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Derrick Letsinger
Witness for the People: Guilt Phase June 14, 2004
Direct Examination by Rick Distaso DISTASO: Officer, you are in uniform. You are obviously a policeman with the Modesto Police Department, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And how long have you been a sworn peace officer in the State of California? LETSINGER: Six years. DISTASO: And briefly can you tell the jury what your duties are? LETSINGER: We provide assistance, protection for property, investigate crimes. DISTASO: Are you part of an, I guess what I was looking for, are you part of the patrol division, detective division, what? LETSINGER: Patrol. DISTASO: What area do you work? LETSINGER: Patrol. DISTASO: And were you work in the Patrol Division on December 24th of 2002? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And did you get a call to go and assist or be involved in the investigation of a missing woman by the name of Laci Peterson? LETSINGER: I did. DISTASO: Can you, just start at the beginning. About what time did you get the call? LETSINGER: It was about 1800 hours, which is 6:00 o'clock in the evening. DISTASO: And you were just on kind of routine patrol that night in the City of Modesto? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: What happened next? Where did you go? LETSINGER: We were dispatched. And the officer who was dispatched on the call asked that we meet at East La Loma Park. DISTASO: And where, I'm sorry, not where. Who was the officer that asked you to respond there? LETSINGER: Officer Evers. DISTASO: Okay. Your Honor, I should have hung this up this morning. I forgot to. Let me just put that diagram up of the park. JUDGE: All right. Is it a diagram we have already marked? DISTASO: It is. JUDGE: All right. DISTASO: Your Honor, this is People's 36. JUDGE: Okay. DISTASO: Okay. So you said that, here ace pointer if you need that. And just be careful with the jurors. You said you were dispatched to East La Loma Park. Is that the area right over here where the tennis courts are? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: Okay. You can go ahead and have a seat. LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: And what, about how long did it take, you said about 6:00 o'clock you got the call. About how long did it take you to get to the park? LETSINGER: Roughly about 10 or 12 minutes. DISTASO: So you were somewhere else in the city? LETSINGER: I was somewhere in the general area. But, yes, not right there. DISTASO: Then, so you get then to the park, what happens next? LETSINGER: I got there and met with Officer Evers who was already on scene, and he asked that I go back to the address on Covena and wait there. DISTASO: Okay. And when you talk about the address on Covena, are you talking about 523 Covena? LETSINGER: Correct, 523. DISTASO: Let's mark this next in order. JUDGE: People's Number 38. DISTASO: It's just another schematic, your Honor, of the house. The other one was getting a little filled up. JUDGE: All right. DISTASO: Officer Letsinger, do you recognize this People's 38 as a schematic diagram of the house at 523 Covena? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And so you get sent over to the house. What happened next? LETSINGER: I arrived at the house, and Officer Evers and Officer Spurlock arrived shortly thereafter. DISTASO: When you got there, who did you meet with? What happened? LETSINGER: Officer Evers and Officer Spurlock arrived. And after they arrived, Officer Spurlock and I went into the house to basically determine if there were any signs of suspicious circumstances at the house. Any kind of evidence that we could see as to if there had been a crime occurred. DISTASO: When you went into the house, did you go by yourselves? By that, I mean was it just you and Officer Spurlock? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: What happened when you went inside? LETSINGER: Immediately upon walking in and, DISTASO: You can use the diagram. Use 38 if that helps. JUDGE: You can use the pointer, officer. LETSINGER: Upon walking into this courtyard here, this is a wall, I noticed that there was a bucket with mops sitting outside this door here. And on the stone, placed on the ground there was some water that looked like it had been recently, the water had recently dropped on the stone. DISTASO: Okay. Can you, I'm just going to have you write that in there. Can you write "bucket"? Do you remember how many mops there were? LETSINGER: I believe they were two. DISTASO: You can use that red pen. Little better to write. Put an "X" down, write "bucket", "two mops". LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: Okay. I'm going to have you keep writing there. Just hang tight there for a second. JUDGE: Letsinger, not Spurlock. DISTASO: You saw that. What happened next? LETSINGER: We entered the house, and Officer Spurlock and I kind of separated. And I walked around into the, I guess this would be the easterly portion of the house. DISTASO: And the does this house have a garage? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: I mean, when I say that, I mean like a closed garage where you put the cars. LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Does it have like an area, does this look like it's a converted garage? LETSINGER: This area looks like it possibly was a garage at one time, and then converted into living space. DISTASO: All right. And so you went into the house. You said you went into that living room area? LETSINGER: Right. Into this area here. DISTASO: What did you see next? What's the next thing that caught your attention? LETSINGER: Walked in, and the next thing that I remember seeing was there was a pizza box that was opened lying on the counter with a few pieces of pizza in it. DISTASO: What's next then? LETSINGER: Walked down into the living room, and there was a rug that was scrunched accordion style, like it had been slid together. And it was slid all the way up to the doorjamb of this door here. And the door was closed. DISTASO: Can you just write "crumpled rug", or something like that, to describe where you saw that? LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: Okay. What's the next thing that happened then? LETSINGER: Continued to look around this living room area and noticed that there were several rags, like just shop rags, that had been, that were laid out on top of the washer. Dirty and wet rags. DISTASO: Can you just put an "X" there where it says "washer and dryer"? Just draw a line and just put "dirty wet rags". Okay. Other than these things that you talked about here with the rug, and the rags, and what not, did you see anything else in this portion of the house that appeared to be out of order? LETSINGER: No. And that is, the thing that struck me about these items was that the rest of the room almost was like a model home. Everything was in place. The chairs and rugs were all set. The magazines on the coffee table were all laid out. I mean so these two items here stuck out to me. DISTASO: Okay. What happened next then? LETSINGER: Finished looking around here, and then went into the western portion of the house. DISTASO: Okay. Go ahead. LETSINGER: Went into the second bedroom here, which is kind of like a spare bedroom with, had a bed, and dresser, and stuff. And immediately upon entering, the doors to the closet were open. And inside the closet I noticed that there were some soft-sided luggage, like duffle bags. There were a few up on the top shelf. One looked like it had been pulled down, but no all the way off the shelf. And then there were some lying on the ground. DISTASO: Okay. Did you notice anything, on the ones lying on the ground, were they open, closed? Can you tell me anything about them? LETSINGER: I don't recall if they were open or closed. DISTASO: Okay. And if you could just in that bedroom, I don't need to know exactly where the closet was. Just write "duffle bags in closet", something like that. LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: And, Officer Letsinger, I don't know if you, if you said this or not. The one on the floor, do you remember if was right side up or upside down? LETSINGER: I don't recall. DISTASO: Did you write a report about this? LETSINGER: I did. DISTASO: Okay. At the time you wrote the report, was this incident fresh in your mind? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And did you write the report for the purpose, the purposes of your documenting what you saw there that night? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: If you looked at it, do you think that might refresh your recollection? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Go ahead and take a look at your report. Look on the first page. LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: Fifth paragraph down? LETSINGER: In the report I indicate that the one lying on, GERAGOS: Objection. That's improper. JUDGE: The question is does, it refresh your recollection? LETSINGER: I'm sorry. Yes, it refreshes my recollection. GERAGOS: For the record, he's referring to Bates stamp 33090. JUDGE: So what's next question? DISTASO: Does that refresh your recollection as to the duffle bag on the floor, whether it was upside down or right side up? LETSINGER: Yes, it does. DISTASO: How was it? LETSINGER: It was upside down. DISTASO: And what happened next then? LETSINGER: After Officer Spurlock and I finished basically doing a walk-through of the house, we met with Officer Evers who was outside, and then we did another walk through immediately after with Officer Evers and Mr. Peterson. DISTASO: When you went through the house the first time, other than these things that you pointed out to us, did you see any obvious signs of, that the house, had been forced entry into the house? Let's start there. LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: So did you see, you didn't see any doors kicked in? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Or windows kind of pried open? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Or did you see the house, the condition that it was in, where there was furniture turned over? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Were drawers pulled out and, you know, clothes strewn about? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Have you responded to burglary calls before? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And those things I just described, have you seen those type of things in homes that have been burglarized? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And I take it from what you are saying, you didn't see any of those indications in this particular house? LETSINGER: No. There were very few indications, there were no indications that a burglary had occurred at that house. DISTASO: You said that you went, after you doing this with Officer Spurlock, you went outside and you said you did another kind of walk-through immediately with Mr. Peterson? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Prior to this night, had you had any contact at all with the defendant in this case? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Did you, did you even know he existed? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: What happened next? LETSINGER: We walked through the house with Mr. Peterson to have him basically tell us if there was anything that he noticed that was missing, out of the ordinary, that could help us kind of direct where we were going to go next. DISTASO: And what did he tell you? LETSINGER: There was nothing that he saw that was missing or out of the ordinary. DISTASO: And what happened next then? What did you do with the defendant in the house, if anything? LETSINGER: We walked through, GERAGOS: Objection. Vague. JUDGE: I think he can answer. Go ahead. You can answer that. LETSINGER: We walked through the house and basically asked him, you know, do you see anything missing or out of the ordinary here? And we went through each room with the defendant. DISTASO: What happened next? LETSINGER: We got done with that, and we returned outside. DISTASO: Okay. And what's the next thing that happened then? LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock and I, shortly after going outside, we went to the house just to the north of the Peterson home and looked around the outside of the house to see if there were any signs of forced entry, or anything suspicious at that house, because we were told that that house was vacant. DISTASO: Before we get there, when you were going through the house with the defendant, did you, were you present, or did you go and look to see if Laci Peterson's purse and personal belongings were there in the house? LETSINGER: Yes, we did. DISTASO: What happened with that? LETSINGER: We went to, I believe it was Sharon Rocha who said that she normally, Laci normally keeps her purse, GERAGOS: Objection. Hearsay. JUDGE: Again it goes to the reasonableness of this officer's conduct, what he was told. Not to be offered for the truth. Just to explain his conduct. LETSINGER: We were told information that Laci normally kept her purse by the front door, and it wasn't there. I believe Scott Peterson told us that she also keeps it in the closet in their bedroom. So we walked back to their bedroom, and the purse was hanging on a hook right inside the door of the closet. DISTASO: While, after you looked, did you actually look into the purse, you personally? LETSINGER: I did not look in the purse. I believe Officer Spurlock took it off the hook. We walked over to the bed, placed the purse on the bed, and Officer Spurlock went through the purse to look for identification, those kind of things. DISTASO: Was that mostly Officer Spurlock's job, or was he the one who was kind of handling that? LETSINGER: He did that, yeah. DISTASO: Where were you when this was going on? LETSINGER: I was right next to him. Officer Evers and Mr. Peterson and I were in the room as well. DISTASO: And that was on, that People's 38, that was in the master bedroom? LETSINGER: In the master bedroom, correct. DISTASO: What next, did you then start to walk out of the house? LETSINGER: We did, yes. DISTASO: Did you hear any conversation between Officer Spurlock and the defendant in this case, Mr. Peterson? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Just for the record, I didn't have you, do you recognize Scott Peterson as he sits here in court today? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Man in the gray suit? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: What conversation did you hear between Officer Spurlock and Mr. Peterson? LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock asked him what he had been doing today. And Mr. Peterson replied that he had gone fishing. DISTASO: Before we get into that, can you just show the jury, use the pointer, can you show the jury where this conversation took place? LETSINGER: It took place as we were walking out of the master bedroom and down the hall. And I was walking in front of the two of them. I don't know which order they walked down the hall in. DISTASO: Okay. And so you personally were not having this conversation with Mr. Peterson? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Go ahead. What did you hear, you heard Officer Spurlock ask him a question? LETSINGER: Right. And Mr. Peterson replied that he had been fishing today. And, by this time, we had kind of stopped right in this common area of the house. And Officer Spurlock asked what he had been fishing for. And Mr. Peterson didn't know. DISTASO: And did you hear anything else about the conversation? LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock asked him what kind of lure or bait was he using. And Mr. Peterson indicated that he was using a silver lure about, and he put his fingers up in front of him, indicated about seven to eight inches long. DISTASO: Did this conversation, have you reviewed Officer Spurlock's report? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Is that is, this conversation documented in his report? LETSINGER: It is. DISTASO: Did you put it in yours? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Why is that? LETSINGER: I basically didn't put it in there, because I wasn't the one having the conversation with Mr. Peterson. DISTASO: After Officer Spurlock had this conversation with Scott Peterson, what happened next? LETSINGER: We basically, I believe we excused Mr. Peterson and asked him to step back outside. And as he was leaving through the front door, got to about this area here, and the front door, I believe you could see through, or it was open, and I could see out. And Mr. Peterson threw his flashlight down on the ground. And then I heard something under his breath, like a curse word. I'm not quite sure what it was. But heard something mumbled under his breath. DISTASO: What happened next? LETSINGER: After that, I believe Sergeant Duerfeldt arrived, and we kind of ran down what we had learned so far. DISTASO: Where did you talk to Sergeant Duerfeldt? LETSINGER: We initially spoke with him in the, in this common area here. And then we kind of, all four of us, Officer Spurlock, Officer Evers, Sergeant Duerfeldt, and myself, walked back out to the front yard area. That's where we kind of, I guess, pow-wowed a little bit to determine what we were going to do next. DISTASO: And then what's the next thing that you personally did in this investigation? LETSINGER: After that, then that is when Officer Spurlock and I went to the house just to the north of 523 Covena and looked at that house to see if, DISTASO: And is that, we have had prior testimony that that was a vacant home, and the woman's name was Reed that lived there. Is that what you were told? LETSINGER: I don't believe I was told her name, but, GERAGOS: Objection. Leading. JUDGE: Well, what he was told is. I'll sustain the objection. DISTASO: That's fine. JUDGE: The fact that he was told it was a vacant house, that's okay. Again, that explains his conduct. Who lives there is, DISTASO: Can you do this, Officer Letsinger, so we're clear on this diagram, can you just put "vacant house" on the side of the house where it was? LETSINGER: Sure. DISTASO: And what happened next then you said you went through that house? LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock and I first walked around the exterior of the house to see if there were any signs of forced entry, or anything on the outside, and didn't see any signs. As we walked around to the front of the house, I believe, I don't remember who it was, but somebody said that the owner of the house was there. So we went to the front door, and that's where we met with George Reed. DISTASO: Okay. And what did he tell you? LETSINGER: He said that, GERAGOS: Objection. Hearsay. JUDGE: Sustained. DISTASO: Okay. You met with him, and he did let you into the house? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Go ahead. What happened next? LETSINGER: He told us that he had already, GERAGOS: Objection. Hearsay. It's the same question. JUDGE: And unless you are trying to explain the officer's conduct that happened, was he given certain information, and he acted on that information? Otherwise it is hearsay. DISTASO: That's all it is. Let me ask it a different way, your Honor. JUDGE: All right. DISTASO: Don't tell me what Mr. Reed told you. Just, you are standing there at the door with him, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Did he open it for you? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: You went inside? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Just tell me what you did. LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock and I basically did another walk-through of the house to determine if there were any signs of a burglary, any suspicious circumstances that might have occurred inside the that vacant house. DISTASO: Did you find anything at all? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Did you go into all rooms of the House? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: What about the garage? LETSINGER: We went into the garage as well. DISTASO: Were there any cars in the garage? LETSINGER: There was at least one. I don't remember if there were two. DISTASO: Did you look inside the cars? LETSINGER: Inside the passenger compartment and the trunk. DISTASO: And did you, did you find, when you wind through the house, did you look into the bedrooms? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And into the bathrooms? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Did you look behind the shower curtains, in the tub? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And did you find any indication in that particular house that anything improper had been going on there? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: After you came out of the House, what happened next? LETSINGER: We again met with Officer Evers and Sergeant Duerfeldt, explained that we hadn't seen anything unusual at that house. And, at that point, Sergeant Duerfeldt and Officer Evers asked that we go down to East La Loma Park and continue to search that area DISTASO: Let me go back. When you first arrived at the park, you said around 6:00 o'clock, was it light or dark? LETSINGER: It was dark. DISTASO: And after you did these things you told us about, and you went back down there to search the park, was the park dark? LETSINGER: It does have lighting in the park, but it's, for the most part it's dark. DISTASO: What about the lighting around the tennis court, parking-lot-tennis-courts area, is there lighting there? LETSINGER: It's fairly well lit, yes. DISTASO: What about on Covena, are there lights? There are street lights? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Do you remember if they were lit that night? LETSINGER: They were lit, yes. DISTASO: So you went down, what was the temperature atthis time? I don't know, I'm not looking for exact temperature. Was it hot or cold? LETSINGER: It was cold. DISTASO: Okay. And so you went down and searched the park. Can you just tell the jury, they are kind of familiar with the park now. Just tell them where you went. LETSINGER: We walked down Covena to the entrance. We walked west towards the pumphouse, and on the south side of the park, and then crossed over to the north side and back, in an easterly direction. DISTASO: Okay. If we are looking at People's 36, if this is Covena, it's already been labeled, you went down to the trail here? LETSINGER: Right. DISTASO: Then you said you walked this way? LETSINGER: Right. DISTASO: To the left? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: And then you searched on this, crossed over and searched the other side? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: And where in the park did you search? I mean what portions of it? Were you walking the path, were you going, trampling through the bushes? LETSINGER: We trampled through the bushes. Since we had been told that she possibly had gone to the park to walk, we figured that the bushes on the side area of the park would be an area where she would not be seen, so that's where we looked. DISTASO: And you obviously didn't find any indication that Laci Peterson had been there? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Okay. What's the next thing that you did in this particular investigation? LETSINGER: After searching the park for a time, we were asked to come back to Covena, as well as all of the family and friends and citizens that had came out to the park to look as well. We asked that all of them clear the park, because the Sheriff's Department helicopter with the infrared device was getting up in the air, and we needed the park cleared so that they could use their infrared. DISTASO: Did you do that then? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Did you come up, did you seat helicopter flying around? LETSINGER: Yes. It eventually was up in the air and made several passes up and down the parkway. DISTASO: And what's the next thing that you were asked to do as part of this case? LETSINGER: After the helicopter had completed its passes of the park, we were asked to go back in the park and continue to hand search the area. I was down there for a short time, and Sergeant Duerfeldt asked that I come back up and stand by at 523 Covena for the ID technician to respond. DISTASO: Do you know who that was? LETSINGER: I don't know his title. I believe ID Technician Lovell, L-o-v-e-l-l. DISTASO: And did you do that? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And what happened when he showed up? LETSINGER: He arrived, I was asked by Detective Brocchini to instruct Mr. Lovell on some certain items that Detective Brocchini wanted done, particularly pictures of the residence, specifically pictures of the items that I had seen that were kind of out of the ordinary, as well as collecting the bucket and mops and the wet rags that were on the washing machine. DISTASO: Did you take ID Tech Lovell around and have him do these things? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Was everything the same when you went around the, was everything the same we you went around the house as it had been before? LETSINGER: Not everything. DISTASO: What was different? LETSINGER: One thing was strikingly different was the rug that had been crumpled up accordion-style up against the door was now laid out. Not completely flat, but I remember when I saw it the first, time it was crumpled up to just, you know, less than a foot and a half. And it had been laid out almost flat. DISTASO: Can you put on there where you wrote "crumpled rug", can you just draw like a little line on there and write a two, and put "rug straight", something like that. LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: Did you see who straightened the rug? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: What happened next then? What's the next thing that you did? After you did this with ID Tech Lovell, what's the next thing did you? LETSINGER: Then I went back into the park for a short time to continue the search. And some point after that, Sergeant Duerfeldt asked that I, GERAGOS: Objection. Hearsay. JUDGE: Again, this is being offered to explain his conduct, reasonableness of his conduct. Overruled. Go ahead. LETSINGER: Sergeant Duerfeldt asked that I go back to the station to complete my report and my watch. DISTASO: And did you that? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And you went off duty at the end of that? LETSINGER: I believe was 1:30 in the morning, yes. DISTASO: Did you do anything else, other than this initial night, did you do anything else as part of the Laci Peterson investigation? LETSINGER: Some time in April, and I have the report to refresh my memory. DISTASO: Was it something in the, and was it something with the press briefing? LETSINGER: Correct. Do you want the exact date? DISTASO: I'm not worried about that. LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: Did you do anything else, any other searches, or were you involved in any of the other parts of the investigation, other than what you told us about? LETSINGER: No. DISTASO: Let me show you a binder. This is People's 37. And just take a moment and flip through all those pictures, and tell me when you are finished. LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: Do those pictures accurately reflect the condition of 523 Covena as it appeared on December 24th, 2002? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Are those the pictures that ID Tech Lovell took? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: What's, let's just kind of go through those. Your Honor, I'm going to use the screen. JUDGE: Mike, do you want to get the lights, please? DISTASO: First one, 37 LETSINGER: 37-A is the picture of a bucket and two mops. Is that a picture, how you remember seeing it? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: There is no wet spots around there. When you first got there was what time? LETSINGER: We arrived at the house roughly about twenty minutes after six in the evening. DISTASO: And you told us the first thing you did was, you walked in and did that initial walk-through with Officer Spurlock? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: And do you know what time these pictures were taken? LETSINGER: Roughly about 11:30 in the evening. DISTASO: Other than the water, wet or dampness that you saw, are the mops and the bucket the same place you saw them? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And let's go to the next one. What are we looking at here? LETSINGER: This is a view down the hallway from the common area, roughly in this area right here, looking in a westerly direction. JUDGE: Toward the master bedroom, correct? LETSINGER: What's the master bedroom, correct. DISTASO: Is this the hallway area where the conversation with the defendant and Officer Spurlock was kind of taking place? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And what are we looking at here? This is 37-C? LETSINGER: Right. This is a photograph of the same hallway, taken more from this doorway here, looking again in a westerly direction towards the master bedroom. DISTASO: And 37-D? LETSINGER: That's the hallway. DISTASO: That would be bedroom number one on the diagram? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And this would be 37-E. LETSINGER: Okay. DISTASO: Go ahead, what is that? LETSINGER: That's looking into the nursery from the doorway, or just outside the, in this hallway area here. DISTASO: And 37-F? LETSINGER: Again, looking into the nursery from right inside the doorway. DISTASO: And 37-G, another one of the nursery, obviously? LETSINGER: Right. DISTASO: 37-H? LETSINGER: I believe this is a photograph of the master bedroom, looking right, and basically in this direction here from the doorway. DISTASO: 37-I? LETSINGER: Another photograph of the master bedroom. DISTASO: That's just showing the bed? LETSINGER: Right. DISTASO: And 37-J? LETSINGER: Another photograph of the master bedroom from this side of the room, looking this direction towards the closet. DISTASO: 37-J? LETSINGER: And that's a photograph just inside the, looking into the closet from just outside the closet doors. DISTASO: Did I lose track? Is this 37-K? LETSINGER: I have 37-L for this photograph. DISTASO: Okay. I thought I lost track. There you go. What are we look at, 37-L? LETSINGER: This is the area in the closet, just inside the closet doors, where her purse, where Laci Peterson's purse was hanging. DISTASO: Is that it, right there? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: And is that the purse that Officer Spurlock took over to the bed and looked through? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: And then what are we have looking at here, next picture, 37-M? LETSINGER: This is a photograph looking in an easterly direction from the master bedroom down the main hallway. DISTASO: It's like looking out of the master bedroom? LETSINGER: Right. DISTASO: The next picture. LETSINGER: This is looking into the spare bedroom from the doorway right here. DISTASO: What's the number of that? LETSINGER: I have 37-N, like Nora DISTASO: Next picture, 37-O? LETSINGER: O, correct. This is a photograph looking from inside the second bedroom towards the closet area. And in the photograph, kind of the center up towards the top, a little over the right in that area is where one of the soft-sided luggage duffle bags was hanging off of the top shelf. DISTASO: Is that right here? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: Whether I'm putting the mouse now? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: There is a duffle bag on the floor there? LETSINGER: Right. DISTASO: Is that the one you described as being on the floor? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: And 37-P? LETSINGER: This is a photograph from the inside the second bedroom door, looking out across this hallway. And you can also see into the nursery across the hall. DISTASO: All right. 37-Q? LETSINGER: A photograph of the dining room. DISTASO: And just, LETSINGER: From, let me orientate myself here. I believe we're looking in this direction towards these double doors here, you see kind of in the center of the photograph. DISTASO: Okay. And 37-R? LETSINGER: This is a photograph taken from just inside the entry door, looking in a southerly direction this way, where the Christmas tree and Christmas presents had been set up. DISTASO: Okay. And 37-S? LETSINGER: I'll have to orientate myself here to the kitchen. This is taken from this small sitting area here, in this direction here. DISTASO: Next picture? What do you have for that one? LETSINGER: 37-T, like Tom? DISTASO: Uh-huh. LETSINGER: This is a photograph of this sink and counter area on the southern wall of the kitchen? DISTASO: And 37-U? LETSINGER: And this photograph was taken from in here, this small sitting area, taken through the kitchen and into the living room area DISTASO: 37-V, Victor? LETSINGER: This was taken from inside the kitchen across the countertop. And the doorway indicated on the schematic is seen there in the left side of the photograph. DISTASO: 37-W? LETSINGER: Again, taken from just inside the living room, of the living room area DISTASO: And this one is a little bit out of order, but what's 37-X? LETSINGER: 37-X is taken from this area here with the entry door shut, through this wall here, which is, well you can see it's kind of like a cubby area into this seating area here. DISTASO: Can you do me a favor? Take the red pen and just label this room the sitting room so we have something to designate it. Let me move to the next picture. These, are those cubbyholes we saw in the picture? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: Is, what are we here? Is that Y or Z? LETSINGER: I have 37-Z. And this was taken from roughly this area in the living room towards the washer and dryer. DISTASO: Next picture, LETSINGER: Orientate myself here. This was taken roughly from the same area in the living room and a photograph towards this second half bath here. DISTASO: Can you see the door where the mops and stuff were? LETSINGER: Yeah. You can see that door to the far left in that photograph, which is indicated here on the schematic. DISTASO: And then this next picture, BB, that's looking into the second bathroom? LETSINGER: Correct. DISTASO: And then CC, is this, CC, what we are looking at right now? LETSINGER: That's what I have, yes. DISTASO: And are those the rags and stuff you saw sitting on top of the washer? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Is that the location that you saw them when you were there that night? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And, finally, 37-DD, that's rug that you saw crumpled up? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: And then when you say later it was straightened out, is this the condition that you saw it when you saw it later? LETSINGER: Yes. DISTASO: Your Honor, that's all I have.
Cross Examination by Mark Geragos GERAGOS: Why don't we kind of work backwards? Rug that you saw here. Okay. This location, can you point to exactly where that rug was in the house on the schematic that we have got marked has People's 38, right? LETSINGER: It was crumpled up, like I said, accordion style, up against the doorjamb. GERAGOS: Doorjamb. And the doorjamb that you are talking about right here, is that the door that was, when you went into the house, was unlocked? LETSINGER: I believe it was unlocked, yes. GERAGOS: Okay. Do you want to write "unlocked door" right there? That was one of the things that you thought was a little suspicious, true? LETSINGER: The crumpled rug, yes. GERAGOS: The other thing you thought was suspicious, I don't want to jump ahead here. You are marking "unlocked door", a rug that was crumpled next to it, right? LETSINGER: Yes, I can. GERAGOS: Now, that rug, did somebody take that rug as evidence? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: But you just left it. You thought it was suspicious, and you left it? LETSINGER: Well, the thing that I thought was suspicious was the condition the rug was in when I originally saw it. GERAGOS: Okay. Did anybody take it into evidence? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: How about this right here. What you have got in front of you, I think the ones that are marked, I don't have it. What's the exhibit number? Is that 37, double C? LETSINGER: No. That photograph is 37-A. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, 37-A, this is the mop, actually there is two mops, right? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: One is here? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: This blue pole that I'm pointing to with the cursor? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: There is another one that's inside of this bucket, right? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. And that is specifically where on the map? LETSINGER: Here, where I indicated. GERAGOS: Bucket and two mops? LETSINGER: Two mops. GERAGOS: That's, when you walk in from the front gate, and you walk to the front doors, you saw the bucket and two mops right by the front door, right? LETSINGER: Well, we had used this door here, as a point for orientation, as the front door. So I don't know what the residents consider the front door. But this was the door that we had used as the front door. GERAGOS: You said it was a little bit wet right around where I have got the cursor? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: As if somebody might have just put the bucket outside, and the moisture had made a stain? LETSINGER: Or had just put the mop in the bucket. GERAGOS: Either one? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: You thought that was suspicious, right? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. At the time, I'm talking about at the time. LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: Now, there is absolutely no evidence that would suggest that has anything to do with anything, but at the time you thought it was suspicious? DISTASO: Objection, your Honor. That is compound and argumentative. JUDGE: It is argumentative. I don't understand what the evidence is going to show. GERAGOS: I do. JUDGE: I know. We got to wait until it gets in in an orderly fashion, Mr. Geragos, okay? GERAGOS: This bucket right here is one of the things, combined with that crumpled rug, that you thought was suspicious, right? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: And the reason you thought it was suspicious is because it was a little bit, there was like a west ring around the bottom, is that right? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: Okay. Moisture, basically? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: Now, that, both those mops and that bucket were collected as evidence that day, right? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Or that evening? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Without receipt, or search warrant, or anything else. You guys just took it? LETSINGER: I did not collect them, so I don't know what was left, or what. GERAGOS: You didn't have a search warrant, did you? LETSINGER: Not to my knowledge at that time, no. GERAGOS: Okay. So as far as you know, you guys just took it? LETSINGER: I don't know what the reasoning for taking it was. GERAGOS: Because you thought it was suspicious? LETSINGER: Well, I thought it was suspicious, yes. But I wasn't the one that had directed the ID tech as to, GERAGOS: Okay. Now, the, GERAGOS: Is it stuck? DISTASO: You are going the wrong way. GERAGOS: Let's go to the other thing that you, wait a second right here. See this, what's this right here? I'm pointing to, this is a bathroom, right? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Now, you pointed out to the jury where the, which bathroom is that? LETSINGER: Bathroom number one. GERAGOS: Okay. Bathroom number one next to the master bedroom? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Okay. Does that look to you like a some kind of a curling iron that's hanging up right here? Something a woman might use to do a fun flip in the morning after she gets up? DISTASO: Objection. It's argumentative. JUDGE: Overruled. DISTASO: Calls for speculation. JUDGE: Let's start with the curling iron, leave the rests. I don't know how a woman is going to do her hair. Do you know anything about how women do their hair? GERAGOS: Just based on what Amy Rocha told me when she testified. JUDGE: I know she said. GERAGOS: That was a curling iron that you, LETSINGER: That's the way it looks. GERAGOS: Did you, did you, that was suspicious that there was a curling iron out? LETSINGER: Not inside a bathroom, no. GERAGOS: Was everything else in the bathroom orderly and in place? LETSINGER: As I would expect a bathroom in a lived-in home to be, yes. GERAGOS: Didn't look like anything was out of order, right? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Now, this is the nursery? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, we have previously, looks like it's got a nautical, or a boat theme through here, is that correct? LETSINGER: I would, GERAGOS: Looks like a boat, then a life preserver, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: The coral and starfish? LETSINGER: Uh-huh. GERAGOS: Okay. Would you concede that it's a nautical theme? LETSINGER: I would concede that's a nautical theme. GERAGOS: Okay. Still in the nursery? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Were there some things stored in the nursery? This bag here, for instance? LETSINGER: I don't recall, but I'm guessing if the bag is in there, there was some things stored in there, yes. GERAGOS: Pictures from whatever view is not that clear here, is it? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Is it better there? LETSINGER: Let me make my way to that one there. Not much. GERAGOS: Okay. Do you remember, as you sit here today, what the condition of that nursery was? LETSINGER: Much like the condition of my child's nursery before she was there. Everything was waiting. GERAGOS: Okay. Put stuff in there, stored? LETSINGER: Stored, yes. GERAGOS: Now, this location, what is this rug over here? LETSINGER: I don't recall what that was. GERAGOS: Okay. How about this over here? LETSINGER: Looking at the pictures, looks like it, looks like possibly some pillows. GERAGOS: Okay. What picture is that exhibit on? LETSINGER: In this book, it is 37-H, like heavenly. GERAGOS: Okay. This is the bed in the master bedroom? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Okay. Did you make that bed? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Okay. Was the bed made like that when you took the picture? LETSINGER: Well the bed was laid out like that, yes, when ID Tech Lovell took the photograph. GERAGOS: Were you there when he took the photograph? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And what exhibit number is that? LETSINGER: 37-I, like Ida. GERAGOS: Okay. What door is this? LETSINGER: This is the door to the closet in the master bedroom. GERAGOS: Okay. And was this how the door was? LETSINGER: When I originally entered the room, I don't recall if it was open or closed, or if it looked like that. GERAGOS: Okay. So as best as you recall, the door, when you went in, the doors could have been closed, somebody opened it, so that when you took the picture you could see what it was you were taking the picture of? LETSINGER: That's a possibility, yes. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, that's, and specifically what's the exhibit number of that? LETSINGER: The photograph? GERAGOS: Yes. LETSINGER: Is 37-J, like John. GERAGOS: And can you draw where the closet was on the picture, and just write "master closet"? LETSINGER: The closet is indicated by these two open doors on the schematic. GERAGOS: Okay. Do you want to just mark that down? LETSINGER: As master closet? GERAGOS: Master closet. This is another view of that same closet? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: So if the doors were not open, you would have touched the doors to get this view for ID Tech Lovell to take the picture, correct? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: And specifically did this look to you to be the woman's closet? Did there appear to be two closets in this house, one that was in the master bedroom, which you labeled the master closet, and then you talked about another closet, I think, to the jury where there was some duffle bags and items was that in the second bedroom? LETSINGER: Yes, sir. GERAGOS: Okay. Did it appear to you, at least, that this closet was filled with women's clothes, the one that's in the master bedroom? LETSINGER: I don't recall looking at the photograph. This looks like it could be both. One or the other. I don't recall. GERAGOS: Okay. This is a close-up of still the same edge of the master bedroom closet, right? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: And that's what exhibit number? LETSINGER: That photograph is Exhibit 37-L, like Lincoln. GERAGOS: Okay. Then this view right here, does that take you into the hallway there, into the second bedroom? LETSINGER: No. This would be if you were standing, JUDGE: Use the pointer. LETSINGER: If you were standing roughly right here in the master bedroom, looking down, or, I'm sorry in an easterly, direction through the hallway it would be that photograph there. GERAGOS: Do you see this little, appears to be alcove right there, can you point that out to the jury, where that is? LETSINGER: This, on the left hand side of the photograph? GERAGOS: Yes. LETSINGER: Yes. That would be this area right here, you can see. GERAGOS: That's how you would enter into the second bedroom, correct? LETSINGER: Well, the second bedroom would be right around there. You can't actually see the doorway to the second bedroom from that photograph. GERAGOS: You have to go through and around, correct? LETSINGER: Right out that doorway, and then hang an immediate left into the second bedroom. GERAGOS: Which would be the view that we're looking at here on, what exhibit? LETSINGER: Well, this is 37-M, like Mary. And that dark slip just outside right there indicated by the arrow is actually you are actually seeing a little bit into the nursery. You can see the white leg, GERAGOS: I guess what I'm getting at is, the view is where the camera is shooting this way, what you are seeing there in the alcove is part of the nursery. So if you want to go into the next bedroom, you just go out and around, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Now, this is the second bedroom. So if you go out and around, you go into this room, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: And once you are in this room, then this is the other closet that is marked right here by second bedroom, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Okay. And that as you sit, here you don't remember if the doors were open or closed, but if they were closed, you would have opened them so you could take a picture, correct? LETSINGER: No. These doors were open when I entered the bedroom originally. GERAGOS: Like somebody had come home, put their stuff away to get dressed? DISTASO: Objection. Calls for speculation. JUDGE: Sustained. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, these doors that were open into the men's closet, you see these ties that are here, these dress shirts that are here, and everything else, did that appear to be the men's closet to you? LETSINGER: Looking at that photograph, it appeared that the majority of the clothes are men's clothes. GERAGOS: Okay. That's what exhibit number? LETSINGER: That is 37-O, like ocean. GERAGOS: So another picture looking into the nursery, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. From the second bedroom. GERAGOS: Now, this is what exhibit, 37-Q? LETSINGER: Q, like queen. GERAGOS: Okay. Did you set the table? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Okay. Was the table set like this when you arrived? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, could you tell what these items were that I'm pointing to? LETSINGER: I thought they might possibly be gifts, or something. I don't know. They looked look like they are wrapped something. GERAGOS: Some kind of a wrapped item? LETSINGER: Like a Christmas wrap, yes. GERAGOS: Okay. And these are candles that the cursor is on right here? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Then some kind of salt and pepper shakers? LETSINGER: Either that, or like a votive candle, or something like, GERAGOS: I think you are right. I think those are candles. And is there a, when you look at these, that look like those might be napkins wrapped around utensils? LETSINGER: I don't know what was inside there. GERAGOS: Okay. Specifically where was this that we're pointing to? LETSINGER: On the schematic. GERAGOS: On the schematic, yes. LETSINGER: That would be if you were standing in this general area, looking this direction. GERAGOS: Could you draw a picture of where the dining room table was set? LETSINGER: Dining room table basically sat in the center of the room, where the word "dining room" is. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, was there another area where you could eat in this house, sit down to a table, do you remember? LETSINGER: I don't recall any other tables that a person would call a dining table, no. GERAGOS: Okay. This is the tree. Where was the Christmas tree? LETSINGER: As I indicated before, the Christmas tree was right here. I guess this would be the southeastern corner. I'm sorry, that's the courtyard. Southeastern corner of the dining room. GERAGOS: Do you want to mark where that was? LETSINGER: Sure. GERAGOS: That's what exhibit? LETSINGER: That photograph is 37-R, Robert. GERAGOS: As you have already described it, right? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Anybody take into evidence this mug right here? LETSINGER: Not that I know of, no. GERAGOS: And what exhibit number is this? LETSINGER: That photograph is 37-S, like Sam. GERAGOS: Anybody take into evidence any of these glasses that are sitting on the counter? What is this, 37-T? LETSINGER: 37-T, like Tom. No, those glasses were not collected. But when I, or when we had done our walk-through with the defendant, I asked him about the number of glasses. And he said that those were his glasses, that he had drank water when he arrived home. GERAGOS: How about this mug right here? Did you ask him about that? LETSINGER: I didn't, no. GERAGOS: Okay. And this is looking into, what is that, front room, what somebody has labeled, at least this living room, right? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Picture from the sitting room down into the living room? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: That's what exhibit number? LETSINGER: That photograph is 37-U, like Union. GERAGOS: Okay. Another picture of that same room, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: And it's marked there with washer and dryer. You have taken, Lovell has taken a panoramic view room of this room to get various angles of it, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: This is a view looking in that same room, somewhat in this direction at the washer-dryer, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Now, the washer-dryer is in that front room, and there is a little basket right here, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And then these, you can't really tell like from there, kind of accordion doors that open and shut? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Is the bathroom, if you keep continuing, you are going to point that out to the jury? LETSINGER: Yes. This would be, if you were standing roughly in this area, looking in this direction, you can see the doorway there to the second bath. GERAGOS: And that's a, just a head-on shot of the bathroom. What is the exhibit number on that? LETSINGER: That photograph is, let me get there. 37 Double B, like Boy. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, if these are those accordion doors that I was talking to you about, or pocket doors, I think they are accordion doors. LETSINGER: Accordion doors, right. GERAGOS: Now, insofar as the things that kind of piqued your curiosity, so to speak, when you went in there were, the mops, because there was a little ring of moisture, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Mop in the bucket, the rug, correct? LETSINGER: The crumpled rug, yes. GERAGOS: And then these things right here, right? That was other thing, at least in your report that you had put down, had caught your attention? LETSINGER: And the duffle bags that were laying out on this the second bedroom closet. GERAGOS: Now, did you collect these rags? LETSINGER: ID Tech Lovell did, yes. GERAGOS: So that they could be tested for evidence, correct? LETSINGER: Or whatever purpose the detective wanted them, correct. GERAGOS: You guys weren't going to wash them. You were going to test them for evidence, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Now, the, you did some other stuff that evening in the house, didn't you? You and ID Tech Lovell? Didn't you guys have pictures taken of various areas for Luminol, and looking for blood spatters, and things of things of that nature? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: You didn't do any of that? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Did you do any kind of a search to see if there was any foul play in the house? LETSINGER: That was the purpose of our walk-through, Officer Spurlock and I, and then with the defendant, to see if there was anything that indicated foul play, or any kind of suspicious circumstances inside the house. GERAGOS: Now, when you did your report, you specifically said that you saw a small rug. You also noticed a door that, the door, the bucket and the mops were next to it, were next to, was in this room. Did you mean were wet or there was moisture? LETSINGER: I also noticed that the door of the bucket and mops were next to was in this room. That's what I'm saying is, that in this room meaning, the living room. GERAGOS: Right. LETSINGER: The door meaning this door here was the door that the mop and buckets were next to. GERAGOS: So you saw a mop and bucket, and you saw those towels and the crumpled rug which was around the, little farther away. And that's what led you to be suspicious, right? LETSINGER: Those things, yes. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, you said specifically you didn't see anything else in the room that appeared unusual, right? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, the, you also said you saw no obvious signs of foul play in the house, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Okay. And then you talked about going to search the house that was located right next door. LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: That was because Mr. Peterson had told you that that house was vacant, isn't that correct? LETSINGER: I don't recall who told me it was vacant. But I was told. GERAGOS: You didn't know that it was vacant, right? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: As far as you know, you have never been to that house before, right? LETSINGER: I know I have never been to either one of those houses. GERAGOS: Okay. So the information came from Mr. Peterson, didn't it, that the house next door was vacant? DISTASO: Objection. Been asked and answered. JUDGE: Sustained. GERAGOS: When you got there at the house next door, let's take it down the timeline. You got there at approximately 6:30? LETSINGER: Got to where? GERAGOS: 523 Covena. LETSINGER: I have the exact time in my report. I could look at it. GERAGOS: You say were you dispatched at 1800 hours? LETSINGER: Roughly, yes. GERAGOS: So what time would you have arrived? LETSINGER: If I may look at the report. GERAGOS: Sure. LETSINGER: I arrived at the 523 Covena at 1827 hours, which is 6:27. GERAGOS: Okay. What page of the report are you looking at? LETSINGER: That's actually on the printout of the call history. GERAGOS: When you arrived he was not there, right? LETSINGER: I think I was the first officer at the house. GERAGOS: Okay. So the best of your recollection is, when you arrived, you were the first guy there? LETSINGER: First officer there, yes. GERAGOS: Okay. And were you with anybody, any other partner officer? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Okay. When you arrived at the house, is that the first place you went to? Did you go to the park first? LETSINGER: We originally went to the park. GERAGOS: Okay. So when you went to the park, who did you see? LETSINGER: Officer Evers was there. I remember Sharon Rocha being there. There were several people there. I remember the defendant was there as well. GERAGOS: And what was he doing? LETSINGER: They were, all had flashlights, milling around. Looked like they were looking for something or someone. GERAGOS: Okay. So you saw Scott Peterson with a flashlight looking, LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: You saw Sharon Rocha. Did you see Ron Grantski? LETSINGER: I don't recall seeing him, no. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, did you ever see Ron Grantski down at the park when you went down there? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. When? LETSINGER: After we had, after Officer Spurlock and I had gone to the vacant house to the north, finished there, Sergeant Duerfeldt asked us to go to the back, and that's when Officer Spurlock and I searched the area there by the Covena footbridge, or foot entryway. I saw Mr. Grantski, actually had a conversation with him by the footbridge on the north side of the park. GERAGOS: Can you point on the map which is marked as People's 36? LETSINGER: Sure. This arrow here indicates the footbridge that goes to the north side. GERAGOS: Somebody has already marked it. Is that an accurate representation of where the footbridge is? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Now, I didn't precisely ask it, so I apologize. LETSINGER: Okay. GERAGOS: You did not see Mr. Grantski the first time you went to the park. That's where you were immediately dispatched to, right? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: So when you arrived, you see Evers, you see Duerfeldt, LETSINGER: I don't recall seeing Duerfeldt when I first arrived at the park. GERAGOS: Evers and Spurlock? LETSINGER: I don't recall seek Spurlock either. GERAGOS: Just Evers? LETSINGER: Just Evers. GERAGOS: You see Evers, and you have a conversation. You go straight to the house? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: When you go to the house, you left Scott Peterson at the park, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: You, when you arrive at the house, are you allowing people to go and out of the house? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: You set up, you do something to prevent people from going in and out? LETSINGER: Basically my presence to prevent people from going in and out. GERAGOS: You are in a uniform, you have got a marked patrol car, you are parked out front? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And was there anybody in the house when you arrived? LETSINGER: I don't know if there was anybody when I arrived. When Officer Spurlock and I went in the house there was nobody else in the house. GERAGOS: Okay. And did Officer Spurlock and you go through the house together by yourselves? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. After you did that, did you then come outside? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. When you did that, did you, were you met by Duerfeldt? LETSINGER: I don't believe Duerfeldt was there at that time. After Officer Spurlock and I did our initial walk-through the house, we came back out and met with Officer Evers, and this is when we, Officer Evers, Officer Spurlock, and I walked through the house with Mr. Peterson. GERAGOS: Okay. So if I have got the right, the first time you go there, Scott is in the park, you and Evers go through the house? LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock and I go through house. GERAGOS: You and Spurlock go through the house, then Evers shows up, and immediately afterwards Scott Peterson? LETSINGER: Well, the timeline was basically, I arrived, Officer Spurlock and Officer Evers arrive, Officer Spurlock and I then go through the house basically to make sure that there is no crime scene or no people inside the house that could harm us or anyone else. After we determine that it's safe for anyone else to enter, we come back out, advise Officer Evers that there is no dangerous people in the house. Then that is when Officer Spurlock, Officer Evers, and myself walked through the house with Mr. Peterson. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, in that discussion that you overheard, that was between Spurlock and Scott Peterson, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: And you didn't write anything about that in your report, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Also that Scott getting mad and throwing a flashlight down, you didn't put that in your report, did you? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: And, in fact, when was the first time you have ever told anybody that remembrance? LETSINGER: About which remembrance? GERAGOS: The flashlight thrown on the ground? Today? LETSINGER: No. We told Sergeant Duerfeldt about it that night as he was there. GERAGOS: Have you seen any report, either Duerfeldt's, Evers', yours, Spurlock's, anybody that mentions that? LETSINGER: I haven't seen any report that mentions it, no. GERAGOS: Have you seen any report anywhere that mentions that? LETSINGER: I have seen limited reports. GERAGOS: Okay. In the limited reports you have seen, has it been mentioned anywhere? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Now, when you go out, you go through the house with Scott Peterson, he says that he was at the Berkeley Marina, correct? LETSINGER: I don't recall hearing him say where he was at when he went fishing. GERAGOS: Do you remember what he, or when he said he came back? LETSINGER: I recall, I don't recall him saying when he arrived home. I recall him saying that at some point during the night that left, he left between ten and 10:30 in the morning. GERAGOS: That's what you recall him saying? LETSINGER: That's when he left the house. GERAGOS: To go fishing? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: And did he tell you that he, that she was going to walk the dog in the park? LETSINGER: I don't recall if he told me that, or if I heard that through other people that were out there that night. GERAGOS: And did he also say that he thought that she was going to, she had told him, Laci had told him she was going to go get groceries, or pick up groceries? LETSINGER: I don't recall hearing that. GERAGOS: Okay. Do you recall him looking in the refrigerator and saying that, "Obviously she didn't go to the grocery store, there wasn't any groceries"? LETSINGER: I don't recall that. GERAGOS: Do you remember him going to the refrigerator? LETSINGER: Yes, I do. GERAGOS: And checking out whether or not there was something, or whether there appeared to be any new items that had been purchased? LETSINGER: I don't recall what comment he made when he opened the refrigerator. GERAGOS: Now, when you went and saw the, got the purse that was hanging up in the master bedroom closet, it was hanging up right in there, right? That's the edge of it. JUDGE: I think one more. GERAGOS: What's the exhibit number on that? LETSINGER: I know it starts with 37. GERAGOS: It does, starts with 37. Try about S, see if it's, LETSINGER: 37-L, like Lincoln. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, who took the purse off the hook? LETSINGER: I believe was Officer Spurlock. GERAGOS: Okay. And that was in, as we said before, the master bedroom, right? LETSINGER: Right. In the master closet. GERAGOS: And Scott Peterson was there, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And, and you guys went through the contents, or you didn't, but Spurlock and Scott went through the contents to see if they could find anything? LETSINGER: Spurlock, Officer Spurlock went through the contents. Mr. Peterson did not go through the purse or handle any of the items in the purse. GERAGOS: Okay. And then at that point, was that prior to the conversation as to where Scott said he was? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. And as he, did you, at the time, did you hear him tell Spurlock that he been at the Berkeley Marina? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Did you tell him, or did you hear him say that he had called home? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: You didn't hear any of that? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: How long was the conversation you had heard? LETSINGER: Well, the part of the conversation that I heard was maybe less than five minutes of the conversation. GERAGOS: Okay. As you are walking, that is as you are walking through the house? LETSINGER: As we walked down this hallway, and then we, Officer Spurlock and Mr. Peterson stopped somewhere in this vicinity, and I was somewhere over here. And they spoke for a few more seconds, minutes, and then, GERAGOS: When you walked through with Scott Peterson, was the rug still crumpled? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Scott Peterson left the house? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: The house, at that point you had barred anybody from getting inside, is that correct? LETSINGER: Well, we prevented anybody from going inside. GERAGOS: Prevented anybody from going inside prior to letting Scott go in, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: When you got there the first time, basically you had set that up, nobody was going in and out of the house unless they were accompanied by the officers, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Now, the white towels that we saw before, LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: That were on the washer and dryer, who actually collected those? LETSINGER: ID Tech Lovell. GERAGOS: And the mop and the bucket, who actually collected those? LETSINGER: ID Tech Lovell. GERAGOS: And after you, after you walked through the house with Scott Peterson, he went outside, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And then were you dispatched backs t the park after that walk-through? LETSINGER: Well, dispatched to me means that dispatch tells me to go. I was asked by Sergeant Duerfeldt to go back to the park. GERAGOS: When you, after you had done the walk-through with Scott Peterson, went outside, was Duerfeldt present at that point? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Is that when you pow-wowed? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: So that would have been the second time you had been through the house, the first time just you and Spurlock, the second time with Evers and Scott. After you had gone through the house twice, you go outside, Scott Peterson is outside, Duerfeldt is there, and you, Spurlock, Evers and Duerfeldt have a conversation, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: And that conversation was there, were, from your standpoint, what you said, I won't ask you what anybody else said, you said damp rags on the washer-dryer, the mop in the bucket, the crumpled rug and the duffle bag in the closet? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: Okay. Those were the things that you thought were suspicious? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: Other than that, there was nothing else unusual in the house? That's what your report says, right? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: Now, at that point you go down to the park. Duerfeldt tells you to go down to the park? LETSINGER: Well, at the time that we had that conversation you are speaking of, after that was when we went to the vacant house to the north. GERAGOS: Okay. When you went to the vacant house, you met a gentleman by the name of Greg Reed? LETSINGER: I believe his name was George, but I could refresh. GERAGOS: Would you check? LETSINGER: Yes, you are correct. Greg. GERAGOS: You met Greg Reed. He was already in the house, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: And that would have been approximately what time? LETSINGER: We went to that house at just after seven in the evening. GERAGOS: Okay. So is it a fair statement that if you arrived at the park at just before 6:30, that everything that I just recounted to you took about a half hour to 35 minutes? Going through the house twice, pow-wowing, and then going to the next house? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. At that point, do you go, do you go to the park? LETSINGER: Yes. After going through the 529 Covena. GERAGOS: You say to go 529 Covena, go down to the park? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: At that point who was the first person you run into? LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock and I searched the park, both sides. As we were coming up the north side, we met up with people sporadically that were walking, searching. And the first person that I remember meeting that actually stuck in my mind was we met up with Mr. Grantski at the footbridge. GERAGOS: Okay. And did Mr. Grantski, was he by himself? LETSINGER: I believe he was with another gentleman. GERAGOS: And that was not Scott Peterson? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Okay. And who were you with at that point? LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock. GERAGOS: Did you have a conversation with Mr. Grantski? LETSINGER: I did. GERAGOS: Okay. LETSINGER: Officer Spurlock and I both did, yes. GERAGOS: And did, was Mr. Peterson there? LETSINGER: Scott Peterson? GERAGOS: Yes. LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Did you ever see Ron Grantski and Scott Peterson together down in the park? LETSINGER: Not down in the park, no. GERAGOS: Where did you, after that, after you were in the park, did you at some point go back up to 523 Covena? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And at that point did you see Ron Grantski and Scott Peterson have a conversation? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: Okay. And what, approximately what time was that? LETSINGER: It would have been roughly 8:00 o'clock in the evening. GERAGOS: Okay. Where did that conversation take place? LETSINGER: In the front yard of 523 Covena. GERAGOS: Okay. And was that regarding fishing? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And Ron Grantski saying, you know, who goes fishing at 9:30? LETSINGER: I don't recall that the, what he said. GERAGOS: What do you recall him saying? LETSINGER: I recall Mr. Grantski asking Scott Peterson if he had gone golfing, and Scott Peterson said, "No, it was too cold to go golfing, so I went fishing." Mr. Grantski asked him, I believe, what time he left, and he said ten, 10:30. And Mr. Grantski said, "Well, That's kind of late to go fishing." GERAGOS: Let me show you Evers' report. Actually Spurlock's report. By the way, did Ron Grantski, did he appear to be joking? LETSINGER: When he said that? GERAGOS: Yeah. LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Now, did you do something in regards to, when that conversation took place between Mr. Grantski and Scott Peterson, was that on the front lawn? LETSINGER: In the front yard, yes. GERAGOS: In the front yard somewhere near the driveway apron? LETSINGER: I don't know if we were closer to the driveway, or if we were closer to the southern edge of the yard. GERAGOS: Point out for the jury, LETSINGER: Somewhere in this area here, I believe. GERAGOS: Do you want to just mark that? Just put "fishing conversation". Now, the, did you relay that conversation to somebody, what you had heard? LETSINGER: I don't know if I relayed it, or if somebody else did. I don't know what, GERAGOS: You know that somebody did, is that correct? LETSINGER: I would imagine somebody did, yes. GERAGOS: Okay. Now, you, at some point, hooked up, or Detective Brocchini showed up, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: What time was that? LETSINGER: I don't recall exact time. It would have been some time after 8:30 in the evening. GERAGOS: Could it been closer to 10:00 o'clock? We have, some people have indicated that he was a number of hours away. LETSINGER: It could have, yes. GERAGOS: Now, did he direct you to have Lovell use an alternative light source in the house to look for any signs of blood. Let me show you, giving me a look like you don't know. I'll show you the report. JUDGE: Whose report is that? GERAGOS: This is Detective Brocchini's. Looks like it's a December 25th, 2002, report. GERAGOS: I have got yellow highlighted the area. LETSINGER: Right. That's what it indicates here, from Detective Brocchini's report, yes. GERAGOS: Does that refresh your recollection? LETSINGER: Yes. JUDGE: Does that refresh your recollection? GERAGOS: Great minds run together. JUDGE: Does that refresh your recollection? LETSINGER: Yes, it does, sir. GERAGOS: Is it a fair statement that when Brocchini got there, he was interested in having Lovell use alternative light source. What is that? LETSINGER: I don't know. I would imagine he's speaking to something about Luminol, or something like that. GERAGOS: Okay. And he wants you to, we keep talking about this Lovell. But I don't know in the jury knows. Can you just tell the jury who Lovell is, or what his function is? LETSINGER: His title is ID Technician. And basically processes crime scenes, photographs, collects evidence, that kind of thing. GERAGOS: He's the person who takes the digital photographs that we have been looking at, correct? LETSINGER: Correct, yes. GERAGOS: He's the person who would collect the evidence, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: To the best of your knowledge understanding, you bring him in so that he can kind of document everything, correct? LETSINGER: Right. GERAGOS: And did you, that evening, in response to Brocchini, direct him to Luminol the house for any kind of blood? LETSINGER: Detective Brocchini or somebody else had asked for ID Tech Lovell to respond. And before leaving, Detective Brocchini asked that a Luminol process be conducted. When ID Tech Lovell arrived, I relayed what Detective Brocchini wanted, the photographs, certain items collected, as well as the Luminol process. And ID Tech Lovell indicated that he did not have the items to do a Luminol process. GERAGOS: Right. They had to come back to do it, isn't that correct? LETSINGER: I don't know if they did or not. GERAGOS: Didn't you also direct him to collect the wet towels, the mop, and the mop bucket so that they could be inspected for evidence? LETSINGER: I directed him to collect those, yes. GERAGOS: Okay. And those were all the suspicious things that conceivably could be collected and tested, correct? DISTASO: Objection, your Honor. Calls for speculation. JUDGE: Sustained. GERAGOS: Why did you collect them? DISTASO: Objection. Been asked and answered. JUDGE: Sustained. GERAGOS: Now, the, do you know what they do with what Lovell would do with these items once he collected them? Do you know where they go? LETSINGER: Into evidence. GERAGOS: Do you have something called a locked drying locker? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: In the evidence room. Is that where these items would go, specifically the towels? LETSINGER: If an item needed to be dried, yes, it would go there. GERAGOS: Okay. And did anybody, did you see a hamper in the house that evening? LETSINGER: I don't recall. GERAGOS: Did you ask Mr. Peterson, Scott Peterson, what Laci Peterson was wearing when she left? LETSINGER: I didn't, no. GERAGOS: Did you look in the hamper that day, on the 24th, to see what items of clothing were in the hamper? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Did you take photographs, or did you see Lovell take photographs of the hamper? LETSINGER: I don't recall seeing photographs of the hamper. GERAGOS: Did anybody take video of the interior of the house while you were there? LETSINGER: Not that night, no. GERAGOS: Did you return later on? LETSINGER: I did not, no. GERAGOS: Was there video that was taken later on the 26th, evening of the 26th, that you are aware of? LETSINGER: I don't know. GERAGOS: May I have just one moment, your Honor? These tile areas here, what exhibit number is this, officer? LETSINGER: That photograph is 37-U, like Union. GERAGOS: When you were the, you and Spurlock were the first two in the house. The floor was not yet, correct? LETSINGER: That particular floor? GERAGOS: Yes. LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: You would have noted that obviously in your report if it had been wet, or if you had seen signs of it being wet, correct? LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: You didn't smell any bleach or anything. You would have noted that in your report, correct? LETSINGER: Correct. GERAGOS: You didn't see any signs on the interior of the house, other than what you have said before, that the towels and the mops, as to recent cleaning in this area here, on LETSINGER: Yes. GERAGOS: And did you come back the next day to search? LETSINGER: No. GERAGOS: Thank you. I have no further questions. JUDGE: Any redirect? DISTASO: I don't have any redirect. JUDGE: All right. We'll excuse the witness. |