Courtroom Transcript Excerpts
Did you ever stay all night with this man in New York?
I refuse to answer that question.
Did you ever stay all night with this man in Chicago?
I refuse to answer that question.
Did you ever stay all night with this man in Miami?
No.
Now, Mrs. Johnson, how was your first marriage terminated?
By death.
And by whose death was it terminated?
Doctor, did you say he was shot in the woods?
No, I said he was shot in the lumbar region.
What is your name?
Ernestine McDowell.
And what is your marital status?
Fair.
Are you married?
No, I'm divorced.
And what did your husband do before you divorced him?
A lot of things I didn't know about.
Do you know how far pregnant you are right now?
I will be three months November 8th.
Apparently then, the date of conception was August 8th?
Yes.
What were you and your husband doing at that time?
Mrs. Smith, do you believe that you are emotionally unstable?
I should be.
How many times have you comitted suicide?
Four times.
Doctor, how many autopsies have you peformed on dead people?
All my autopsies have been performed on dead people.
Were you aquainted with the deceased?
Yes, sir.
Before or after he died?
Officer, what led you to believe the defendant was under the influence?
Because he was argumentary and he couldn't pronunciate his words.
What happened then?
He told me, he says, "I have to kill you because you can identify me."
Did he kill you?
No.
Mrs. Jones, is your appearance this morning pursuant to a deposition notice
which I sent to your attorney?
No. This is how I dress when I go to work.
THE COURT: Now, as we begin, I must ask you to banish all present information
and prejudice from your minds, if you have any.
Did he pick the dog up by the ears?
No.
What was he doing with the dog's ears?
Picking them up in the air.
Where was the dog at this time?
Attached to the ears.
When he went, had you gone and had she, if she wanted to and were able, for
the time being excluding all the restraints on her not to go, gone also,
would he have brought you, meaning you and she, with him to the station?
Objection. That question should be taken out and shot.
And lastly, Gary, all your responses must be oral. O.K.?
What school do you go to?
Oral.
How old are you?
Oral.
Did you tell your lawyer that your husband had offered you indignities?
He didn't offer me nothing; he just said I could have the furniture.
Are you sexually active?
No, I just lie there.
Are you qualified to give a urine sample?
Yes, I have been since early childhood.
The truth of the matter is that you were not an unbiased, objective witness,
isn't it. You too were shot in the fracas?
No, sir. I was shot midway between the fracas and the naval.
What is the meaning of sperm being present?
It indicates intercourse.
Male sperm?
That is the only kind I know.
(Showing man picture.) That's you?
Yes, sir.
And you were present when the picture was taken, right?
Was that the same nose you broke as a child?