Limo Driver Takes The Stand
SANTA MONICA, Nov. 20 (Noon) -- Limousine driver Allan Park took the stand Wednesday morning in the O.J. Simpson civil trial, telling jurors that he did not see a Ford Bronco when he arrived at Simpson's home at 10:23 on the night of the murders.
Park will continue testifying on cross-examination this afternoon. He is scheduled to be followed by FBI shoe print expert William Bodziak.
On direct examination Park offered virtually the same timeline testimony he gave in the criminal trial. Park said he arrived at the Rockingham estate at 10:23 p.m., and saw no Bronco parked outside. Because he was early, Park got out of the limousine and smoked a cigarette. At 10:40 p.m., Park pulled the limousine into the driveway, again seeing no Bronco, and rang the call box at the gate several times. No one answered. After calling his boss and mother on his cellular phone, Park saw Kato Kaelin on the property at 10:54. At virtually the same time, Park said, he saw a six foot, African-American wearing "dark pants and a dark top" go into the house. "He was moving quickly," Park said.
Park then rang the buzzer again at 10:57, and Simpson answered immediately. According to Park, Simpson said: "Sorry, I overslept. I just got out of the shower. I'll be down immediately."
Park also testified about a dark duffel bag laying toward the back of the driveway. When Kaelin offered to put the bag in the trunk, Simpson would not let him, Park said. "Simpson jumped out and said, 'No, no, that's ok, I'll get the bag. Don't worry, I'll get it,'" Park told the jury. "He moved quickly to get the bag."
Robert Baker, who is currently cross-examining Park, began to chip away at the limousine driver's story by pointing out that the little details in Park's testimony were incorrect. For example, in previous testimony Park identified the Luis Vuitton bag as a Gucci bag, a suit bag as a duffel bag, and said he saw two cars in Simpson's driveway when there was only one. Baker also noted that Park did not notice any blood on Simpson's hands, and that he didn't see any blood in the limousine after Simpson left.
Before the testimony began, Judge Hiroshi Fujisaki ruled that the plaintiffs could not force journalist Lawrence Schiller to turn over a copy of a tape apparently made by Simpson shortly after the murders. Schiller played part of the tape on national television while promoting his book. Fujisaki said that because Schiller is a reporter he is protected by the state's shield law. "Unfortunately, the weight of the jurisprudence in the United States seems to be against you," Judge Fujisaki told the plaintiffs.
In court, Mary Jo Buttafuoco was a surprise visitor. She stopped to talk with Fredric Goldman, telling him that she understands what it is like being a victim. Simpson former criminal defense attorney Robert Shapiro, working now for CBS News, came to court but couldn;t get in. because all the press seating was filled. After being criticized previously for sitting in seats set aside for the defense, Shapiro took his place with the other reporters who can't get into the courtroom -- across the street from the courthouse, in a double-wide trailer where an audio feed of the proceedings is piped in.
-Robert Schmidt
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