685

1 IN THE SUPERIOR COURT OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA

2 IN AND FOR THE COUNTY OF STANISLAUS

3

4 THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF )

CALIFORNIA, )

5 )

Plaintiff, )

6 )

vs. ) Case No. 1056770

7 )

SCOTT LEE PETERSON, )

8 )

Defendant. )

9 _____________________________ )

10

11

12 Before the Honorable A. GIROLAMI, Judge, Dept. 2

13 Tuesday, November 4, 2003, at 9:35 a.m.

14

15

16

17 PRELIMINARY HEARING

18 FIFTH DAY OF HEARING

19

20 APPEARANCES:

21 RICK DISTASO and DAVID HARRIS, Deputies District

Attorney, appeared for and on behalf of the People.

22

PAT HARRIS and KIRK W. MCALLISTER, Attorneys at Law,

23 appeared for and on behalf of the Defendant.

24 The DEFENDANT was personally present.

25 __________________________________________________

__________

26 JANICE M. CARDOZO, CSR NO. 5268

Official Court Reporter

27 800 11th Street, Room 220

Modesto, CA 95354

28 (209) 525-6373

686

1 ---o0o---

2 THE COURT: Record reflect that Mr. Distaso, Mr. Harris

3 appearing for the People; Mr. McAllister and Mr. Pat Harris

4 appearing for the defendant. The defendant is present.

5 We'll continue with the cross-examination of Detective

6 Evers.

7 Prepared to proceed, Mr. McAllister?

8 MR. MCALLISTER: Yeah.

9

10 CROSS-EXAMINATION (RESUMED)

11 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. Officer Evers, backtracking to

12 last Friday, I believe it was about 6:25 when you arrived at

13 the house, that's what you told us last Friday; is that

14 right?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. And when you got to the house, were you the first

17 officer to get to the house?

18 A. I'm not sure.

19 Q. Okay. You mentioned some other name, Letsinger,

20 Spurlock, and then Sergeant Duerfeldt. Do you have any

21 recollection of which of the -- of those arrived first?

22 A. No, I don't.

23 Q. Okay. Were there -- were there people, civilian

24 people, concerned people there at the house when you did

25 arrive?

26 A. In front of the residence.

27 Q. Okay. About how many?

28 A. Oh --

687

1 Q. Roughly.

2 A. Five to ten.

3 Q. Okay. And these are not police officers, right?

4 These are people of civilian dress?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. People unknown to you?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. And then what was your first action at the house?

9 What did you first do?

10 A. Officer Spurlock and Letsinger, myself, we went

11 into the house.

12 Q. Okay. Did you go in with anybody at that time?

13 A. No.

14 Q. Okay. Was Mr. Peterson there, Scott Peterson there

15 at that point?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. He was outside at that point --

18 A. Yes.

19 Q. -- when you went in with the other officers?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. And then what did you do inside? Just roughly

22 describe what you did inside.

23 A. Just go from room to room, look in areas that a

24 person might be hidden at.

25 Q. Okay. And then you satisfied yourselves that there

26 was no other person in the house, right?

27 A. Yes.

28 Q. What did you next do?

688

1 A. I cleared the backyard.

2 Q. What does that mean?

3 A. I searched the backyard.

4 Q. Okay. Same thing, see if there's any person in the

5 backyard?

6 A. Yes.

7 Q. And did the other officers do that with you?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. And you satisfied yourselves there's no person

10 there, right?

11 A. Yes.

12 Q. What did you do after that?

13 A. I went to the front and met with Scott and had him

14 come through the house and do a walk-through.

15 Q. Okay. And the purpose of that was what?

16 A. If he can identify anything that was out of order

17 or anything that was missing, anything that just didn't look

18 right.

19 Q. Okay. Now, do you still have that printed log of

20 the radio calls --

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. -- with you?

23 Could you take a look at that? Maybe just keep it out,

24 because I'm going to ask you a few times which may be

25 reflected on that.

26 A. Okay.

27 Q. At 1707, there's a reference there that the MP's

28 house is clear. Do you see that? Or 1907 --

689

1 A. 1707 --

2 Q. 1907 would be 7:07 p.m?

3 A. Yes, I see it.

4 Q. Okay. Is that -- did I -- other than botching the

5 time, what was the actual time reflected there?

6 A. 7:07.

7 Q. P.m?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. And what does that notation mean?

10 A. I was telling dispatch that the house was clear of

11 the missing person.

12 Q. Okay. Now, would that be the end result of the

13 walk-through that you and the other officers did by

14 yourselves looking for the missing person?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. Okay. And so then you get on the radio and say,

17 "Well, we've done this, just walked through looking for any

18 person in there, and there's no person in the house or

19 yard"? Is that what that is?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. Okay. So that's -- that's at 7:07 p.m, right?

22 A. Well, there might have been a time delay when I

23 actually broadcast that.

24 Q. Okay.

25 A. I don't know --

26 Q. All you can say is that's when the broadcast was?

27 A. That's correct.

28 Q. Okay. Then you did this walk-through with Scott

690

1 Peterson, and that was looking for anything out of place,

2 anything missing, et cetera, right?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. Now, you -- you had spent some time with Scott

5 Peterson at the house -- strike that.

6 At the park you had spent some time with Scott

7 Peterson, right, talking with him?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. And now how long were you in the house with him

10 when you're doing this search through the house to see if

11 anything was missing? About how long was that?

12 A. Oh, 15 minutes.

13 Q. Okay. And you were involved in that all the time

14 that Mr. Peterson was in the house?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. And you were talking with him, right?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. Okay. Now, in the -- and just as an aside here, in

19 the conversations you had with Mr. Peterson, you had a

20 chance to be fairly close to him, right, physically?

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. And was it correct to say that you smelled no odor

23 of alcohol or anything like that on him?

24 A. No.

25 Q. Is that correct?

26 A. That's correct.

27 Q. And unlike me last Friday, at that time, when you

28 were going through the house on December 24th, you didn't

691

1 have a head cold or a cold or a sinus congestion or anything

2 like that, right?

3 A. Not that I could remember.

4 Q. Okay. I mean, your nose was working okay?

5 A. I don't remember.

6 Q. Okay. When you went through the house then, you've

7 got a sketch of this house -- or there is a sketch of this

8 house up here --

9 THE COURT: 79 or 80?

10 MR. MCALLISTER: This would be -- yeah, I guess

11 whichever. Let's just say 79, since that's the side of it

12 that's showing.

13 Q. And that is not to scale, but that -- that roughly

14 shows the floor plan of the house, right?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. Single-story house, right?

17 A. Right.

18 Q. No basement, right?

19 A. No.

20 Q. Okay. And so, basically, you've got two bedrooms,

21 the nursery -- what was this room here just east of the

22 master bedroom (indicates)?

23 A. It's a bathroom.

24 Q. Okay. And then you've got -- this would be a

25 converted garage? Is this -- that which extends towards the

26 east, that was formerly a garage or looked like it used to

27 be a garage?

28 A. Yes.

692

1 Q. Okay. And then you've got the dining room here

2 just east of the bathroom; is that correct?

3 A. That's correct.

4 Q. Any estimate that you have in terms of the total

5 footage of the house, how many square feet?

6 A. I don't know.

7 Q. Pretty small house?

8 A. I don't know what you consider small or --

9 Q. Well, I mean, you were able to go through it with

10 Mr. Peterson in the span of 15, what, maybe 20 minutes to

11 see if anything was missing, right?

12 A. Yes.

13 Q. And that was a relatively thorough search with you

14 and Scott Peterson and the other officers going room to

15 room?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. Okay. You weren't being hurried by any other

18 events, right?

19 A. No.

20 Q. And when you -- when was it that you were talking

21 with Mr. Peterson? You mentioned something about him being

22 asked about the fish, the type of fish that he was fishing

23 for. Where were you when you had that conversation with

24 Scott Peterson?

25 A. That's Officer Spurlock that was having

26 conversation with Scott, and that was after we had went

27 through the back rooms, the back bedrooms, and we were

28 coming back down the hallway towards the dining room area.

693

1 Q. Okay. So you're just walking through the house

2 when that takes place?

3 A. I -- I was actually leading, and Officer Spurlock,

4 Officer Letsinger were behind me, and I think Scott Peterson

5 was directly behind me.

6 Q. Okay. So you're hearing a conversation that's

7 going on right behind you?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. And did Scott Peterson say some -- did he -- did he

10 make any gestures describing some size or some aspect of the

11 type of fish that he was fishing for?

12 A. I didn't see that.

13 Q. Did he make any kind of description -- he couldn't

14 give the name of the fish; isn't that correct?

15 A. I did not actually hear his response. Officer

16 Spurlock was having this conversation.

17 And when we reached the front, in like the kitchen

18 area, that's when Officer Spurlock came up to me and

19 whispered to me and said --

20 MR. MCALLISTER: Well, I'm going to object to that as

21 hearsay, Your Honor.

22 THE COURT: Sustained, unless somebody wants it in

23 under 115.

24 MR. MCALLISTER: Okay.

25 MR. DISTASO: Well, Your Honor, it was offered under

26 115, and so -- I guess I can follow up on it.

27 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. Okay. So you yourself -- let's go

28 back to the hallway.

694

1 You're coming down the hallway. What was the question

2 that you heard Spurlock ask Mr. Peterson?

3 A. "What were you fishing for in the Bay Area?"

4 Q. And is -- now, is this at a point where you've

5 completed the search of the house, you're now headed outside

6 or some other place?

7 A. No, we were just coming down the hallway and --

8 Q. To go where?

9 A. To go to the front of the house or to the front, to

10 the family room, the kitchen area.

11 Q. Okay. To do the same thing, look to see if

12 anything's missing, anything is out of place, that kind of

13 thing?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. Okay. So you hadn't finished the search of the

16 house with Scott Peterson at that point?

17 A. No.

18 Q. Okay. So is Spurlock, if you know, is he -- does

19 he have a notepad out or a recording machine out when he was

20 talking to Mr. Peterson?

21 A. I don't know.

22 Q. Okay. And so you hear this question by

23 Mr. Spurlock, and then do you hear a response from

24 Mr. Peterson?

25 A. I hear some conversation. I don't know exactly

26 what he said.

27 Q. Okay. But there wasn't just silence from Scott

28 Peterson?

695

1 A. No.

2 Q. Okay. You were saying something, and you simply

3 don't remember what it was; is that right?

4 A. No, I didn't hear exactly what his response was.

5 Q. Okay. Now --

6 THE COURT: While you're looking at those items of

7 evidence, I may have misspoke yesterday when I said all the

8 items of evidence were marked or in evidence. All of these

9 items that were marked during Detective Evers' testimony are

10 not in evidence yet. Everybody's in agreement there, I

11 presume?

12 MR. DISTASO: Yes, Your Honor.

13 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. You were shown several

14 photographs, Officer Evers, last Friday. I believe among

15 them was Number 48, which is a mop and bucket; is that

16 correct?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. Now, where was that located when you saw it?

19 A. Outside the door south of the family room, the

20 garage that was converted into a family room.

21 Q. Okay. It would be somewhere in this area here

22 (indicates)?

23 A. Yes.

24 Q. And what did you -- the entryway is along that

25 path, right? There's a brick path towards the front door?

26 A. Correct.

27 Q. So this bucket and mop are sitting right on the --

28 adjacent to the walkway right to the front door?

696

1 A. Yeah, it's sitting right on -- it's sitting right

2 in front of the door to the family room.

3 Q. Okay. But, I mean, to walk to the front door,

4 you've got to walk by that --

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. -- right?

7 Was it hidden in some fashion?

8 A. No.

9 Q. Okay. And what's this blue thing here? We see

10 another -- there's a -- appears to be a mop in the bucket,

11 and then there's some other blue thing there. Do you know

12 what that is?

13 A. I thought it was another mop, but I'm not sure.

14 Q. Okay. So you saw the mop bucket before you entered

15 the house?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. And you entered through the front door initially?

18 A. Yes.

19 Q. You walk right by the mop bucket?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. Which is not hidden in any way, right?

22 A. No.

23 Q. Did you notice the mop bucket when you walked by

24 the family room door there on your way to the front door?

25 A. Yes.

26 Q. Now, what happened after the 15 or so minutes that

27 you spent inside with Mr. Peterson looking for things which

28 were missing? What transpired after that, generally?

697

1 A. Well, we all returned to the front of the

2 residence, you know. I conferred with my supervisor, you

3 know. There was plans -- not plans, but there was attempt

4 to get a helicopter en route to check the park with the

5 FLIR. And basically that's what we were doing. We waited

6 for a helicopter.

7 Q. This is all outside the house?

8 A. Yes.

9 THE COURT: You mentioned FLIR. What is that?

10 THE WITNESS: It's a piece of equipment on a

11 helicopter. It stands for Forward Looking Infrared Device.

12 It's to look for heat sources.

13 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. There was an earlier notation

14 there at 1825, which I guess would be 6:25 p.m, same time

15 you came on -- around on the scene, "Covena is the CP"?

16 What is the CP? Do you see that on your logs?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. What does that mean?

19 A. It's the command post.

20 Q. Command post. Okay. Now, did you go back in the

21 house after that?

22 A. Yes.

23 Q. When'd you do that?

24 A. There was at least two occasions that the phone

25 rang. So I escorted Scott into the kitchen area where he

26 answered the phone.

27 Q. Okay.

28 A. He hung up and came back out. Then just missed the

698

1 phone ringing again. We went back in, got the phone. This

2 time we took the phone out with him. It was a portable

3 phone, so he kept it with him on the front driveway area.

4 Q. Okay. Now, when is the next time after that that

5 you went back into the house?

6 A. That's when Detective Brocchini arrived.

7 Q. Okay. And that was at 9:26, right?

8 A. I believe so, yes.

9 Q. Could you check that --

10 A. Sure.

11 Q. -- see if that's reflected in your radio log?

12 A. At 9:26, it shows that he was en route, but he

13 didn't actually arrive until 10:01 p.m -- or, excuse me,

14 9:54 p.m.

15 Q. Okay. So, now, this is the first detective to show

16 up, right?

17 A. Yes.

18 Q. Now, you've had a sergeant there, but now you've

19 got a detective, and that means that there's somebody else

20 in charge, and that would be Detective Brocchini?

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. Is that an accurate statement?

23 A. Yes.

24 Q. Other than those phone calls that you went in to

25 answer with Scott, were you in the house at all until

26 Brocchini arrives?

27 A. No.

28 Q. Now, once Brocchini did arrive, did you take him or

699

1 did you go with him into the house?

2 A. Yes.

3 Q. Because you had to bring him up to speed on the

4 situation as you knew it, right?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. And is this something that you did by yourself, or

7 did one of the other officers, or how did that work?

8 A. Brocchini was talking to the sergeant by his

9 vehicle, and I walked over and briefed him.

10 Q. Okay. So as the first one to get the call, I

11 guess, you were the one to give him the briefing of what you

12 knew?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. Now, let's go back to the walk-through, not with

15 Scott Peterson, but the one that you did with the officers.

16 When you went through the residence with the other

17 officers to establish whether or not there was a body in the

18 house or a person in the house, you had already seen this

19 bucket next to the front walkway, right?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. Did you see any moisture on any floor inside the

22 house?

23 A. No.

24 Q. And you were attentive to that, because you'd

25 already seen the bucket outside, right?

26 A. I don't remember seeing any floor wet.

27 Q. Okay. Well, and you sure would have put that in

28 your report had you seen it, correct?

700

1 A. A floor being wet?

2 Q. Yep.

3 A. I probably would have, yes.

4 Q. And if you hadn't, one of the other officers

5 probably would have, right?

6 A. I --

7 MR. DISTASO: Objection. Calls for speculation.

8 THE COURT: Sustained.

9 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. Have you reviewed Officer

10 Spurlock's report prior to getting on the stand today or

11 prior to getting on the stand last Friday?

12 A. Yes.

13 Q. Did his report serve to refresh your recollection

14 about some facts maybe that weren't even in your report?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. Okay. Nowhere in your report is there anything

17 about there being the least amount of moisture on any floor

18 inside 523 Covena when you went through it the first time on

19 December 24th; is that an accurate statement?

20 A. Inside the residence?

21 Q. Yeah.

22 A. Yes. That's correct.

23 Q. And, furthermore, there's nothing in the report to

24 indicate that at any time that you were in the residence

25 that evening you noticed any moisture on any floor at 523

26 Covena; also accurate?

27 A. That's accurate.

28 Q. Is it also accurate to say that at no time when you

701

1 were inside the residence that evening that you noticed the

2 smell of any kind of bleach, chlorine, cleansing agent,

3 Mr. Clean, or any other kind of smell that appeared to be a

4 cleaning agent?

5 A. That's correct.

6 Q. Is that correct?

7 A. That's correct.

8 Q. Okay. Now, the second time that you go in, that is

9 the time that you go in with Scott Peterson?

10 A. Yes.

11 Q. Well, let me ask you one more question about that

12 bucket. This jumps a little bit. But when you -- you went

13 over to the warehouse at a later point, I think you told us

14 11:13, does that sound familiar, p.m.?

15 A. That sounds familiar.

16 Q. I mean, I had a head cold, and I can't guarantee

17 what you said last Friday, but did you come back to the

18 house at 523 Covena after you had been to the warehouse?

19 A. Yes.

20 Q. Okay. And what time did you do that?

21 A. I would have to refer to the log.

22 Q. Sure. If you would. Take your time.

23 A. About a minute after midnight.

24 Q. Okay. And then what did your duties consist of

25 once you returned at 12:01? What did you do then?

26 A. I know I went back, and that's when Doug Lovell was

27 taking photographs. I was just checking on it, see what the

28 status was.

702

1 Q. Okay. And do you know roughly how long you were

2 there before you cleared to go somewhere else?

3 A. I was there about 11 minutes.

4 Q. And then you were not there -- after the 11

5 minutes, you didn't come back at some later time?

6 A. No.

7 Q. Now, when you were there at this later time when

8 you got there at 12:01, was the mop bucket still there?

9 A. The ID tech, Doug Lovell, had --

10 Q. Well, was the mop bucket in the same place when you

11 came back at 12:01 as it had been when you left at roughly

12 11:13?

13 A. No.

14 Q. Did you see where it was when you arrived back at

15 12:01?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. Where did you see it?

18 A. ID Tech Doug Lovell had it in his hand. He was

19 holding it by the handle.

20 Q. Where was he?

21 A. Standing in front of the house.

22 Q. Did you talk to him?

23 A. Yes.

24 Q. Did you ask him if he was gonna be doing some

25 cleaning up?

26 A. No. He was taking it as evidence. He was

27 collecting it as evidence.

28 Q. Mr. Peterson wasn't there at that time, was he?

703

1 A. No.

2 Q. Scott Peterson?

3 A. No.

4 Q. Did you tell Lovell to take it?

5 A. No.

6 Q. That was already being done when you showed up --

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. -- right?

9 It had already been moved?

10 A. Yes.

11 Q. And would that typically be the direction that a

12 detective would give?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. To move evidence or to seize it?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. Were you ever shown any receipt for that bucket?

17 A. No.

18 Q. Okay. I was about to ask you some questions about

19 when you were going through with Scott Peterson looking for

20 things that could be missing, and you and Scott Peterson and

21 the other officers went room by room looking to see if

22 anything was missing, is that how it went?

23 A. Missing or moved, yes.

24 Q. Moved? Okay.

25 Let me just flip through some of these. I'm not going

26 to show you all of them, but -- 52 is a picture of,

27 partially, at least, of the kitchen area?

28 A. Yes.

704

1 Q. And is the telephone somewhere near there or where

2 it was or where the cradle for it was?

3 A. Hhm --

4 Q. Or do you have a recollection of that?

5 A. I don't remember.

6 Q. Okay. Fair enough.

7 54 shows part of that family room?

8 A. Yes.

9 Q. 56 is another shot of the family room showing the

10 other side of the fireplace; is that correct?

11 A. Yes.

12 Q. Some diplomas on the wall on the east side of the

13 fireplace?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. 63, is that showing the doorway into the nursery?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. 64, a little bit -- well, tell me what 64 is.

18 A. It's a -- it's a shot of the doorway into the

19 nursery also.

20 Q. Okay. And then 65?

21 A. Is the nursery.

22 Q. Okay. A mobile, baby mobile hanging from the

23 ceiling --

24 A. Yes.

25 Q. -- right?

26 Crib?

27 A. Yes.

28 Q. A life preserver-type decoration above it which

705

1 says, "Welcome aboard"?

2 A. It does, yes.

3 Q. 72, bathroom? And that would be that bathroom I

4 asked you about?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. What is this thing that's a black object that's

7 there on the tile?

8 A. Curling iron.

9 Q. Curling iron for hair?

10 A. Yes.

11 Q. Let me show you a picture which is marked 74. Now,

12 that shows a closet, obviously, right?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. And that's a closet with female articles in it?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. And 75 shows us what?

17 A. A purse hanging up in the closet.

18 Q. Okay. Now, is the purse somewhat visible in Number

19 74?

20 A. That might be the corner, just a sliver of the

21 purse (indicates).

22 Q. There's some belts -- just for reference, there's

23 some belts hanging there, right?

24 A. That's correct.

25 Q. And so from the different vantage point that 74

26 has, coming out from behind the doorjamb, looks like at

27 somewhat of an angle there's an object that could be the

28 corner of that purse?

706

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. Now, that is the purse that you checked with -- or

3 watched Scott Peterson check to make sure if anything was

4 missing; is that correct?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. Now, what did you see Scott Peterson do with the

7 purse when he was going through it with you and the other

8 officers to see if there was anything missing?

9 A. He just looked at the items inside, see if there

10 was anything missing.

11 Q. Well, okay, how did he do that? Did he take the

12 purse off the hook?

13 A. I don't remember who took it off the hook.

14 Q. Okay. Well, somebody took it off the hook to look

15 inside.

16 A. Right.

17 Q. Right?

18 A. Right.

19 Q. So you were there when this happened?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. So whoever took it off the hook, what happened then

22 to make sure that valuables or identification, et cetera,

23 were still in the purse?

24 A. I think it was Officer Spurlock that had the purse,

25 and he was opening it and pulling things out, and Scott was

26 looking at it.

27 Q. Okay. I mean, the purse was gone through to

28 establish if credit cards were missing, right?

707

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. Isn't this the kind of stuff you want to know?

3 A. Exactly -- yes.

4 Q. And identification, you want to know if that's

5 there, right?

6 A. Right.

7 Q. Keys?

8 A. Right.

9 Q. Had you seen any keys before the purse was looked

10 into?

11 A. No.

12 Q. I mean Laci Peterson's keys?

13 A. No.

14 Q. You were interested in knowing if those keys were

15 still there?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. And so, what, Officer Spurlock then took these

18 things out? Were they put out on a bed or put out on a

19 dresser, or how did this -- how did this go to make sure

20 that a thorough inventory was done of the contents of the

21 purse?

22 A. He just held it in his hand and went through it,

23 pulled things out.

24 Q. And handed them to Scott?

25 A. I don't remember if he handed it to him or not.

26 Q. Well, do you recall what form the credit cards were

27 in? Were they in a, you know, a thing that had them in

28 slots, or were they in plastic separated --

708

1 A. No. I don't remember.

2 Q. You don't remember?

3 A. No.

4 Q. What was in the purse, that you recall? Let's

5 go -- go there.

6 A. A wallet of some sort, just personal items. That's

7 all I could remember.

8 Q. Keys? We talked about some keys. You remember

9 some keys, right?

10 A. I think the keys were in there, yes.

11 Q. ID?

12 A. I think the -- I think the ID was in there, yes.

13 Q. And then what happens then to the purse once these

14 things are put back -- who puts them back in?

15 A. Officer Spurlock put them back in.

16 Q. And then where did the purse go after that?

17 A. We just hung it back up.

18 Q. Now, were you present when the purse was gone

19 through a second time that evening?

20 A. Yes.

21 Q. Okay. When did that happen?

22 A. Detective Brocchini went through it.

23 Q. And, okay, that would be after, what did we say,

24 9:54 he showed up?

25 A. Yes.

26 Q. Okay. And then what happened -- what brought

27 Detective Brocchini to -- well, tell us what -- you were

28 there, you saw it, right? What'd you see happen?

709

1 A. See where? At what point?

2 Q. When Brocchini goes through the purse or somebody

3 shows the contents to Brocchini.

4 A. He takes the purse, and he goes through it.

5 Q. Okay. What did you see him do?

6 A. Just remove items out of the purse and ask Scott

7 Peterson about them.

8 Q. Hand them to Scott, "What's this?"

9 A. I don't remember him handing anything to him.

10 Q. May have?

11 A. It's possible.

12 Q. Sure. Have you looked at Brocchini's report?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. Did that refresh your recollection about these --

15 about him going through the purse?

16 A. I don't know. I don't remember that part.

17 Q. Well --

18 A. I'd have to look at it again.

19 Q. Showing you a page of Detective Brocchini's report.

20 A. Okay.

21 Q. Does that refresh your recollection about some of

22 the items that were in there?

23 A. I remember the wallet and the keys. I don't

24 remember the sunglasses or the other items.

25 Q. Okay. But these are all items that were taken out

26 of the purse when Brocchini then wants to see what's inside

27 the purse?

28 MR. DISTASO: Objection, Your Honor. It's vague. If

710

1 we're talking about the wallet and keys which the detective

2 remembers, then I have no objection. But it's vague right

3 now.

4 THE COURT: Overruled.

5 THE WITNESS: What's the question, Mr. McAllister?

6 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. When you -- let me just ask

7 another question.

8 When you -- can you give us an estimate about when this

9 was when you saw Brocchini looking into the purse and

10 showing objects and handing them to Mr. Peterson?

11 A. Well, I didn't see him hand -- hand any objects to

12 Mr. Peterson, but it would have been probably just some, you

13 know, minutes after 10 o'clock.

14 Q. Okay. Early in the time that he was there?

15 A. Yes.

16 Q. And then the items were returned to the purse,

17 right?

18 A. Yes.

19 Q. And then it's sometime after that that the purse is

20 photographed hanging on the wall?

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. Okay. Now -- so the photograph, does that -- was

23 the purse hanging in the same way when -- when initially you

24 saw it the first time, I mean?

25 A. Yes.

26 Q. Is there a flap or an opening into the purse on the

27 opposite side of that?

28 A. I don't remember.

711

1 Q. Do you remember how you get into the purse?

2 A. No, I don't remember.

3 Q. Now, did you, likewise, take Detective Brocchini

4 through the house to show him that, you know, "Here's the

5 bedroom, and here's the master bedroom, here's the nursery,"

6 bring him up to speed?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. Okay. And in the doing of that, just like the

9 first time that you went through there, you smelled no odor

10 of any kind of chlorine, bleach, or any other cleaning

11 agent; is that accurate?

12 A. That's accurate.

13 Q. Nor did you this time see any moisture on any floor

14 inside the house, correct?

15 A. That's correct.

16 Q. Now, when you went over to this warehouse, you

17 remember -- pardon me. One question I want to ask you

18 first.

19 Can I have this marked as an exhibit?

20 THE CLERK: Exhibit L.

21 (Whereupon, Defendant's Exhibit L was marked for

22 identification.)

23 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. Showing you what was marked

24 Defendant's L for identification, I'll ask you if you can

25 identify the scene that that picture shows?

26 A. Yes. It's -- it's the Christmas tree in the -- I

27 guess it's the formal dining room area with presents

28 underneath it.

712

1 Q. Now, is that a scene that you saw when you were

2 there on the 24th of December, Officer Evers?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. Presents under the tree, right?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. Tree decorated, right?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. Now, when you went over to the warehouse, did you

9 go there in separate cars or one car, or how'd you get over

10 there?

11 A. Separate cars.

12 Q. Okay. You had your patrol car, right?

13 A. Yes.

14 Q. And Detective Brocchini had another kind of a,

15 what, a detective car?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. What, does that have more chrome on it?

18 A. No.

19 Q. Okay. Now, when you -- and did Mr. Peterson come

20 in a third car?

21 A. No.

22 Q. Where was he?

23 A. He was with Brocchini.

24 Q. Okay. Now, where did you first go inside the

25 warehouse? Where did you first go?

26 A. I stood in the doorway of the office.

27 Q. Okay. So there's a doorway, a regular doorway,

28 like a man door for entry into the office?

713

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. Is that correct?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. And did you stay outside the whole time?

5 A. I stayed in the doorway, just inside the doorway.

6 Q. Okay. Did you see the lights go on inside this

7 office?

8 A. No.

9 Q. Did you see any lights on inside the office at any

10 time?

11 A. Just the flashlights, our flashlights.

12 Q. Did you see any electronic devices in there, any

13 kind of fax machines, any kind of computers?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. And where did you see those?

16 A. They were in the office area on a desk.

17 Q. Was there any illumination coming from any of

18 those?

19 A. Not that I can remember, no.

20 Q. So there were fax -- you could see fax machine -- a

21 fax machine, you could see a computer, right?

22 A. Yes.

23 Q. Did you see a light switch?

24 A. No.

25 Q. Did you see -- I mean, so as you stood in the

26 doorway, you -- you had the impression there was no source

27 of illumination there inside the -- inside any part of the

28 warehouse, is that -- is that the impression that you had?

714

1 A. We were told the power was out, so there was no --

2 there's nothing to turn the lights on with.

3 Q. Okay. Nobody tried flipping a switch?

4 A. I didn't.

5 Q. Okay. With your flashlight, could you see a switch

6 on the wall, look like -- kind of look like a light switch?

7 A. I didn't see one.

8 Q. Did you see a, you know, a miner's hat there that

9 Mr. Peterson must have worn to do his work in the office,

10 you know --

11 MR. DISTASO: Objection, Your Honor. It's

12 argumentative.

13 THE COURT: Sounds like it. Sustained.

14 MR. MCALLISTER: Q. And you did see a boat there,

15 didn't you?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. Did you -- did you look inside the warehouse and

18 see the boat, or were you always outside?

19 A. At that point, I was standing outside.

20 Q. Did you ever go inside the warehouse to look at

21 anything more --

22 A. No.

23 Q. -- more, you know, close up?

24 A. No.

25 Q. So you never got near to the boat?

26 A. No.

27 Q. Ever look in the boat?

28 A. No.

715

1 Q. Ever see Detective Brocchini leave anything in the

2 boat?

3 A. I didn't see it.

4 Q. Did you ever see him leave anything in the -- in

5 Scott Peterson's pickup when you were back at the house?

6 A. I didn't see anything.

7 Q. So you weren't with Detective Brocchini every

8 second that he was there at 523 Covena; is that accurate?

9 A. I don't understand your -- what do you mean --

10 Q. Well, back when you were at 523 Covena, Scott

11 Peterson's house, you weren't present with Brocchini every

12 second he was there?

13 A. We weren't attached at the hips, no.

14 Q. I was gonna offer that expression, but -- okay.

15 When you were at the house at 523 Covena, was the --

16 was the bed made?

17 A. I believe it was.

18 Q. Pardon me.

19 When you were at the warehouse, Officer Evers, do you

20 remember Detective Brocchini and Scott Peterson looking at a

21 particular fax, I mean, you know, a paper copy of a fax

22 message?

23 A. Yes.

24 Q. What did you see them doing?

25 A. He was holding a piece of paper.

26 Q. "He" being?

27 A. Brocchini.

28 Q. Okay. And the two of them were looking at it?

716

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. Okay. By candlelight?

3 A. Flashlight, yes.

4 Q. Flashlight.

5 Was there -- did you take a look at the fax yourself?

6 A. No.

7 Q. Was there some explanation or were they talking

8 about what time the fax would have been received?

9 A. Yes.

10 Q. East Coast time versus West Coast time?

11 A. Yes.

12 Q. Do you remember that there was some conversation

13 with Scott back and forth about that?

14 A. Yes.

15 Q. That was -- and your understanding was that was of

16 a fax received that day, that being the 24th of December?

17 A. Yes.

18 MR. MCALLISTER: No other questions.

19 THE COURT: Are you going to be a while, Mr. Distaso?

20 MR. DISTASO: At least a half an hour.

21 THE COURT: Let's take our recess here. Ten minutes.

22 Before we break, Mr. Distaso, Mr. McAllister, Larry?

23 THE BAILIFF: Want him back? Hang on.

24 THE COURT: We received a total of nine STD's, sealed

25 envelopes. Maybe at the break or after we're done this

26 morning you might want to look at those to see if we can

27 handle those. I'd like to get that out of the way today, if

28 we can.

717

1 MR. PAT HARRIS: Thank you, Your Honor.

2 THE COURT: Let's take our break.

3 (Recess: 10:30 a.m.)

4 ---oOo---

718

1 November 4, 2003 -- 10:47 p.m.

2 ---o0o---

3 THE COURT: Record will show everyone's present.

4 No further cross, Mr. McAllister?

5 MR. McALLISTER: Couple more questions, Your Honor.

6 Q. Officer Evers, were there some times when Scott

7 Peterson also went into the house to get some photographs

8 for searchers to carry with them?

9 A. I don't know.

10 Q. You don't remember that?

11 A. No.

12 MR. McALLISTER: No other questions.

13 THE COURT: Mr. Distaso.

14 MR. DISTASO: Thank you, Your Honor.

15

16 REDIRECT EXAMINATION

17

18 MR. DISTASO: Q. Detective Evers, did the defendant

19 agree to stay out of his house with you in the front while

20 you're waiting for the detectives to arrive?

21 A. Yes.

22 Q. And when you would -- when the phone rang and you

23 went back inside with him, did he agree to that as well?

24 A. Yes.

25 Q. Did he ever at any time withdraw that consent or

26 say -- or say -- tell you, "No, I want to do it a different

27 way," or, "I want to do something different"?

28 MR. McALLISTER: Objection. Compound question.

719

1 THE COURT: Sustained.

2 MR. DISTASO: Q. Did he ever tell you at any time

3 during the evening that he wanted to go into his house by

4 himself?

5 A. No.

6 Q. Did he ever at any time in the evening tell you, "I

7 want all of you police officers to leave"?

8 A. No.

9 Q. When you went to the warehouse with the defendant,

10 did he agree to go -- did he agree to take you to the

11 warehouse?

12 A. Yes.

13 Q. And who opened the door?

14 A. He did.

15 Q. How did he do that?

16 A. With his key.

17 Q. Okay. Did -- at any time did anybody force him to

18 do that?

19 A. No.

20 Q. Did anybody -- at any time did he tell you, "I

21 don't want you to go into the warehouse," or, "Come out of

22 the warehouse"?

23 A. No.

24 Q. When you were in the house with the defendant and

25 you were coming back up the hallway you testified to, and

26 there was a conversation between Officer Spurlock and the

27 defendant; correct?

28 A. Yes.

720

1 Q. And you heard -- you actually heard Officer

2 Spurlock say what to him?

3 A. What was he fishing for today.

4 Q. Okay. And did you hear -- did you actually hear

5 the defendant's response?

6 A. Not the actual words, no.

7 Q. Okay. Shortly after that conversation, somewhere

8 in the house, did Officer Spurlock whisper something to you?

9 A. Yes.

10 Q. And what was that?

11 MR. McALLISTER: Objection. Hearsay.

12 MR. DISTASO: It's Prop. 115, Your Honor.

13 THE COURT: Overruled.

14 THE WITNESS: He said that Scott didn't know what he

15 was fishing for.

16 MR. DISTASO: Q. And did you pass that information on

17 to Detective Brocchini?

18 A. Yes.

19 Q. All right. There's a photograph there in front of

20 you, People's 62. Can you hold that up just so

21 Mr. McAllister can see which one we're talking about?

22 A. (Witness complied.)

23 Q. Okay. What -- was that rug present when you first

24 entered the house?

25 MR. McALLISTER: Objection. Beyond the scope of cross.

26 THE COURT: I'll allow it. Overruled.

27 MR. DISTASO: Q. Was that rug present in the house

28 when you first arrived there?

721

1 A. Yes.

2 Q. And can you show on the diagram where that rug's

3 located in the house? Just write "rug" wherever it is.

4 THE COURT: Number 79.

5 MR. DISTASO: On People's 79.

6 THE WITNESS: In the family room, it was right in front

7 of this exterior door leading out to the backyard.

8 MR. DISTASO: Q. And was the rug, when you first saw

9 it, in the same condition it is in that photograph?

10 A. No.

11 Q. Okay. Can you tell the Court what -- describe for

12 the Court how it was.

13 A. It was lengthwise against the doorjamb and

14 scrunched up to the doorjamb.

15 Q. Okay. So it was like scrunched up against the

16 doorjamb?

17 MR. McALLISTER: Objection. Leading question.

18 THE COURT: Sustained.

19 MR. DISTASO: Well, I'm just trying to get him to

20 clarify.

21 Q. Go ahead and -- is that the best description you

22 can give us?

23 MR. McALLISTER: Objection. Leading question.

24 THE COURT: Overruled.

25 MR. DISTASO: "Is that the best description you can

26 give us?" That's not a leading question.

27 THE COURT: I overruled it.

28 MR. DISTASO: Okay.

722

1 THE WITNESS: Yes, it was directly in front of the door

2 on the doorjamb, and it was scrunched against the doorjamb.

3 MR. DISTASO: Q. Okay. Did you -- did either you or

4 one of the other officers, in your presence, point that out

5 to the defendant?

6 A. I did.

7 Q. And what was -- what did he say --

8 MR. McALLISTER: Objection. Beyond the scope of cross.

9 THE COURT: Overruled.

10 MR. DISTASO: Q. What did he say in response to that?

11 Or let me just ask you. What did you tell him to draw that

12 to his attention?

13 A. I pointed out. It was the first time I noticed

14 this rug scrunched up against the door, and I asked him, "Is

15 that why -- or I asked him, "Is that always like that?"

16 Q. And what did he say?

17 A. He said -- he said, "Oh, no, the cat and the dog

18 must have been playing in here."

19 Q. And did he do anything to the rug in your presence?

20 A. Yes, he did.

21 Q. What was that?

22 A. He took about one or two steps to the rug,

23 carefully took his foot, and with his toe, he pulled it out

24 from the door.

25 Q. And when he pulled it out from the door, did it

26 look like it does in People's 62?

27 A. Yes.

28 MR. DISTASO: Nothing further, Your Honor.

723

1 THE COURT: Mr. McAllister.

2 MR. McALLISTER: Just a second.

3 THE COURT: I have one question.

4 Detective Evers, you indicated that, when you first

5 received the call, it was to go to a particular address, and

6 then you ended up at the park. I didn't understand how you

7 ended up at the park when you were dispatched to an address.

8 THE WITNESS: There was further information that the

9 family and Scott Peterson was down at the park, so I changed

10 my direction of travel and went directly to the park.

11 THE COURT: You got that over the radio?

12 THE WITNESS: Yes.

13

14 RECROSS-EXAMINATION

15

16 MR. McALLISTER: Q. Officer Evers, this business that

17 you've just told us about, about this rug, is that reflected

18 at all in your police report?

19 A. No.

20 Q. No?

21 A. No.

22 Q. Now, that's something that happened on

23 December 24th, that you now remember, though, that's not in

24 the police report; is that correct?

25 A. That I now remember?

26 Q. Yeah.

27 A. I've known about it since Christmas Eve.

28 Q. And you -- in making the police report, you attempt

724

1 to put in the important things that you notice or do or hear

2 during the time that you're doing your investigation; right?

3 A. Yes.

4 Q. This business about the rug, now, on 79, what door

5 are we talking about?

6 A. The exterior door on the north side leading into

7 the backyard.

8 Q. Which would be -- could you point that out to me,

9 because that's not --

10 A. Here. (Indicating.)

11 THE COURT: Let me see.

12 THE WITNESS: (Indicating.)

13 MR. McALLISTER: Q. Okay. So that would be off of

14 that family room or in the family room?

15 A. In the family room.

16 Q. In the family room, and adjacent to a door that

17 would go out to the north side of the house?

18 A. Yes.

19 Q. And have you -- have you talked about your

20 testimony with anyone other than the district attorneys who

21 are involved in this case?

22 A. No.

23 Q. Have you talked with Detective Brocchini?

24 A. No.

25 Q. Have you talked with Detective Grogan about your

26 testimony?

27 A. Not on specific facts.

28 Q. What have you discussed with him about the

725

1 testimony?

2 A. He said I was doing a good job.

3 Q. You were talking about your -- the quality of your

4 testimony then?

5 A. Yes.

6 Q. And that's from him sitting in and listening to it?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. Did he give you any pointers on what you ought to

9 include or that you might have forgotten?

10 A. No.

11 Q. When did you talk to Grogan?

12 A. Well, in court today --

13 Q. Is that --

14 A. -- at break.

15 Q. Is that when you had this conversation?

16 A. Yes.

17 Q. Have you talked with him at any other time about

18 the subject of your testimony?

19 A. When I first testified on Friday, I don't think we

20 went to the specifics of what I testified about.

21 Q. Okay. Well, what did you talk about Friday with

22 Grogan?

23 A. That I was doing fine. He just saying -- I was

24 doing fine.

25 Q. When did the subject of this rug -- kind of a throw

26 rug?

27 A. Yes.

28 Q. Okay. When did the subject of the throw rug ever

726

1 first get discussed with you by anyone?

2 A. I brought it to the attention of -- let's see --

3 Detective Buehler the next day and then again with Detective

4 Grogan maybe a couple weeks later.

5 Q. Now, you -- by that time you'd already prepared

6 your report, though?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. And this was something that was not significant

9 enough for you to include in your police report; correct?

10 A. I admit that it is omitted in the report, because I

11 was in a hurry when I prepared that, so it wasn't put in

12 there.

13 Q. And you never did a supplemental report? Once you

14 realized, as you're telling us now, it had been omitted, you

15 never did a supplemental report, did you, to include that?

16 A. Well, I didn't know how to handle it. I brought it

17 to the attention of the investigating detectives and let

18 them know. I didn't know if going back after the fact and

19 writing a supplemental report, you know, if I should do that

20 or not do that, so I brought it to the attention of the

21 detectives.

22 Q. But, as we look at your report, there's no mention

23 at all about this rug in that report?

24 MR. DISTASO: Objection. Asked and answered.

25 MR. McALLISTER: Q. Is that correct?

26 THE COURT: Sustained.

27 MR. McALLISTER: Q. And were there other things which

28 later came to mind which you didn't include in the report?

727

1 A. Not that I can remember.

2 Q. In that report, you said that, "We discovered that

3 there was no evidence of forced entry into the residence and

4 nothing out of the ordinary to indicate a struggle or

5 disturbance had occurred." Remember that sentence on your

6 part?

7 A. Yes.

8 Q. Now, you said that Scott Peterson just with the toe

9 or heel of his shoe just pulled the rug back into the proper

10 location?

11 A. It was the toe of his shoe.

12 Q. And then did it just come right back to a position

13 where it was parallel with the door frame or however it was?

14 A. Yeah, he was trying to straighten it out.

15 Q. Was there something hidden underneath the part that

16 was, as you said, scrunched up?

17 A. I didn't lift up the rug and search it, no.

18 Q. It wasn't covering up some incriminating piece of

19 evidence, was it?

20 A. I don't know. I didn't pick up the rug.

21 Q. Well, was there a big lump under it like some

22 weapon or something?

23 A. No, I didn't see any.

24 Q. It was just a flat rug; right?

25 A. Yes.

26 Q. Did you see any cats around the property?

27 A. No.

28 Q. Well, when Scott Peterson said the dog or cats must

728

1 have been playing, did you question him about that? What

2 cats?

3 A. No.

4 (Whereupon defense counsel conferred,

5 off the record.)

6 Q. Do you recall the outside of that, what is on the

7 exterior of that same wall?

8 A. I'm sorry? Just outside the -- I'm sorry. What

9 was the question? What are you referring to?

10 Q. Yeah, you were telling us about the inside, the

11 family room by that door. Do you remember what's on the

12 outside of that wall?

13 A. Outside the door, sir?

14 Q. Yeah.

15 A. It's a cement patio that's covered.

16 Q. Okay. Does that door open all the way?

17 A. I don't know.

18 Q. Do you remember trying to open it that evening?

19 A. No, I didn't.

20 Q. Do you remember what is outside in the patio area

21 near the door?

22 A. No, I don't remember.

23 Q. Do you remember seeing any feeders, containers with

24 cat food on the patio there?

25 A. No. I don't remember.

26 Q. Does that mean there were none there?

27 MR. DISTASO: Objection. Calls for speculation.

28 THE COURT: Overruled.

729

1 THE WITNESS: No. I just don't remember.

2 MR. McALLISTER: Q. Oh. How long were you at the

3 warehouse, Officer Evers, roughly?

4 A. Half-hour.

5 MR. McALLISTER: No other questions.

6 THE COURT: Mr. Distaso?

7 MR. DISTASO: No further questions, Your Honor.

8 THE COURT: You may step down.

9 Any problem with starting tomorrow morning at

10 9:00 o'clock?

11 MR. DISTASO: No, Your Honor, I have no problem. But

12 before we finish up, I'd like to move and ask the Court to

13 admit all the exhibits that have been marked to date. That

14 should include all the ones from Mr. Harris as well as all

15 the ones from Detective Evers.

16 THE COURT: I believe it's 44 through 82, plus there's

17 L today.

18 Any objection, Mr. McAllister?

19 MR. McALLISTER: No.

20 THE COURT: Almost all photographs, diagrams.

21 MR. DISTASO: And I have no objection to L.

22 THE COURT: Items 44 through 82 will be in evidence,

23 and L will be also in evidence, so now I can state

24 accurately that everything that's been marked is in

25 evidence.

26 (Whereupon People's Exhibits 44 through

27 82, inclusive, and Defense Exhibit L

28 were received in evidence.)

730

1 THE COURT: Before we break, though, the clerk has a

2 total of nine envelopes as a result of SDT's. Either party

3 want any of those opened at this time or save those?

4 MR. DISTASO: I don't. I would prefer we save them for

5 another day.

6 MR. McALLISTER: That's fine.

7 THE COURT: And my clerk indicated that someone was

8 looking for an item that was subpoenaed but apparently not

9 received. Was that an error or is that -- are there some

10 items out there that you wanted to look for?

11 MR. PAT HARRIS: Apparently there are a couple of items

12 that have not been received that we have subpoenaed.

13 THE COURT: Okay. If you give the names of the

14 parties, the SDT target, let the clerk know and she'll

15 search for it and let you know if we can find it tomorrow.

16 Apparently we have everything except those two items.

17 Everybody satisfied there?

18 MR. DISTASO: Uh-huh.

19 THE COURT: And everybody know who the witnesses are?

20 MR. DISTASO: Be Detective Brocchini and then Detective

21 *******, and I don't know how far we're going to get. So --

22 THE COURT: Anything else then?

23 MR. McALLISTER: No.

24 THE COURT: All right. See you tomorrow morning at

25 9:00 AM.

26 Defendant's remanded.

27 (Proceedings concluded at 11:10 a.m.)

28 ---o0o---