Champommier Trial Update- Day Five
Afternoon session only: Plaintiffs’ attorneys call Champommier’s stepmother who details the nature of her and her husband’s (Champommier’s biological father) relationship.
Plaintiffs next call Champommier’s father who details the nature of his relationship with his son, Zachary, including that Zachary served as his Best Man at the wedding to his second wife.
Plaintiffs call Champommier’s mother, Carol, who goes into great detail regarding the relationship that she shared with her son, Zachary, including Mothers Day cards Zachary had written to her and many photographs indicating the extent of their relationship. To quote decedent’s mother, “Zac was my past, present, and future”.
Plaintiffs rest their case-in-chief.
Attorneys representing the United States of America begin their case-in-chief by seeking to have the case dismissed. Judge cites decision by previous judge in earlier ruling on motion for summary judgment brought by the United States, which was denied. Thus, judge denied motion.
Government seeks to have report by ballistics expert for plaintiffs ruled inadmissible. Judge does not rule, but defers ruling until a later date.
United States calls first witness Special Agent (“SA”) who, in addition to Agent (Champommier’s killer), represented Drug Enforcement Administration as part of the “multi-jurisdictional task force” assembled in the parking area the evening Champommier was killed.
SA admits that use of public areas for debriefings is “common practice”. SA details that he was positioned at the north end of the parking area. Despite earlier deposition testimony, taken within the first few days after Champommier’s killing, that SA did not draw his weapon SA now testifies that he drew his weapon and trained it on Champommier immediately following the alleged contact between Champommier’s car and Deputy. SA testifies that since his fellow agents were in the line of his prospective fire, SA did not shoot. SA testified that Deputy, gun drawn and trained on not only Citizen but also his fellow task force agents detaining Citizen, announced himself as law enforcement to Citizen and ordered Citizen to “get on the ground”.
SA testifies that he could not identify Agent's exact position despite facing the area containing Agent and being within several feet of Agent. SA testifies to specific details about task force members who were beyond Agent and who were detaining Citizen, including which person stood where and which part of Citizen's person they were in contact with.
SA testifies that he did not see Champommier’s car stop. SA testifies that the calculus of time from the alleged contact by Champommier’s car with Deputy until the shots ceased was approximately “three to five seconds” and that the time from the alleged contact between Deputy and Champommier’s car and the first shot was approximately “two seconds”.
SA testifies that verbal warnings were indeed given to Champommier to “stop-stop-stop”. These verbal warnings, however, were given after Zachary had been fatally shot by Agent, a member of the plainclothes “multi-jurisdictional task force” assembled in a public parking lot in a busy, upscale neighborhood where the public had no notice of law enforcement presence.
Trial recesses until Tuesday, April 2, 2013 at which time the United States is anticipated to present additional testimony from witnesses and expert testimony. It is anticipated that the United States will rest their case-in-chief tomorrow.
Stay tuned....
No comments:
Post a Comment