Walter Elliot: I… well, they look dead. I don’t think anybody can help them.
Dispatcher: Excuse me, sir. Who am I talking to?
Walter Elliot: This is Walter Elliot. This is my house.
Dispatcher: Yes, sir. And you say somebody is dead?
Walter Elliot: I found my wife. She’s shot. And there’s a man here. He’s shot, too.
Dispatcher: Hold on a moment, sir. Let me type this in and get help going to you.
– break -
Dispatcher: Okay, Mr. Elliot, I have paramedics and deputies on their way.
Walter Elliot: It’s too late for them. The paramedics, I mean.
Dispatcher: I have to send them, sir. You said they are shot? Are you in danger?
Walter Elliot: I don’t know. I just got here. I didn’t do this thing. Are you recording this?
Dispatcher: Yes, sir. Everything is recorded. Are you in the house right now?
Walter Elliot: I’m in the bedroom. I didn’t do it.
Dispatcher: Is there anybody else in the house besides you and the two people who are shot?
Walter Elliot: I don’t think so.
Dispatcher: Okay, I want you to step outside so the deputies will see you when they pull up. Stand out where they can see you.
Walter Elliot: Okay, I’m going out.
– end -
The second tape involved a different dispatcher but I allowed Golantz to play it. I had lost the big argument about whether the tapes could be played at all. I saw no sense in wasting the court’s time by making the prosecutor bring in the second dispatcher to establish and introduce the second tape.
This one was made from Elliot’s cell phone. He was outside, and the slight sound of the ocean’s waves could be heard in the background.
Tape 2 – 13:24 – 05/02/07
Dispatcher: Nine-one-one, what is your emergency?
Walter Elliot: Yeah, I called before. Where is everybody?
Dispatcher: You called nine-one-one?
Walter Elliot: Yeah, my wife’s shot. So’s the German. Where is everybody?
Dispatcher: Is this the call in Malibu on Crescent Cove Road?
Walter Elliot: Yeah, that’s me. I called at least fifteen minutes ago and nobody’s here.
Dispatcher: Sir, my screen shows our alpha unit has an ETA of less than one minute. Hang up the phone and stand out front so they will see you when they arrive. Will you do that, sir?
Walter Elliot: I’m already standing out here.
Dispatcher: Then wait right there, sir.
Walter Elliot: If you say so. Good-bye.
– end -
Elliot not only sounded annoyed in the second call by the delay but said the word “German” with almost a sneer in his voice. Whether or not guilt could be extrapolated from his verbal tones didn’t matter. The tapes helped set the prosecution’s theme of Walter Elliot’s being arrogant and believing he was above the law. It was a good start for Golantz.
I passed on questioning the dispatcher because I knew there was nothing to be gained for the defense. Next up for the prosecution was sheriff’s deputy Brendan Murray, who was driving the alpha car that first responded to the 911 call. In a half hour of testimony, in minute detail Golantz led the deputy through his arrival and discovery of the bodies. He paid special attention to Murray’s recollections of Elliot’s behavior, demeanor and statements. According to Murray, the defendant showed no emotions when leading them up the stairs to the bedroom where his wife lay shot to death and naked on the bed. He calmly stepped over the legs of the dead man in the doorway and pointed to the body on the bed.
“He said, ‘That’s my wife. I’m pretty sure she’s dead,’ ” Murray testified.
According to Murray, Elliot also said at least three times that he had not killed the two people in the bedroom.
“Well, was that unusual?” Golantz asked.
“Well, we’re not trained to get involved in murder investigations,” Murray said. “We’re not supposed to. So I never asked Mr. Elliot if he did it. He just kept telling us he didn’t.”
I had no questions for Murray either. He was on my witness list and I would be able to recall him during the defense phase if I needed to. But I wanted to wait for the prosecution’s next witness, Christopher Harber, who was Murray’s partner and a rookie in the Sheriff’s Department. I thought that if either of the deputies was to make a mistake that might help the defense, it would be the rookie.
Harber’s testimony was shorter than Murray’s and he was used primarily to confirm his partner’s testimony. He heard the same things Murray heard. He saw the same things as well.
“Just a few questions, Your Honor,” I said when Stanton inquired about cross-examination.
While Golantz had been conducting his direct examination from the lectern, I remained at the defense table for the cross. This was a ploy. I wanted the jury, the witness and the prosecutor to think I was just going through the motions and asking a few questions on cross. The truth was I was about to plant what would be a key point in the defense’s case.
“Now, Deputy Harber, you are a rookie, correct?”
“That is correct.”
“Have you ever testified in court before?”
“Not in a murder case.”
“Well, don’t be nervous. Despite what Mr. Golantz may have told you, I don’t bite.”
