Cross examination of the first witness, continues. I missed her name. Lawyer tells witness that the next questions are about her credibility and reliability. Q: You saw ambulance? A: Yes. Q; In front of Oscar's? A: Yes. Q: Baby wake up? A: No. Q: Did you go check? A: No. Q: Go outside to see what was going on? A: No. I was afraid and confused. Q: Shock? A: Yes. Q: Did you feel cut off? A: Not cut off just weak from fright." A: Is that why you can't remember what happened that night? A: I guess maybe.
Re direct: Has to cite the issues in cross examination before he begins a line of questions in re-direct.
Did she hear a woman's voice and looked in direction of Oscar's house? Voices. She says she heard more than one. She looked over to Oscar's. Q: You know a woman's voice? A: Man's is more bass. Woman's voice more up and down Big difference in the voices. Told her husband about the woman's voice after she learned Oscar was the one who shot. She told her husband she heard a woman. He had only heard man's voice. She was paralyzed with fear at the time of event because she had never heard a gunshot before and once she knew that Pistorius was accused it shocked her. Then she mentioned the woman screaming to her husband. It's 177 meters from her house to the Oscar Pistorius house. There were no fans or air conditioning on and the windows were open so it was quiet out, Attorney disputes it's even possible to hear a woman screaming in a closed bathroom. He says he has done a test with people screaming and they could not be heard from her house. She says a new house built between the two houses since then. Repeat: she wakes, woman is screaming. There was a pause in the screaming as the witness called security. So attorney pounds away at she couldn't have heard clear screaming to begin with because she didn't hear it while she was phoning. She gave the same statement to the cops. Attorney infers the witness reviewed her husband's statement before she gave her own which she denies.
She heard four shots. She's told to "listen to herself objectively." Attorney says when OP opened his balcony doors and shouted for help, that's the screaming she heard. No, she says she heard a woman's voice and he says "Well, we know you 're no voice expert." He says she reconciled the shouting to her beliefs about the events. He says she will not make concessions so she won't look bad. He says why would a man shout for help if he is shooting his girlfriend? Lawyer says she, the witness, won't change her story for anyone. She says she doesn't know why he, the voice she heard, did what he did. Ask him,she says. Lawyer says OP realized Reeva was in bathroom, bashed the door in (with a cricket bat) and was in the bathroom screaming. Witness says no, I heard the woman then immediately after the shots, woman stopped screaming. Then OP is heard yelling for help. Attorney says the medical experts say the woman could not have screamed after she was shot. (Prosecution says show me that opinion.) The report says bullet fragmented when it hit her in the head and she dropped immediately. Prosecution reads the medical report to say woman was hit by fourth bullet. Attorney tells witness that therefore her testimony is impossible. Attorney claims woman could not have shouted after fourth shot. Witness hangs tough about hearing the woman's voice very briefly after the fourth shot. Then he says she didn't hear shots at all but rather she heard a cricket bat bashing the door when OP broke down the door to get to the victim. She describes the shots as bang, pause... and then bang bang bang in rapid succession. Attorney declares her testimony is impossible.
Next witness: Lady I believe to be Michelle Burger, testifies she woke up about 0200 and heard a couple fighting off and on for about an hour, She thought she might have heard two voices but she knows she heard the woman's voice, Doesn't know what language, ( Afrikaans or English.) She was annoyed to be awakened. Put a pillow over her head to sleep again. Woke again and looked out to see if she could see anything. A bit later she heard four gunshots. Attorney objects that she can't say gunshots because she wouldn't know that. Finally she says she heard bang bangs. After the shots, she recalls complete silence. She spoke to her husband and he said they were gunshots. He went to look but saw nothing. Then she describes a commotion. Someone was crying out loud. Husband said it was Oscar. An ambulance arrived to Oscar's house. They called the community security and were told Oscar had shot his girlfriend. Cross-x establishes distance from her house to the OP house re her ability to hear. She saw the ambulance leave and went back to bed.
Next witness Mr. Johnson. First the court inquires of the witness if he wants his picture published, he says no, so the court issues an order re no photos may be published in any form.
Shawn (sic?) Peter Johnson. Oath given
Q: Know Michelle Berger? A: She's his wife. Live together at their address. He's an IT project manager. Investment guy. In the AM of Feb 14, 2013 he and his wife were at home spending a "normal evening." Went to bed between 9 and 10 PM. In the early AM, he woke up to screams of a woman. After he first heard the screams, he sat up in bed and listened. He heard another scream so he ran to the bedroom balcony 10 meters from the bed. On the second floor. They looked at X-f an arial photo of the Estates and he can see his house. X is his house. Trevor St. Next exhibit is a photo view from his balcony he had described. Red Arrow on window where incident took place at Pistorius's house. Another photo of same, but zoomed in.
On balcony he listened and again he heard a lady clearly in severe distress, calling. Coupla minutes went by. He heard the woman yelling Help. Then a man shouted three times for help. His wife said he should call security. She handed him the phone already dialed by hitting the pre-programed button and he spoke to the security office. He thought that they were in radio contact with the cops to report that people are being attacked in their house. Wanted to get security to help them. Told them of the attack and for them to call head guys, Another guy came on the line and he said it's the wrong security location. Wrong number. He ran back to the balcony, the woman is screaming again. Like her life was in danger. Thats when first shots were fired. Another scream and that last scream faded after the last shot was fired. The witness didn't know how many shots were fired but he thought quite a few. A couple of slow shots but last ones in quick succession... back to the bedroom. He and his wife thought there was an attack on the people in the house and they surmised that the lady's husband had been shot in front of her. They sat on their bed traumatized. No talking. They attempted to sleep. They heard some security arrive so they assumed others had called too. They were scared for themselves. It could happen to us, they thought. So he lay awake planning better security. He even got out of bed and measured doors. He went to office early. Surfed for security gates. Planned to call a friend who was building a house there in the Estates for info about event. The friend was the first person he told his "version" (it's a term of art meaning statement) which is the same as today. Spoke to a group of colleagues in office and told them what happened. His friend called back and said it was still rumor but he heard the Olympian shot his girlfriend. The witness was convinced it was a house break because both the man and woman called for help; Don't spread it around his friend told him. He told the office group but by then it was on line.
The witness then went to call his wife. She had reported her "version" to friends and colleagues. She was looking for information. Wife told him her version again and he told her the rumor which surprised them both. He again repeats that both the man and the woman called for help. Maybe trying to alert neighbors, he thought. The news spread rapidly and he and his wife followed it all day. He saw his house on the news and he was surprised how close together the houses were. He got onto his roof and he could see Pistorius' house. He used some app and googled that the distance is 150 meters from his house to Pistorius' house. Talked to his neighbor who awoke at last shot. They didn't hear more because of air conditioning and a ceiling fan.
At first the witness and his wife wanted to keep clear. They assumed others were closer and heard more clearly. But when they heard the bail hearing info where the defense case was laid out, they felt obliged to call in because the bail application information revealed to them that there were no closer witnesses than they. The witness was supposed to go on a diving trip but learned that no one else had heard what he heard from a lady friend and the radio. Pistorius' version was that only one person screamed that night and so the witness knew he needed to come forward. They called a lawyer pal who told them to write down every detail to refresh their memories later and them they contacted the cops and arranged for a meeting. Cops came to their house and wrote statement down. They came again to the house a week or so later and wrote it down again. Individual statements, taken separately.
Re direct: Has to cite the issues in cross examination before he begins a line of questions in re-direct.
Did she hear a woman's voice and looked in direction of Oscar's house? Voices. She says she heard more than one. She looked over to Oscar's. Q: You know a woman's voice? A: Man's is more bass. Woman's voice more up and down Big difference in the voices. Told her husband about the woman's voice after she learned Oscar was the one who shot. She told her husband she heard a woman. He had only heard man's voice. She was paralyzed with fear at the time of event because she had never heard a gunshot before and once she knew that Pistorius was accused it shocked her. Then she mentioned the woman screaming to her husband. It's 177 meters from her house to the Oscar Pistorius house. There were no fans or air conditioning on and the windows were open so it was quiet out, Attorney disputes it's even possible to hear a woman screaming in a closed bathroom. He says he has done a test with people screaming and they could not be heard from her house. She says a new house built between the two houses since then. Repeat: she wakes, woman is screaming. There was a pause in the screaming as the witness called security. So attorney pounds away at she couldn't have heard clear screaming to begin with because she didn't hear it while she was phoning. She gave the same statement to the cops. Attorney infers the witness reviewed her husband's statement before she gave her own which she denies.
She heard four shots. She's told to "listen to herself objectively." Attorney says when OP opened his balcony doors and shouted for help, that's the screaming she heard. No, she says she heard a woman's voice and he says "Well, we know you 're no voice expert." He says she reconciled the shouting to her beliefs about the events. He says she will not make concessions so she won't look bad. He says why would a man shout for help if he is shooting his girlfriend? Lawyer says she, the witness, won't change her story for anyone. She says she doesn't know why he, the voice she heard, did what he did. Ask him,she says. Lawyer says OP realized Reeva was in bathroom, bashed the door in (with a cricket bat) and was in the bathroom screaming. Witness says no, I heard the woman then immediately after the shots, woman stopped screaming. Then OP is heard yelling for help. Attorney says the medical experts say the woman could not have screamed after she was shot. (Prosecution says show me that opinion.) The report says bullet fragmented when it hit her in the head and she dropped immediately. Prosecution reads the medical report to say woman was hit by fourth bullet. Attorney tells witness that therefore her testimony is impossible. Attorney claims woman could not have shouted after fourth shot. Witness hangs tough about hearing the woman's voice very briefly after the fourth shot. Then he says she didn't hear shots at all but rather she heard a cricket bat bashing the door when OP broke down the door to get to the victim. She describes the shots as bang, pause... and then bang bang bang in rapid succession. Attorney declares her testimony is impossible.
Next witness: Lady I believe to be Michelle Burger, testifies she woke up about 0200 and heard a couple fighting off and on for about an hour, She thought she might have heard two voices but she knows she heard the woman's voice, Doesn't know what language, ( Afrikaans or English.) She was annoyed to be awakened. Put a pillow over her head to sleep again. Woke again and looked out to see if she could see anything. A bit later she heard four gunshots. Attorney objects that she can't say gunshots because she wouldn't know that. Finally she says she heard bang bangs. After the shots, she recalls complete silence. She spoke to her husband and he said they were gunshots. He went to look but saw nothing. Then she describes a commotion. Someone was crying out loud. Husband said it was Oscar. An ambulance arrived to Oscar's house. They called the community security and were told Oscar had shot his girlfriend. Cross-x establishes distance from her house to the OP house re her ability to hear. She saw the ambulance leave and went back to bed.
Next witness Mr. Johnson. First the court inquires of the witness if he wants his picture published, he says no, so the court issues an order re no photos may be published in any form.
Shawn (sic?) Peter Johnson. Oath given
Q: Know Michelle Berger? A: She's his wife. Live together at their address. He's an IT project manager. Investment guy. In the AM of Feb 14, 2013 he and his wife were at home spending a "normal evening." Went to bed between 9 and 10 PM. In the early AM, he woke up to screams of a woman. After he first heard the screams, he sat up in bed and listened. He heard another scream so he ran to the bedroom balcony 10 meters from the bed. On the second floor. They looked at X-f an arial photo of the Estates and he can see his house. X is his house. Trevor St. Next exhibit is a photo view from his balcony he had described. Red Arrow on window where incident took place at Pistorius's house. Another photo of same, but zoomed in.
On balcony he listened and again he heard a lady clearly in severe distress, calling. Coupla minutes went by. He heard the woman yelling Help. Then a man shouted three times for help. His wife said he should call security. She handed him the phone already dialed by hitting the pre-programed button and he spoke to the security office. He thought that they were in radio contact with the cops to report that people are being attacked in their house. Wanted to get security to help them. Told them of the attack and for them to call head guys, Another guy came on the line and he said it's the wrong security location. Wrong number. He ran back to the balcony, the woman is screaming again. Like her life was in danger. Thats when first shots were fired. Another scream and that last scream faded after the last shot was fired. The witness didn't know how many shots were fired but he thought quite a few. A couple of slow shots but last ones in quick succession... back to the bedroom. He and his wife thought there was an attack on the people in the house and they surmised that the lady's husband had been shot in front of her. They sat on their bed traumatized. No talking. They attempted to sleep. They heard some security arrive so they assumed others had called too. They were scared for themselves. It could happen to us, they thought. So he lay awake planning better security. He even got out of bed and measured doors. He went to office early. Surfed for security gates. Planned to call a friend who was building a house there in the Estates for info about event. The friend was the first person he told his "version" (it's a term of art meaning statement) which is the same as today. Spoke to a group of colleagues in office and told them what happened. His friend called back and said it was still rumor but he heard the Olympian shot his girlfriend. The witness was convinced it was a house break because both the man and woman called for help; Don't spread it around his friend told him. He told the office group but by then it was on line.
The witness then went to call his wife. She had reported her "version" to friends and colleagues. She was looking for information. Wife told him her version again and he told her the rumor which surprised them both. He again repeats that both the man and the woman called for help. Maybe trying to alert neighbors, he thought. The news spread rapidly and he and his wife followed it all day. He saw his house on the news and he was surprised how close together the houses were. He got onto his roof and he could see Pistorius' house. He used some app and googled that the distance is 150 meters from his house to Pistorius' house. Talked to his neighbor who awoke at last shot. They didn't hear more because of air conditioning and a ceiling fan.
At first the witness and his wife wanted to keep clear. They assumed others were closer and heard more clearly. But when they heard the bail hearing info where the defense case was laid out, they felt obliged to call in because the bail application information revealed to them that there were no closer witnesses than they. The witness was supposed to go on a diving trip but learned that no one else had heard what he heard from a lady friend and the radio. Pistorius' version was that only one person screamed that night and so the witness knew he needed to come forward. They called a lawyer pal who told them to write down every detail to refresh their memories later and them they contacted the cops and arranged for a meeting. Cops came to their house and wrote statement down. They came again to the house a week or so later and wrote it down again. Individual statements, taken separately.