Defense Presents Demeanor Witnesses
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (Jan. 8, Evening) -- The defense read deposition testimony from two Hertz employees and an airplane passenger who all discussed O.J. Simpson's demeanor the day after the murders. Also Wednesday afternoon in the civil trial, Lawrence Fiato's criminal trial testimony about Det. Philip Vannatter's alleged rush to judgment against Simpson was read to the jury.
Earlier in the day Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki said questioning Brian "Kato" Kaelin about Nicole Brown Simpson's alleged drug use was irrelevant. Later, the defense decided it would not call Al Cowlings or Cora Fischman, two witnesses who discussed Nicole Brown Simpson's drug use in their depositions. The defense also offered a new theory that the Bundy glove in evidence may not be authentic.
Thursday the defense plans to read into the record testimony from Los Angeles coroner's office employee Gary Siglar, who gave Det. Philip Vannatter blood samples from the two murder victims. Also scheduled is the video deposition of Dr. Henry Lee.
Portions of both Hertz employees were read in early December during the plaintiffs case, but the defense read new excerpts this afternoon. James Merrill picked Simpson up at the Chicago airport and drove him to his hotel in the early morning after the murders. Merrill said that Simpson's demeanor at the airport was "laid back, relaxed, and cordial" when the two met at the airport. He noticed no cuts on Simpson's hands. Merrill also talked about several frantic phone calls Simpson made to him later that morning, after he was told that Nicole had been killed. During one of the phone calls Simpson started to cry, Merrill said.
Kilduff drove Simpson back to the airport so he could catch a flight back to Los Angeles. During the ride, Kilduff said, Simpson was "very upset" and at times had his head in his hands.
"He was moaning, 'Oh my God, this is horrible,'" Kilduff said. "He would put his head back and say: 'Oh my God, this is really bad.'"
On cross-examination the plaintiffs contended that Simpson's actions were "obvious gestures" of somebody who was upset. They also noted that both Merrill and Kilduff did not really know Simpson, so they may not have been able to judge his behavior.
Mark Partridge, an intellectual property lawyer who sat next to Simpson on the flight back to Los Angeles, testified about discussions he had with Simpson over the course of the trip. The plaintiffs, like they did with the Hertz employees, read sections of Partridge's deposition in early December. The defense, in the portions of the deposition they read this afternoon, countered several of the plaintiffs' earlier points. One important one: that Partridge advised Simpson to get an attorney when he arrived in Los Angeles. However, Partridge's testimony this afternoon noted that he never said to get a criminal defense lawyer. In fact, Partridge said, he suggested Simpson have a lawyer meet him at the airport in order to answer questions from curious reporters.
The final witness of the day was Lawrence Fiato, whose criminal testimony was read to the jury. Fiato, an informant now in the witness protection program, said that Vannatter told him twice that the police went to Simpson's Rockingham estate shortly after the murders because the former football star was a suspect.
"He went over there with Mr. Simpson as the suspect in the case," Fiato said.
-Robert Schmidt
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