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Preliminary Hearing in Blake Case Underway
Aired February 26, 2003 - 14:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: A real life murder drama is unfolding this hour in a Los Angeles courtroom. Testimony is now underway in the preliminary hearing for actor Robert Blake. You see him right there. Prosecutors will make their case that it was Blake who pulled the trigger and killed his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley as she sat in a car outside a California restaurant.
CNN's Charles Feldman is live at the scene -- Charles.
CHARLES FELDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, how are you doing, Anderson? And let me show you something, if you'll go this way. If this looks a little bit like the situation we had a few years back with the O.J. Simpson case, you're right. We have a little bit of that sort of media circus element with the Robert Blake preliminary hearing, and also reminiscent of the O.J. Simpson case is this, Anderson. The defense is very early on trying to establish that there's a lack of credibility on the part of the L.A. coroner, at least in the issue of setting the time of death, which is usually a very important point in any kind of murder case, at exactly what time did the victim die, because that may help or hurt the alibi of, in this case, the defendant, Robert Blake.
Well, in this case, the coroner is on the stand, and is being questioned by Mr. Blake's attorney, Thomas Mesereau, and Mesereau gets him to admit that he was greatly influenced in his decision not to even set the time of death -- listen to this exchange.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Obviously, they were telling you what they thought had happened, correct?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Correct.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And obviously, they were influencing what you decided to concentrate on in that autopsy, correct?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Correct.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FELDMAN: Now, here's why that's important. The cops were inside when the coroner was doing the autopsy and he, in effect, testified that they told him, you know, there's no real need to test the gastric juices -- sorry for that -- which help to determine the time of death, because the detective said, Look, we know what time she died, no need to do that. He testified that he went along with that, and that means that the defense very early on, Anderson, has scored at least that one point. Namely, questioning whether or not the coroner was unduly influenced by the LAPD -- Anderson.
COOPER: Interesting. Well, Charles, looking at that little media circus there, it looks like just sort of a one-ring, but it is only a preliminary hearing. No doubt, as we get into the actual trial, the rings will grow the circus.
FELDMAN: Oh, many, many rings.
COOPER: It will be a three ring affair, I am sure.
FELDMAN: I'll be lord of the rings.
COOPER: All right. Charles Feldman, thanks very much live from Los Angeles.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
Aired February 26, 2003 - 14:15 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
ANDERSON COOPER, CNN ANCHOR: A real life murder drama is unfolding this hour in a Los Angeles courtroom. Testimony is now underway in the preliminary hearing for actor Robert Blake. You see him right there. Prosecutors will make their case that it was Blake who pulled the trigger and killed his wife, Bonny Lee Bakley as she sat in a car outside a California restaurant.
CNN's Charles Feldman is live at the scene -- Charles.
CHARLES FELDMAN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Hey, how are you doing, Anderson? And let me show you something, if you'll go this way. If this looks a little bit like the situation we had a few years back with the O.J. Simpson case, you're right. We have a little bit of that sort of media circus element with the Robert Blake preliminary hearing, and also reminiscent of the O.J. Simpson case is this, Anderson. The defense is very early on trying to establish that there's a lack of credibility on the part of the L.A. coroner, at least in the issue of setting the time of death, which is usually a very important point in any kind of murder case, at exactly what time did the victim die, because that may help or hurt the alibi of, in this case, the defendant, Robert Blake.
Well, in this case, the coroner is on the stand, and is being questioned by Mr. Blake's attorney, Thomas Mesereau, and Mesereau gets him to admit that he was greatly influenced in his decision not to even set the time of death -- listen to this exchange.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Obviously, they were telling you what they thought had happened, correct?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Correct.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: And obviously, they were influencing what you decided to concentrate on in that autopsy, correct?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Correct.
(END VIDEO CLIP)
FELDMAN: Now, here's why that's important. The cops were inside when the coroner was doing the autopsy and he, in effect, testified that they told him, you know, there's no real need to test the gastric juices -- sorry for that -- which help to determine the time of death, because the detective said, Look, we know what time she died, no need to do that. He testified that he went along with that, and that means that the defense very early on, Anderson, has scored at least that one point. Namely, questioning whether or not the coroner was unduly influenced by the LAPD -- Anderson.
COOPER: Interesting. Well, Charles, looking at that little media circus there, it looks like just sort of a one-ring, but it is only a preliminary hearing. No doubt, as we get into the actual trial, the rings will grow the circus.
FELDMAN: Oh, many, many rings.
COOPER: It will be a three ring affair, I am sure.
FELDMAN: I'll be lord of the rings.
COOPER: All right. Charles Feldman, thanks very much live from Los Angeles.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com
