April 29, 2004

Update

Jenkins is having a little trouble while at the projection screen in terms of making sure she's facing the jury. Thirty minutes after getting there, she saw the police pulling over Perez' car in the parking lot. Two officers got out of their car. She didn't pay attention, thinking it was a normal traffic stop. Maybe a minute or less later she heard gunshots and she and her kids hit the floor.

She saw the officers get out and go up to the car. When they got out of the car, they did not have guns in their hands. One officer stayed by the car, while the driver walked to Perez' car. She went back to doing her laundry, until the gunshots when she hit the floor.

She could not hear any talking because of the washers and dryers being loud, but she did hear the gunshots. They stayed on the ground until they didn't hear naything else. She then went to look at what happened and saw the driver slumped over and the officers were standing there on the side, but she couldn't see what they were doing because the car door was open and blocking her view.

That's when the ambulance and several other poice cars pulled up. They arrived "maybe about a minute or two" after. She and her kids had stayed on the ground for "probably a good three minutes."

Question from juror: Did you see the officers drawn their guns? No she did not see that. When she turned her back to go to her laundry, no guns were out. Perez' car door was not open at that time and she couldn't tell if the windows were up or down. She does not know Perez or the officers.

Back to the diagram. Question: You're in the laundrmat and you see officer get out. Where was the driver officer? He was walking up and was near the rear of the driver's side of Perez's car. That's when she turned her back. The other officer at that time had not yet walked up that far, he was closer to the patrol car at that time.

Update

Next: We cannot make out this witnesses name. She is speaking very very quietly.

She was at the laundromat doing her laundry, with her sister. She looked out the window when the cars pulled up -- "the police car and the real car" she seems to have said. She saw one officer approach Perez' car and tell him to get out of the car. We can't make out the rest, but then "That's when I heard gunshots." She saw both officers outside Perez' car.

She didn't hear conversaiton but did hear an officer tell Perez to get out of the car. She did not see Perez start to do so. She couldn't tell if the car door was open or not. She is clearly uncomofrtable and/or nervous. "It happened so fast."

The second officer struggled with Perez trying to pull him out and thats when Perez shoved him back. She turned her back to the window to tend tto her laundry machine. She did go back and look out the window again.

She gave a statement to the police. There isn't anything else she recollects now.

Update

One more witness and then a brief break, says Schrunk. This witness: (?) Leae.

She was at the laundromat with the previous witness. She is also having some trouble, having to take a deep breath. Out the window, she saw the two cars pull into the parking lot. Perez stopped but didn't pull all the way into the parking space. She did not know Perez. The officers got out with guns drawn, she says. The officer with a hat on yelled at Pererz to get out, Perez was asking what he did wrong. The officer opened up the door with his right hand and yelled for Perez to get out, with his gun in his left hand.

Perez did not get out, just asking what he did, saying he didn't do anything. The officer told him more than once to get out of the car, in a loud voice. Perez' hands, she says were up, and the officer tried to get him out of the car. The officer grabbed him at the back of the neck and snapped his head into the stearing wheel and told him to get out of the vehicle.

Perez backed up with his hands in the air and said "alright," she says. Perez reached over with his left hand to unbuckle his seatbelt, but not leaning over and digging aorund. The officer stepped back twice and she heard three gunshots.

She didn't see the person shooting the gun. At the time she was looking at Perez. Puases from her. Schrunk asks if she needs water. She says she is fine.

To the diagram of the scene. Schrunk is pointing out where the Perez car and the patrol car have been previously identified, and where the laundromat is, since she seemed not able to point them out. More deep breaths for her.

Before the shooting, she says the officers were just to the rear of the driver's door of Perez' car. She's asking for a different picture because Schrunk is triyng to establish where she was and isn't sure she had the right angle of view. She says she's not able to point it out based on looking at the diagram of the scene.

A photograph of the cars and part of the storefronts. She's pointing out where she was in the laundromat. Back to the diagram to see if she can say on that where the officers were. When she first saw them they were by Perez car and walked towards the driver's door. The one with the hat on was yelling at Perez, doing the talking.

She doesn't know which officer shot.

She didn't talk to the police, because she wanted to talk to the Perez family and their lawyer first. They ultimately told her to talk to the police and give a statement? "Yeah he said it woul d be best if I did." And she talked to the press? Yes.

No questions for this witness. Now time for afternoon break.