 Q:

SIR, YOU HAVE DEFENDANT'S B UP HERE STILL. YOU EARLIER DESCRIBED FOR US A HEEL PRINT IN BLOOD, WHAT APPEARED TO BE BLOOD.

# 4 A:

YES, I DID.

# 5 Q:

DO YOU SEE IT IN THAT PHOTOGRAPH?

# 6 A:

YES. IT IS RIGHT BELOW THE LEAVES, DIRECTLY -- IF I AM ORIENTED CORRECTLY, I WOULD BE LOOKING AT THIS GLOVE AND FOOT FROM THE WEST. IT WOULD BE DIRECTLY SOUTH OF THE GLOVE, INCHES AWAY IN A POOL OF BLOOD.

# 7 Q:

DOES THE HEEL APPEAR TO BE POINTING AWAY FROM THE BODY OF THE VICTIM?

# 8 A:

YES, IT APPEARS TO BE WALKING IN A SOUTHWESTERLY DIRECTION. IT WOULD BE WALKING TOWARDS THE FEMALE VICTIM.

# 9 Q:

NOW WHEN YOU ARRIVED AT 360 ROCKINGHAM, WAS IT STILL DARK OUTSIDE?

# 10 A:

YES.

# 11 Q:

BY THE TIME YOU WERE LOOKING -- YOU WERE WALKING DOWN THE -- THAT PATH AT THE SOUTH SIDE OF THE PROPERTY WHERE YOU ULTIMATELY FOUND THE GLOVE, WHAT WAS THE LIGHTING CONDITION LIKE IN THAT AREA?

# 12 A:

VERY POOR, EVEN WORSE THAN IT WAS OUT ON THE STREET.

# 13 Q:

AND WHY WAS THAT?

# 14 A:

THE TREES HAD SHADOWED IT AND EVEN DARKENED IT MORE THAN THE EXISTING LIGHT WOULD ALLOW. IN OTHER WORDS, AT NIGHT IT WOULD BE MUCH DARKER. AND EVEN DURING THE DAY, IT WOULD BE DARKER THAN JUST BEING OUT IN THE SUNLIGHT.

# 15 Q:

SO IT WAS -- IN THAT SHADOW, WERE YOU ABLE -- IN THAT KIND OF DARKNESS, SIR, WERE YOU ABLE TO SEE WHETHER OR NOT THERE WERE ANY SHAPES OR FORMS THAT WERE BEYOND THE LIGHT OF YOUR FLASHLIGHT?

# 16 A:

NO. AND EVEN MORE THAN THAT, I ALREADY PASSED TWO LARGE INDENTATIONS THAT WENT BACK SEVERAL FEET INTO THE BUILDING STRUCTURE. AND I DIDN'T KNOW HOW MANY OF THOSE WERE YET TO BE SEEN GOING EAST. I WAS NOT FAMILIAR WITH THE BUILDING ITSELF.

# 17 Q:

NOW YOU POINTED OUT THOSE INDENTATIONS, I THINK, EARLIER. THEY ARE INDICATED ON THE DEFENDANT'S DIAGRAM. DO YOU SEE THEM HERE?

# 18 A:

YES, MA'AM.

# 19 Q:

HOW DEEP WERE THEY?

# 20 A:

THIS FIRST INDENTATION WAS JUST MAYBE A FOOT AND A HALF, TWO FEET. AND THERE WAS GARBAGE CANS HERE, AND A LITTLE BIT OF JUNK. THERE WAS A DOOR TO THE GARAGE THAT LEADS INTO THE GARAGE WITH A WINDOW ON THE TOP HALF. IN THIS AREA HERE IT WAS SEVERAL FEET DEEP, AND THERE WAS AN AREA HERE THAT LED TO A CRAWL SPACE. THERE WAS A VOLTAGE BOX EITHER HERE OR HERE (INDICATING). THIS IS PROBABLY FIVE FEET DEEP, THEN IT CONTINUES SOLID. AND I DISCOVERED THAT IT WAS SOLID ALL THE WAY BACK. AND THERE WAS A WINDOW, ONE WINDOW IN THE LAST BUNGALOW.

# 21 Q:

FIVE FEET DEEP, AND APPROXIMATELY HOW WIDE?

# 22 A:

OH, TEN TO FIFTEEN FEET. IT IS NOT ONLY FIVE FEET HERE; IT GOES BACK FARTHER, PROBABLY AS MUCH AS TEN FEET. SOMEBODY COULD BE SECRETED IN THAT AREA.

# 23 Q:

SO YOU WENT ALL THE WAY BACK TO THE VERY END THAT'S INDICATED IN THE DIAGRAM THERE?

# 24 A:

YES, ALL THE WAY BACK WHERE THERE IS THIS DIAGRAM OF SHRUBS. IT IS NOT OVERGROWN AS THIS IS DEPICTED. THIS AREA, FAIRLY LARGE, IS COMPLETELY OPEN AND IT LOOKED LIKE -- LIKE I SAID, A POTTING AREA FOR GROWING YOUNG PLANTS SO THEY COULD BE TRANSPLANTED INTO THE LANDSCAPE IN THE MAIN HOUSE.

# 25 Q:

YOU LOOKED AROUND BACK THERE AS WELL?

# 26 A:

YES, I LOOKED THERE IN THE SHRUBS AND ATTEMPTED TO GET AS FAR BACK AS I COULD ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THIS FENCE. I COULDN'T TELL WHAT WAS BACK THERE, BUT I WASN'T DRESSED IN ATTIRE THAT I COULD REALLY GO TOO FAR.

# 27 Q:

SO THAT WAS EVEN AFTER YOU FOUND THE GLOVE, YOU CONTINUED BACK THERE?

# 28 A:

YES.

# 29 Q:

LOOKING FOR?

# 30 A:

I WAS LOOKING FOR A VICTIM, A PERSON WHO COULD HAVE LEFT THE GLOVE. WHAT I SAW ON THE GLOVE I THOUGHT WAS BLOOD, AND THAT ALERTED ME EVEN MORE.

KEY QUOTE

# 31 Q:

NOW YOU EARLIER INDICATED THAT YOU SAW THE BLOODY SHOE PRINTS AND THE BLOOD DROPS TO THE LEFT OF THOSE SHOE PRINTS IN A DIRECTION THAT SEEMED TO LEAD AWAY TOWARDS THE ALLEY OF THE REAR OF THE RESIDENCE AT 875 SOUTH BUNDY?

# 32 A:

YES.

# 33 Q:

DID THAT OBSERVATION HAVE ANY IMPACT ON THE SIGNIFICANCE YOU PLACED ON THE BLOOD ON THE DOOR HANDLE THAT YOU INITIALLY SAW ON THE FORD BRONCO?

# 34 A:

WELL, THE BLOOD TO THE LEFT OF THE FOOTPRINT WOULD INDICATE THAT THERE WAS AN INJURY TO THE LEFT SIDE OF THE BODY. THE SPOT ON THE TRUCK, YOU -- THE DRIVER'S SIDE, YOU WOULD OPEN THE DOOR WITH YOUR LEFT HAND. THAT COULD INDICATE THAT THE PERSON THAT LEFT THE SCENE WAS BLEEDING FROM A FOOT, AN ARM, A HAND, FROM THE LEFT SIDE OF HIS BODY. AND THE SPOT ON THE BRONCO COULD COINCIDE WITH THAT INJURY. I MIGHT ADD THAT THAT COULD HAVE ALSO BEEN SOMEONE THAT FLED THE SCENE, NOT BEING A SUSPECT. AND THAT WAS ALSO IN MY MIND, NOT KNOWING EXACTLY WHAT TRANSPIRED AT THAT TIME.

# 35 Q:

RIGHT. SO WHEN YOU GOT TO 360 ROCKINGHAM, DID YOU BELIEVE THAT YOU WERE NECESSARILY AT THE RESIDENCE OF A SUSPECT?

# 36 A:

NO, I DIDN'T.

# 37 Q:

AND WHY WAS IT THAT YOU DID NOT SECURE THE RESIDENCE FOR A SEARCH WARRANT BEFORE FINDING THE GLOVE?

# 38 A:

WELL, I THINK AT THAT TIME IF WE DID THAT, I THINK WE HAD ENOUGH OF AN EMERGENCY SITUATION THAT I THINK WE WERE OBLIGATED TO, IF WE COULD, TO PRESERVE LIFE IF THAT WAS THE SITUATION. AND THAT'S WHAT WE ATTEMPTED TO DO. IF WE WOULD HAVE TAKEN THE TIME, GIVEN A TELEPHONIC SEARCH WARRANT, WE ARE STILL TALKING 20, 30, 40, 50 MINUTES. THIS IS NOT A SITUATION WHERE WE HAD THE TIME TO STAND OUT IN THE STREET AND JUST WAIT AND WONDER. WE HAD TO DO SOMETHING.

# 39 Q:

SO WHEN YOU WENT OVER THAT WALL, WERE YOU LOOKING TO GATHER PROBABLE CAUSE, OR WERE YOU LOOKING TO SAVE LIVES?

# 40 A:

SAVE LIVES.

# 41 MS. CLARK:

I HAVE NOTHING FURTHER.

Temperature

routine

Key Quotes (4)

Det. Mark Fuhrman

I WAS LOOKING FOR A VICTIM, A PERSON WHO COULD HAVE LEFT THE GLOVE. WHAT I SAW ON THE GLOVE I THOUGHT WAS BLOOD, AND THAT ALERTED ME EVEN MORE.

Fuhrman said his continued search after finding the glove was motivated by concern for an injured person, not simply evidence collection.

Det. Mark Fuhrman

I MIGHT ADD THAT THAT COULD HAVE ALSO BEEN SOMEONE THAT FLED THE SCENE, NOT BEING A SUSPECT. AND THAT WAS ALSO IN MY MIND, NOT KNOWING EXACTLY WHAT TRANSPIRED AT THAT TIME.

He emphasized that he had not yet concluded that the blood trail or Bronco blood belonged to a perpetrator.

Det. Mark Fuhrman

THIS IS NOT A SITUATION WHERE WE HAD THE TIME TO STAND OUT IN THE STREET AND JUST WAIT AND WONDER. WE HAD TO DO SOMETHING.

Fuhrman framed the warrantless entry as an urgent response to a possible threat to life.

Det. Mark Fuhrman

SAVE LIVES.

This concise answer stated the prosecution's central justification for Fuhrman's entry onto the Rockingham property.

Evidence (5)

Defendant's B

A defense photograph showing a bloody heel print near leaves, a glove, a foot, and a pool of blood at the Bundy crime scene.

displayed and discussed

Informal

A defense diagram of the south side of the Rockingham property, including recessed areas, shrubs, the garage door, crawl space, voltage box, and rear bungalow.

displayed and discussed

Informal

The glove Fuhrman found along the dark south-side path at 360 Rockingham, bearing what he believed was blood.

discussed

Informal

Bloody shoe prints and blood drops to their left that appeared to lead toward the alley behind 875 South Bundy.

discussed

Informal

A suspected blood spot on the driver's-side door handle of the Ford Bronco, which Fuhrman considered potentially consistent with a left-side injury.

discussed

Notable Exchanges (4)

Marcia Clark•Det. Mark Fuhrman

Clark used the defense photograph to clarify the location and direction of a bloody heel print near the glove and victim.

strategic

Marcia Clark•Det. Mark Fuhrman

Fuhrman described the poor lighting and deep recesses along the Rockingham path, explaining that someone could have been concealed there.

revealing

Marcia Clark•Det. Mark Fuhrman

Clark elicited that Fuhrman viewed the Bundy blood trail and Bronco blood as potentially connected but had not necessarily identified the Rockingham resident as a suspect.

rehabilitative

Marcia Clark•Det. Mark Fuhrman

Clark ended by contrasting evidence gathering with saving lives, and Fuhrman answered that his purpose in going over the wall was to save lives.

strategic

Witness Demeanor

(INDICATING)

Objections

None recorded

Proceeding 9110 • 41 lines • Prosecution witness

Preliminary Trial

Department 103