Prosecutors in Jayson Williams' manslaughter trial were taken by surprise this week when one of their key witnesses testified that the former NBA star was squeezing the trigger of a shotgun when it discharged and killed a chauffeur.

According to court transcripts, chief prosecutor Steven Lember anticipated the witness, Benoit Benjamin, would say he did not know whether Williams actually pulled the trigger. Lember was stunned when Benjamin said he did know.

"I didn't expect that answer," Lember admitted to a judge and defense lawyers out of earshot of the jury just moments after Benjamin offered the shocking testimony.

Benjamin, a one-time New Jersey Nets teammate of Williams, told jurors, "Did I see Jayson pull the trigger? Yes, I saw him pull the trigger."

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He was the most damaging witness yet against Williams, who faces 55 years in prison if convicted of aggravated manslaughter and other charges. The hoopster admits shooting Costas "Gus" Christofi on Feb. 14, 2002, but claims the death was an accident caused by a malfunction in the weapon.

Benjamin, one of four Harlem Globetrotters touring Williams' mansion the night of the shooting, testified that he was "less than three feet" from the All-Star when the gun went off.

Benjamin previously had told authorities only that he saw Williams' finger on the trigger, according to transcripts of the sidebar conference.

When the prosecutor explained to Somerset County Superior Court Judge Edward Coleman that he was expecting Benjamin to say "he didn't really know whether the trigger was pulled," the judge shot back, "What do you want to do about it? You asked the question, that's his answer, you're stuck with it."

During nearly seven hours of testimony over two days, Benjamin waffled on the trigger issue several times, but ultimately insisted Williams actively fired the 12-gauge shotgun.

Defense lawyers, the transcript shows, wanted to confront him with a statement he made two months after the incident in which he termed the shooting an accident, but the judge prohibited the questioning.

In that interview, Benjamin told authorities, "I don't think he purposely did it. ... Personally, I think it's just a terrible, horrible accident to happen."

Judge Colemen said Benjamin's opinion was irrelevant and might confuse jurors.

When the defense pounded Benjamin about other turnabouts in his account of the shooting, including his claim that a shell was plainly visible in the barrel of the gun before Williams began toying with it, Benjamin blamed his wavering on the stress of the shooting.

"I was very traumatized by this event and as time progressed, different things began to come back to me more intricately," he testified.

The defense has painted him as a broke, embittered has-been who resented Williams' success and tried to extort a job from him in exchange for his testimony.

The transcripts also show the prosecution and defense agreed before Benjamin took the stand not to question him about drugs — specifically marijuana, cocaine and steroids.

"We're not going to ask any questions about stories about drugs, use of drugs, either with the defendant or with this witness," Lember said.

After the shooting, Benjamin's blood tested positive for the presence of marijuana and another prosecution witness, Kent Culuko, told investigators that in the aftermath of the shooting, Williams was worried police might discover cocaine in the house. Detectives found no cocaine, and Judge Coleman ruled Culuko could not mention the concerns about cocaine when he testified.