Video Transcript
let's bring in our guest for this hour
to talk about what we're seeing trial
attorney Trey Grover is with us Trey
let's first talk about this PowerPoint
issue because it can be a bit convoluted
there are often times that juries ask
for demonstrative AIDS and they are told
you can't get this information once they
are deliberating because a demonstrative
Aid isn't evidence it's not admitted
it's just there to help the jury
understand something a little bit better
your thoughts on the state and the
defense's position on this particular
power
point this this isn't a unique or
abnormal situation for the state to want
to summarize voluminous
information uh with a demonstrative like
this however I think that the
prosecution is missing an opportunity
here we we as as just receivers of
information gloss over with PowerPoints
nobody wants another PowerPoint this is
an opportunity to pull out a a pad of
paper a big poster pad of paper for
prosecutor to get up and stand and write
what are the differences between these
statements the defendants these
inconsistent statements the defendants
made over time and you're writing it
live the little summary bullet points
that's a lot more impactful it's a lot
more memorable for the jury it's an
easier way to get around this rule 106
demonstrative evidence giving it prior
information use the PowerPoint during
closing but during live testimony write
it down in front of the jury they're
going to receive it and they're going to
probably want to take their own notes
mentally or on paper themselves because
you're doing it you're writing it down
for them great analysis TR let's talk
about the witness that's on the stand
right now when this subject of the
PowerPoint came up and that's this case
detective who started on this case in
2019 so this is a 2007 Cold Case Cold
Justice the oxygen series got involved
and lent resources to looking into what
happened to Anita cansen and I'm
wondering what you think about her
demeanor on the stand how's she coming
across is itth authoritative enough
because she's going to be the last
witness in the state's case in
Chief yeah my quick note on her is is
she she's she's soft there's some
waffling is what I call it where she
kind of goes back and forth she Hedges
even on the question will the
demonstrative be helpful for the jury
the answer wasn't a definitive yes it
was well maybe um now that's good and
the cred you know there's a balancing
test when we have a witness on the stand
we want them to be credible we want them
to be believable and if they just go
whole cloth with everything that they've
been asked by the prosecution they have
no push back they're going to lose some
credibility points but at the same time
you got to drive your points home and
the witness is is maybe a little soft on
that uh we'll we'll see how it plays out
and you got to wonder if she's hedging a
bit because the defense we know during
cross is likely going to be bringing up
some issues that have to do with her own
personal interactions with police or
problematics with an internal report
that really don't have any anything to
do with this case but the defense
certainly wants to bring it up we could
tell that at the beginning of this trial
Trey standby we are getting word that
there is a bit of movement inside of the
courtroom so we're going to squeeze in a
break and get you back in here what the
judge has to say about that
demonstrative Aid and what else the
detective is going to testify to on
[Music]
Direct while the jury walks in let's
bring back in trial attorney Trey Gober
Trey do we call this a moot point is
that what just happened we listened to
the judge make this ruling but yet we're
not going to see this PowerPoint until
the closing
argument yeah exactly what I was talking
about I think that your punchiness with
this information these conflicts you
don't want the jury looking at a stale
cold PowerPoint you want them paying
attention to the witness and
understanding the distinction all the
all the inconsistencies that this
defendant has made uh regarding her
Alibi uh and and excuses of of what
happened when it happened what she knew
when she knew it and so getting the jury
to pay attention to the witness is key
here this is the state's witness they
need the jury looking at that witness
absolutely and it's the last witness in
the case and chief so this usually means
this is one of your most important
witnesses that you want this jury to be
remembering and thinking about let's go
back in the courtroom now again Carmen
asham who is the detective on this case
back on the stand still under direct
examination we're hitting the pause
button on this testimony let's bring in
trial attorney Trey Gober who is
standing by Trey we're getting a bit
more information about what the
discrepancy was that police found in the
statements from Nicole rice we mentioned
or the detective mentioned that screen
and Bowl the aunt said that Nicole told
her about a cut screen and a bowl that
she saw the victim's body is this enough
I mean this is really where the case
turned yeah ultimately at the end of the
day the defense argument is look you
don't have to decide whether our client
is innocent or not you simply need to
determine whether there's Reasonable
Doubt and the reality is is that the
police law enforcement had enough doubt
that it took them 15 years to act on
this case even they had down and so any
of these discrepancies the defense will
say look after this long of a period of
time of course she's going to make some
inconsistent statements now it doesn't
help that she's giving specific facts
like Sprite and chicken strips 15
minutes that's some very specific
information you would think somebody
would remember but at the same time
we're we're going to see inconsistencies
over this period of time because it is
so long and and the argument will be she
was doing the best she could to give the
best information she can and yeah a
after 15 plus years there's going to be
some inconsistent statements we'll see
ultimately how the jury finds it but at
the end of the day this was a case that
certainly law enforcement had doubts on
on with this particular defendant that's
why they took so long to charger sounds
like a great compelling closing argument
for the defense Trey and no doubt we are
going to hear a lot on Cross examination
when we get there please stand by thank
you for your analysis we're going to get
to a break and pick it up where we're
leaving off with the detective on the
stand talking about problems with the
statements from the defendant