Juror Booted For Christmas Card
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (Dec. 17, Evening) -- A Hispanic male alternate juror, who wrote a Christmas card telling a friend that he was a juror in the O.J. Simpson civil trial, was dismissed Tuesday afternoon. In testimony, an in-line skater who passed by the Bundy condominium shortly before 9:00 p.m. the night of the murders said he saw a person "crouching" in front of the gate.
Also on the stand this afternoon: LAPD fingerprint specialist Gilbert Aguilar and Officer Daniel Gonzalez, who was at Simpson's home early in the morning of June 13. The defense also read into the record the criminal trial testimony of William Blasini, a used car buyer, who climbed into Simpson's Bronco and looked around while it was in a police impound lot. Blasini, who was in the car two months before police say they found blood on the console, said he saw no blood or fingerprint dust in the car.
Scheduled witnesses for Wednesday include former LAPD officers Paul Tippin and Otis Marlow, who are now investigators for the plaintiffs; photography expert Robert Groden; and Kato Kaelin.
The dismissed juror sent a Christmas card talking about his role in the Simpson case to one of his friends -- who happened to be a sheriff's deputy. During jury selection, the juror said he could be fair but thought the evidence was against the former football star. "If Simpson didn't do it, then who did?" the juror asked during the selection process. He also thought too many people needed to be involved for there to be a conspiracy to frame Simpson. Although Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki did not explain his reasons for dismissing the alternate this afternoon, the judge admonished the remaining members not to talk about the case or their association with the case. Only four alternate jurors remain. Three have been dismissed and one has moved onto the 12-member panel.
The defense used LAPD Officer Daniel Gonzalez to continue its attack on Detectives Tom Lange and Philip Vannatter. Gonzalez arrived at Rockingham in the early morning after the murders, shortly after the detectives. From his vantage point outside the property, Gonzalez watched the two detectives as they brought Arnelle Simpson from her bungalow to the main house. Although he hedged a little bit, Gonzalez thought he remembered them walking into the front door of Simpson's house. However, both Lange and Vannatter, in their earlier testimony, insisted they went in the side door of the house. Gonzalez also testified that he heard the detectives tell Arnelle Simpson in the driveway that her step-mother was killed, but Lange and Vannatter testified that they told her inside the house.
The in-line skater, Thomas Tallarino, was built up by the defense in its opening statement as a crucial witness -- someone who saw a person other than O.J. Simpson crouching outside Nicole Brown Simpson's Bundy condominium shortly before the murders. But Tallarino fizzled on the stand, insisting that he couldn't describe the person except for the fact that the individual was crouching and had dark, straight hair. Tallarino also testified that he could not tell if the person was O.J. Simpson.
Defense attorney Phil Baker was forced to impeach his own witness with his police statement, pointing out that Tallarino told police the individual was white or had a light complection. However, Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki sustained an objection to Baker's question.
On cross-examination, Daniel Petrocelli used the statement to point out several inconsistencies as well. But mainly, Petrocelli said, Tallarino was not important because he did not see the crime.
"So you don't have any idea what was going on at 875 South Bundy after ten [minutes before] 9:00, correct?" Petrocelli asked.
"That is correct," Tallarino replied.
-Robert Schmidt
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