direct+exam

Name/ Attorney:__dylan rohar___ Period: _8/9 __ Case Title: _____state of oklahoma___ __V__ _paula thrombold __ The Witness You Will Question: ____**cessandra smith** (kelly carter)____
 * Direct Examination**


 * 1) What are the major points that you will make with this witness? **- could have easily escaped -gun required preperation and time to set up -mr wright intoxicated (?) - 'closed my eyes and shot' not believable -decided to wait rather than escape**
 * 2) Write a list of questions you will use to introduce your witness to the jury and provide background on the witness. Ask for only one small piece of information in each question. In the left-hand column, write the answer you expect the witness to give, with a reference to the page of the trial packet where you found that information.
 * **Answers** ||  Page & Line #  ||  **Questions**  ||
 * kelly carter c a r t e r

i am the sherrif at the police department || pg 14 line 1 || please atate your full name and spell your last name.

what is your position at the utopia county police department? || || pg 14 line 2 || how long have you been working in law enforcement? || || pg 14 line 3-5 || have you worked with any units specifically at the police department? || Possible objections/ responses: **should be no objections Really???? Don't be surprised!** lines 15-37 || what happened when you arrived at mrs thrombold's/ mr wright's home? || ||  || when did you first see paula? || she lead me to the bedroom where her husband's dead body laid in the closet. i then determined that he was dead, and placed her under arrest and advised her of her miranda rights. once at the station, she waived her miranda rights and gave me a statement.
 * i was a deputy for 12 years before becoming sherrif in 2001
 * i was working in the homicide unit for seven years prior to my election in 2001 and also have five years experiance as a criminalistics specialists
 * 1) Write questions designed to establish your witness’ relation to the case. (Do you remember the night of XX? Where were you that night? Do you recognize anyone sitting in the courtroom? How do you know her?) In the left-hand column, write the answer you expect the witness to give, with a reference to the page of the trial packet where you found that information.
 * Answers Break the answers down into chunks if info. Everything will get lost of you don't. ||  Page & Line #  ||  Questions  ||
 * i was first met by taylor harriswho told me that he was a neighbor of mr wright. he also told me that he had walked into the garage and heard gun shots and then called 911 from wrights car phone. || pg 14
 * paula exited the home as i was approaching it she was in sweats and had been crying heavily. she had no signs of injury. before i could tell her why i was there she told me there had been a shooting and that she shot her husdand.

put up **exhibit one page three- wavier of miranda rights** || pg 14 lines 34-37 || what happened after that? || || || had mr wright or mrs thrombold had any complications with the law prior to this? || || || || || || || || || || Possible objections/ responses: line 55-59 || what did you do next after you got the search warrent? || lines 60-66 || what was the layout of the suite?
 * in 2002 ms thrombold filed charges against wright but recanted them, indicating that she was mistaken
 * 1) Write a list of questions that will elicit from your witness a description of the “scene.” The questions should evoke only one small piece of information at a time. Write questions that evoke a vivid description of what the witness observed about the place, the people, the atmosphere of the day/night that is the focus of the testimony. The jury should be able to visualize the scene. In the left-hand column, write the answer you expect the witness to give, with a reference to the page of the trial packet where you found that information.
 * Answers ||  Page & Line #  ||  Questions  ||
 * with the other officers, i took pictures of the deceased, measured the rooms, completed a diagram of the suite, searched the rooms/ rest of the house, and collected and tagged all evidence || pg 15
 * it was on the 2nd floor and covered aprox 400 feet. it consisted of a bedroom area, sitting area, full bath, and walk in closet.on the south wall there was a sliding glass door that lead to the backyard and the swimming pool. from the backyard, there were exits to the street, into the garage, and house itself. || pg 15

put up **(EXHIBIT 1 PG2)** || line 72 || where was the body located in the suite? || it was also in the closet || pg 15 line 72... || where was the gun? || || pg 16 lines 99-102 || can you explain what type of gun it was? || lines 100-102 || is there preperation to get the gun ready to fire? || first, a clip of bullets must be inserted || || can you please tell us the first step? || a shell must be inserted into the chamber the second step?
 * he was located in the closet, face down, just inside the door. || pg 15
 * it was a raven 9mm 40 caliber gun. it was a semi automatic weapon that was registered to mr wright.
 * yes. it takes several steps to arm. || pg 16

you need to cock the hammer by pulling back on the slide. the third step?

yes. then the safety must be removed. only then it can be fired. it takes quite a bit of preperation. .......... is there anything else?


 * 1) Write a list of questions about the actions your witness observed. Focus on open-ended questions, beginning with the words who, what, when, where, why, how. Start at the beginning. Avoid jumping around in time and instead design questions that get the witness to tell the story chronologically one step at a time. In the left-hand column, write the answer you expect the witness to give, with a reference to the page of the trial packet where you found that information.
 * Answers ||  Page & Line #  ||  Questions  ||
 * mr wright's blood alcohol level was .18, well above being legally intoxicated and even with his height and weight, he would have been very slugish and slow to respond. it is my expert opinion that ms thrombold could have easily escaped from mr wright if he was in fact in fear for her life.

|| pg 16 lines 84-92 || explain your findings of the autopsy report please || ||  || did she have a way out? ||
 * this is also re enforced by the fact that ms thrombold could have easily escaped thru the sliding glass door in their bed room that led down to the pool and giving her a way out. instead she chose to take the gun, hide in the bathroom and set up the gun while she awaited mr wrights approach.
 * the autopsy revealed that the trajectory of the fatal bullet came from a position lower that wrights. such as lying down or sitting. || || ||  ||   ||

what did the autopsy reveal about the shooting?

put up exhibit 4 (body) ||

the autopsy revealed no gun powder residue on the victim. this indicates that the weapon was not close to the victim when it was fired. when the gun is fired a bullet and exploding gun powdeer are ejected from the weapon. so if there is no gun powder residue on the victim, then this indicates that the gun must have been fired at a greater range. in this case, the diagram of the crime scene shows that the distance must have been at least seven to nine feet.

in my expert opinion, this makes it very hard to believe mrs thrombolds sworn statement that "i closed my eyes and pulled the trigger. ||

<<<<<<< ||  ||   || anything else?

if objection: not a fact, leadinvg to a point ||  || || || || pg 16 line 112 || why is it hard to believe? ||  || || || || || || || || || || || || || Possible objections/ responses: ||  ||   || || pg 14 line 13 || || || || || || || || || || || || || || evidence report invetory of evidence || gun/ weapon description || pg 39 || scale of suite || layout of suite with shell castings, gun, slug in the wall, and body numbered || pg 40 || wavier of miranda rights || wavier of miranda rights || pg 41 ||
 * given the range, the fatal wound reflects that the shot could have been fired by a championship marksman.
 * 1) What is the information you want the jury to hear last, in order to make a lasting impression? Write a question designed to drive home the main thing you want the jury to learn from this witness.
 * Answers ||  Page & Line #  ||  Questions  ||
 * 1) List all inconsistencies and potential weaknesses in your witness’ story/testimony: Write a list of questions designed to address the weaknesses and inconsistencies in your witness’ testimony in a light most favorable to your case. Think of ways your witness can explain these weaknesses to the jurors in a truthful way that will generate empathy for the witness. In the left-hand column, write the answer you expect the witness to give, with a reference to the page of the trial packet where you found that information.
 * Answers ||  Page & Line #  ||  Questions  ||
 * mr wright directed her election campaighn.
 * 1) What exhibits will be introduced through this witness?
 * Exhibit ||  Testimony  ||  Page & Line #  ||
 * exhibit one pg one
 * exhibit one pg two
 * exhibit one page three