10 St 19 Sept 1995 Jahr - Det. Vannatter is cross-examined by defense

Beschreibung:

Detective Vannatter is cross-examined by defense attoney Robert Shapiro on statements he made to mob informants about why police went to O.J. Simpson's residence.

Judge Says Defense Can Call Recall Vannatter, Question About Search by MICHAEL FLEEMAN
September 19, 1995

LOS ANGELES "The detective who led the investigation of O.J. Simpson was called back to the stand today, and the defense tried to show he lied when he said Simpson wasn’t initially considered a suspect.

Detective Philip Vannatter repeated his denial today that he said he considered Simpson a suspect before police searched the former football player’s estate without a warrant in the hours after Simpson’s ex-wife and her friend were slain.

``Anybody that has personal contact with a murder victim before they’re eliminated is a potential suspect and can be a potential suspect,″ Vannatter said. ``I wish I was good enough to go to a crime scene, and within less than an hour be able to figure out who committed a murder, that would be great.″

In a significant setback for the prosecution, Judge Lance Ito allowed Vannatter to be cross-examined about statements he allegedly made to mob informants in a hotel room and in a courthouse smoking area.

Simpson attorney Robert Shapiro said the defense would decide whether to call Larry and Craig Anthony ``Tony the Animal″ Fiato after hearing Vannatter’s testimony.

In arguing for the line of questioning, Shapiro said Vannatter told Larry Fiato in a hotel room that ``we went over to Rockingham because (he) was a suspect. The husband is always a suspect.″

Vannatter testified in March that detectives went to Simpson’s house and entered without a warrant because they were concerned about Simpson’s welfare and they wanted to inform him personally of his ex-wife’s murder.

But in arguing against the line of questioning, prosecutor Brian Kelberg replied today that Fiato had nothing to offer. Using the scatological terms of the mob, Kelberg said the conversation was ``just bull----, just shooting the breeze. ... It was a nothing statement.″

The hotel room conversation began when Anthony Fiato, who is in the federal witness protection program for his testimony against the LA-based mob known as the ``Mickey Mouse Mafia,″ complained because authorities said they were displeased over his affair with Nicole Brown Simpson’s sister, Denise, according to Shapiro.

Denise Brown has denied any relationship with Fiato.

Also today, federal prosecutors urged to pull the plug on the courtroom camera if the Fiato brothers testify for Simpson. The order also asked that courtroom artists refrain from sketching the brothers.

The defense’s witness wish list was part of its desire to end its initial presentation this week with a double-barreled attack on law enforcement, going after the integrity of both the Los Angeles Police Department and the FBI.

Outside court, an attorney for FBI agent Frederic Whitehurst said the FBI has refused to release the potential defense witness’ performance evaluation to prosecutors. Stephen Kohn said Whitehurst has received excellent evaluations, as well as plaques and certificates praising his work.

Kohn was carrying a document entitled ``Performance Appraisal Report.″ Asked why he couldn’t give that document to the prosecution, Kohn flipped the document over and said, ``No comment.″

Whitehurst himself did not speak at the news conference, but stood next to his attorney.

Also today, Ito released procedures for deliberations, revealing that there will be at least a one-hour warning for attorneys to get to court before a verdict is read. The judge also said he will read jury instructions before closing arguments. Normally, instructions are given after closing arguments, just before the jury begins deliberations.

On Monday, Ito allowed the prosecution to conditionally rest its rebuttal because the defense has not yet rested its case. The traditional order of evidence presentation has been thrown askew by the defense desire to keep its options open and the judge’s desire to keep evidence moving along for the impatient jury.

The schedule became even more confusing when the defense put on its first witness in its own rebuttal case. That witness, blood expert Herbert MacDonell, described an experiment he conducted to show that blood wouldn’t have shrunk the evidence gloves as much as the prosecution says it did.

MacDonell was called to bolster the defense contention that the evidence gloves didn’t fit Simpson in a demonstration before the jury because the gloves were never Simpson’s. The prosecution alleges Ms. Simpson bought him the gloves and he wore them during the murders. One glove was found near the bodies, the other on Simpson’s property.

MacDonell told jurors he smeared his own blood on a pair of gloves similar to those police found and let them dry. MacDonell then measured the amount of shrinkage.

``I would have to say it was negligible,″ MacDonell said.

The odd court day opened Monday with lead defense attorney Johnnie Cochran Jr. outlining witnesses he wants to call before the defense rests.

Anthony Fiato’s two years of secret tape recordings led to indictments in 1987 that officials said helped bring down a Los Angeles mob. More recently, he was a key prosecution witness in the trial of three men charged in the 1982 murder-for-hire killing of tough-guy actor Frank Christi.

Fiato, a Boston native, caused a stir earlier this year when he was photographed in the company of Denise Brown, Ms. Simpson’s sister. Ms. Brown said the two weren’t romantically involved, but she said, ``He’s a wonderful guy.″

The defense has long argued that the search of Simpson’s property was illegal, but detectives including Vannatter insisted they made their urgent entry only to inform Simpson of his ex-wife’s death and arrange for the care of the couple’s children.

The other witnesses relating to Vannatter’s alleged conversation are Fiato’s brother, Deputy District Attorney Dale Davidson _ who prosecuted the recent mob case _ and FBI Agent Michael Wacks.

The Los Angeles Times reported today that Wacks heard part of another conversation between Vannatter and Fiato’s brother in which the detective allegedly related the same information.

For the defense’s other attack, the Simpson camp wants to recall FBI agent Roger Martz, presumably to confront him with allegations from Whitehurst. Whitehurst reportedly has accused Martz of misconduct in the Simpson case and has alleged FBI wrongdoing in other high-profile cases, including the World Trade Center bombing.

The defense also tried to perpetuate its assault on retired Detective Mark Fuhrman, but the judge refused to let the defense to call a woman police officer who worked with Fuhrman in the 1980s and who heard Fuhrman make racist and sexist remarks. Ito called the testimony repetitive in light of similar testimony by earlier witnesses."


Sourced from:
AP News

Https://apnews.com/article/09480cc37a7ef4ab94d75fcf6bacc7c1

Zugefügt zum Band der Zeit:

Datum:

Abbildungen: