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1 INTHEUNITEDSTATESDISTRICTCOURTFORTHENORTHERNDISTRICTOF ILLINOIS

2 WESTERNDIVISION

3 UNITEDSTATESOFAMERICA, ) Docket No. 05CR50082)

4 Plaint iff, ) Rockford, I l l inois) Monday, May14, 2007

5 v. ) 8:45o 'clocka.m.)

6 MONTRELLMCSWAIN, )BRADFORDDODSON, andLEE )

7 ALLEN, ))

8 Defendants. )

9 VOLUME1TRANSCRIPTOFTRIAL

10 BEFORETHEHONORABLEPHILIPG. REINHARD, anda jury

11 APPEARANCES:

12 For theGovernment : HON. PATRICK J. FITZGERALDUni tedStates At torney

13 (308West StateStreet ,Rockford, I l l inois 61101) by

14 MR. MICHAELF. IASPARROMR

.MAR

KT. KA

R

NER

15 Assistant Uni tedStates At torneys

16 For theDefendant McSwain: BYRD&TAYLOR(308W. StateStreet , Sui te450,

17 Rockford, I l l inois 61101) byMR. MARKA. BYRD

18 For theDefendant Dodson: MR. DONALDP. SULLIVAN

19 (OneCourt Place, Sui te101,Rockford, I l l inois 61101)

20

For theDefendant Al len: MR. JAMESD. TUNICK21 (53W. JacksonStreet , Sui te1362,

Chicago, I l l inois 60604)22

AlsoPresent : MR. STEPHENSMITH23 Special Agent , ATF

24 Court Reporter: MaryT. Lindbloom211SouthCourt Street

25 Rockford, I l l inois 61101(815) 987-4486

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1 (The fol lowingproceedings werehad inopen court , out of

2 thepresenceandhearingof the jury:)

3 THECLERK: 05CR50082, U.S.A. v. McSwain, Dodson, an

4 Al len.

5 THECOURT: Al l r ight . I 'd l ike the lawyers to

6 approach thepodium, please.

7 MR. IASPARRO: Goodmorning, your Honor. Michael

8 IasparroandMarkKarner onbehalf of theUni tedStates.

9 THECOURT: Goodmorning.

10 MR. TUNICK: Goodmorning, your Honor. James Tunicko

11 behalf of LeeAl len, who ' s present .

12 THECOURT: Goodmorning.

13 MR. BYRD: Goodmorning, your Honor. MarkByrdon

14 behalf of Montrel l McSwain, who ' s present sittingat the table.

15 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Goodmorning.

16 MR. SULLIVAN: Goodmorning, your Honor. DonSul l ivan

17 onbehalf of BradfordDodson, who is alsopresent .

18 THECOURT: Al l r ight . This case is scheduled togo t

19 trial this morning. Is thereanychangeof plea for anyof the

20 defendants at this time?

21 MR. BYRD: Not onbehalf of Mr. McSwain, Judge.

22 MR. SULLIVAN: No. Mr. Dodsonpersists inhis

23 innocence.

24 THECOURT: Al l r ight . The last time I was incourt ,

25 thegovernment had indicated that i t was fil ingaSect ion851


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1 not ice; is that correct?

2 MR. IASPARRO: Andwehave, as toboth Mr. McSwainand

3 Mr. Dodson, Judge.

4 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Andyou 'veexplained tobotho

5 them theeffect of that not ice?

6 MR. BYRD: Your Honor, we 've talkedabout that , yes.

7 MR. SULLIVAN: I diddiscuss it . If I couldhavea

8 moment toverify that heunderstood that .

9 THECOURT: Wel l , i t wouldbe if certainquant i t ies ar

10 found, i t wouldbebaseduponaprior convict ion that would

11 increase themandatoryminimum to20years. Is that accurate,

12 Mr. Iasparro?

13 MR. IASPARRO: For Count 1, that ' s correct , Judge.

14 MR. BYRD: If wecould haveamoment .

15 THECOURT: Goahead.

16 MR. TUNICK: Judge, whi le they ' re takingamoment wi th

17 their cl ients, can I raisean issue?

18 THECOURT: Youmay.

19 MR. TUNICK: Thankyou , Judge. Wel l , last night going

20 over the transcripts indetai l , I not iced someproblems, and I '

21 l ike to raise i t wi th thecour t . I 'mnot surehowyouwant to

22 handle this. There ' s one transcript inpart icular that i t ' s

23 clear that thewords are incorrect , and they ' re important words

24 and I can ident ify theexact transcript and theexact words. I

25 can show i t to thegovernment . I think theywouldagree that


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1 the transcript is incorrect that theyprovidedme. But the

2 secondone is is that there ' s aconversat ion that 's cl ipnumber

3 32wi th --

4 THECOURT: I don ' t haveanyof this . Youknow that .

5 MR. TUNICK: I understand, Judge. And i t has LeeAl le

6 on the top. Hedoesn ' t part icipate in this conversat ionat al l

7 Judge. He ' s not -- there ' s nowords attributed tohim in the

8 transcript itself , and the reason for that is becausehe

9 actual ly leaves the room. He ' s on thereat thebeginning. He

10 leaves the room, and thenothers engage inconversat ionabout

11 drugs.

12 Now, he ' s on the topof the transcripts, whichmight

13 indicate to the jury that hewas present for this conversat ion.

14 So, I object to -- I know thegovernment wants touse this cl ip

15 because i t shows avery, very short periodof t imeof him

16 workingon thedoor. He leaves the room. He ' s not present for

17 theconversat ion that occurs after that , and I don ' t want the

18 jury tobel ieve that hewas goingback, and theyget these in

19 the jury roomor things of that sort , and they say, "Wel l , gee.

20 Hewas present for this conversat ionwhen theywerenever

21 talkingabout drugs." So, I can ident ifypart icular words, and

22 also I haveaproblemwi th this part icular transcript , Judge.

23 THECOURT: First, as to thewords, youcanconfer wi t

24 Mr. Iasparro, and there ' s away to remedy that . I f Mr. Iasparr

25 agrees that thewords are inaccurate, youcandelete i t . I f


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1 there ' s adifferenceas you interpret thewords and theperson

2 who transcribed i t interprets i t , thenyou ' real lowed topresen

3 that , and the jury is inst ructed, and I ' l l inst ruct themat the

4 t ime theyhear the transcript or at the t ime that they read the

5 transcript that thewords that theyhear control and that the

6 transcripts wi l l not beadmi t tedas evidence. I donot admi t

7 them. Theyare just markedas anexhibi t .

8 As to the second issue, I think that shouldbe -- if

9 i t ' s agreed that he left the room, that 's one thing. If i t ' s

10 not agreed that he left the room, that hewas present , the top

11 of the transcript -- I don ' t think the topof the transcript

12 means anything, anyway, what thegovernment puts down.

13 MR. IASPARRO: Judge, twopoints. First, defense

14 counsel has haddraft transcripts for several weeks. This is

15 the first we 'veheardof anyobject ions toany transcripts. As

16 to the secondpoint --

17 THECOURT: Wel l , he ' s raised themnow. I trust you

18 wi l l somet imebefore they ' replayedgoover i t andei ther

19 correct the si tuat ionor informme that there ' s adifferenceof

20 opinionas to the reading.

21 MR. IASPARRO: Yes, Judge. As to the second issue, at

22 the topof each transcript , Agent Smi th, who final ized the

23 transcripts, identifiedwho thepart icipants areand, by

24 part icipants, persons in the roomat the t ime that that video

25 cl ipwas recorded. At thebeginningof this videocl ip -- it


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1 happens tobewhat we ' recal l ingcl ip32 -- LeeAl len is there.

2 Hedoes leave the room. That ' s something that Mr. Tunick

3 clearlycanbringout oncross examinat ion if hewants, but

4 BradfordDodson is alsoaparty to theconversat ionandengages

5 inconversat ionduring that videocl ip. So, i t ' s clearly

6 relevant .

7 THECOURT: Wel l , I don ' t know that theheading -- the

8 heading is not of anyevident iaryvalue in the senseof

9 translat ing thewords that were spoken. I f that issue is going

10 tobecomecrit ical , I want to lookat the transcript , and I may

11 say theheading is not tobeconsidered, and i t ' s not . You

12 understand that .

13 MR. IASPARRO: I dounderstand that , Judge. I t ' s

14 simply includedas anaid to thecourt and the jury, number one

15 andalso to ident ifywho thepart icipants areand to show the

16 court why thesepart icular videocl ips and transcripts are

17 relevant as towho thepart icipants are.

18 THECOURT: I 'mnot sure -- I knowwhyyou ' vegot i t

19 there, but if there ' s going tobeadispute, transcripts are to

20 aid inunderstanding thewords that are spoken, and if there ' s

21 disputeas towho ' s present , then that is determined, also, by

22 thevideo. So, I may strike that . I maynot . We ' l l seewhat

23 happens.

24 MR. IASPARRO: Thankyou, Judge.

25 MR. TUNICK: I think that ' s i t f or now.


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1 THECOURT: Al l r ight .

2 MR. KARNER: I havea smal l mat ter, Judge.

3 THECOURT: Yes.

4 MR. KARNER: I see that counsel has a laptopon the

5 table. I t ' s not abig thing, but I 'dask that noneof the

6 content of thedesktopbedisplayed to the jury.

7 THECOURT: Areyougoing touse that?

8 MR. TUNICK: Yes, and i t 's -- I don ' t knowwhat

9 content -- there ' s a screen saver wi thapictureof mynewbaby

10 but I don ' t think that 's going toprejudice the jury.

11 THECOURT: Wel l , I don ' t want the jury to seewhat

12 you ' redoing.

13 MR. TUNICK: Judge, I was actual ly sit t ingover there.

14 I was toldby theMarshals. I 'm in thecorner. I wouldnever

15 intend to influence the jury l ike that .

16 THECOURT: That ' s fine.

17 MR. KARNER: That 's al l I 'masking is that thepicture

18 of thebabynot bedisplayed to the jurors.

19 THECOURT: I don ' t know -- first of al l , don ' t use

20 i t -- you ' renot going touse i t during jury select ionprocess.

21 MR. TUNICK: Not during jury select ion .

22 THECOURT: Because jurors wi l l be seatedout so that

23 theycould see i t . So, if youput i t on the screen saver

24 wi thout thepictureof your chi ld.

25 MR. TUNICK: Someuglypictures of me, too.


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2 MR. TUNICK: Noproblem. That is not aproblem.

3 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Fine.

4 Now, youhave thecorrect seat ingarrangements. It wa

5 myunderstanding that somebodyelsewas going tobehere for on

6 of theother defendants. I think she ' s in the -- oneof the

7 paralegals.

8 MR. IASPARRO: I bel ieveMr. Sul l ivan ' s paralegal is i

9 the second row, Judge.

10 THECOURT: Youcanhavea seat. Is shegoing to

11 assist youduring the trial?

12 MR. SULLIVAN: I bel ieve so, your Honor. What I did

13 not do is submi t her nameonThursdayafternoon .

14 THECOURT: Wel l , I needher name. Just aminute.

15 What is her name?

16 MR. SULLIVAN: Shirel le, S-h-i-r-e-l-l-e, Malone,

17 M-a-l-o-n-e.

18 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Is your paralegal here?

19 MR. IASPARRO: Ms. Seck is here, Judge. Shewi l l be

20 here just tobe introduced.

21 THECOURT: Okay. I seeher .

22 Okay. Now, Mr. Sul l ivan, haveyouhad anopportuni ty

23 to talkwi thyour cl ient , anddoes your cl ient wish topersist

24 inhis pleaof not gui l tyandgo to trial? Havehim step

25 forward.


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1 Didyouhear myquest ion? Youhavea right togo to

2 trial . I 'm just making sure that that 's what youwant todo.

3 Is that what youchoose todo is go to trial today?

4 DEFENDANTDODSON: Yes, your Honor.

5 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Youmaybe seated. Andyour

6 paralegal maybe seated if youcan -- if theMarshals would fin

7 a seat for her. Doyouwant her at counsel table?

8 MR. SULLIVAN: Yes, if wecanhave that opportuni ty.

9 Shemaynot spendal l of the t ime there, but if we --

10 THECOURT: Step forward, please. See if theMarshal

11 can findaconvenient place for her.

12 Mr . Byrd.

13 MR. BYRD: Yes, sir.

14 THECOURT: Doyouwant to step forward, Mr . McSwain?

15 You 'veheardme indicate that thegovernment f i ledamot ion las

16 weekunder -- or anot ice that would increase thepenal t ies if

17 youare foundgui l ty. Is that -- youunderstand that?

18 DEFENDANTMCSWAIN: Yes, sir.

19 THECOURT: Doyouwish togo to trial?

20 DEFENDANTMCSWAIN: Yes, sir.

21 THECOURT: Al l r ight . You 'vehadaconversat ionwi th

22 him; is that correct?

23 MR. BYRD: I have, your Honor.

24 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Youmaybe seated.

25 I ' l l need the lawyers backuphere. Mr. Byrd,


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1 Mr. Tunick, andMr. Sul l ivan, doyouwant to step forward,

2 please? I ' l l address you, Mr. Sul l ivan. Therewas an

3 indicat ionat the final pretrial conference, I gaveyouan

4 opportuni tyon the twodefenses that youhad stated that you

5 wanted topresent andwhich I prel iminari lyhad said that you ' v

6 not madea sufficient offer of proof that thosedefenses would

7 beavai lable. Is thereanyaddi t ional offer of proof that you

8 haveat this time?

9 MR. SULLIVAN: No, your Honor.

10 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Then thecourt wi l l make i ts

11 rul ing final basedupon theoffers that weremadeby the

12 government andby thedefendant Dodson. I wi l l f ind that there

13 wouldnot be sufficient proofs to raiseapubl icauthori ty

14 defenseor acoerciondefense. I guess if facts comeout , that

15 couldalways change, but at least as toyour opening statement

16 or anything l ike that , youmaynot ment ion thoseas beinga

17 defense to thecase. Doyouunderstand?

18 MR. SULLIVAN: Yes, your Honor.

19 THECOURT: Therewas at least another mot ion that was

20 madeby thedefendant Dodson, and that has todowi tha

21 part icular shoot ing, andas I recal l -- and I 'm trying to find

22 that mot ion -- that has todowi th the shoot ing that tookplace

23 during thecourseof this conspiracy, and thegovernment would

24 expect tooffer proofs that thedefendant part icipated,

25 Defendant Dodsonpart icipated in that shoot ing, and that that


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1 shows oneway inwhich theyaccompl ished theobject iveof the

2 conspiracy, theconspiracybeing todistributeor possess wi th

3 intent todistributeheroinandcocaine.

4 Thegovernment 's fileda response. I ' vealready

5 indicated that I think there is abasis for introducing

6 membership inagang, and that 's because that is direct ly

7 l inked, I think, to themot ive for commi t t ing theconspiracy.

8 So, gangmembershipwi l l beadmi t ted.

9 As to the issueof this defendant , Dodson, shoot ing

10 during thecourseof theconspiracy someoneelse, I bel ieve tha

11 is relevant . First of al l , since i t takes placeduring the

12 courseof theconspiracy, i t is not 404(b) evidence. Secondly,

13 i t ' s analyzedunder 403, and I ' vegot todeterminewhether

14 there ' s suchaprejudicial effect that I should in somewaynot

15 admi t relevant evidenceor l imi t i t .

16 I ' vedetermined that I wi l l al lowevidenceof that

17 shoot ing, but I 'mgoing to l imi t i t , Mr. Iasparro. I wi l l al lo

18 you to -- apparent ly, you ' regoing tohavewi tnesses whoare

19 codefendants whohavepledgui l tywhowould testify to

20 conversat ions that theyhadwi thDodson that would indicate tha

21 hecommi t ted that act ; is that accurate?

22 MR. IASPARRO: That is, Judge.

23 THECOURT: Youalsohad indicated inyour response

24 that you thought you 'dhavepol iceofficers testify to the

25 actual investigat ionof that shoot ing; is that accurate?


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1 MR. IASPARRO: Just to thecrime scene i tsel f , Judge,

2 toestabl ish that i t happened.

3 THECOURT: I 'mgoing toal lowoneofficer to testify,

4 and that officer may testify that onacertaindate they

5 invest igateda shoot ingandwho thevict imwas, and I guess the

6 can introduce theextent of the injury.

7 MR. IASPARRO: That ' s fine, Judge.

8 THECOURT: That ' s i t . I 'mnot going to trya

9 mini-trial on that event .

10 MR. IASPARRO: Judge, there is alsoavideocl ipwhere

11 Mr. Dodsonadmits to the shoot ing, says that he threwapartya

12 theMcDonald ' s. Thecooperat ingcodefendants wi l l testify to

13 what aparty is . I t ' s a shoot ing.

14 THECOURT: I wi l l al low statements , as I said, that h

15 made.

16 MR. IASPARRO: Thankyou.

17 MR. TUNICK: Judge, howdoyouplanon deal ingwi th

18 that wi th respect toMr. Al len? Because, as youknow, i t ' s not

19 relevant as toMr. Al len. Hewasn ' t aparty. It predates his

20 involvement . I t ' s not relevant that hewas anaider and

21 abet tor.

22 THECOURT: If I neglect to say something, youcan ris

23 and say, "I ask thecourt toadmonish the jury that this

24 evidence is not relevant toMr. Al len," and I wi l l give that

25 instruct ion. But I ' l l try todo that as muchas I can.


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1 MR. BYRD: Judge, I think that alsowouldapply to

2 Mr. McSwain. I don ' t bel ieve there ' s anyevidence that he took

3 part in that shoot ing. I don ' t bel ieve that hewas even

4 present .

5 MR. IASPARRO: Judge, there is onevideocl ipwhere

6 Mr. McSwain is talking to twocooperat ingcodefendants, Bobby

7 Harris andDupreeTurner, about the shoot ingandhas pret ty

8 extensiveknowledgeabout what happened.

9 THECOURT: Wel l , hemight havegot ten i t after the

10 fact . Hehas tohave reason tobel ieve that that might occur.

11 Again, I thinkwe ' reget t ing inonacol lateral issue, and I

12 want tobeverycareful of i t . You 'vealso -- so, I maygive

13 that instruct ion. I ' ve just got to seehow theevidencecomes

14 in. I think thegovernment ought tobecareful on that .

15 Theother issue, is there someother shoot ing that you

16 indicated that youmay try to show? And frommy readingof you

17 offer , i t didnot look l ikeanyof the threedefendants

18 part icipated in that .

19 MR. IASPARRO: Judge, wedonot intend to introduce

20 testimony fromanyofficers about two shoot ings onUnderwood

21 Street . OnAugust 9thandAugust 11th, 2005, therewere two

22 shoot ings that happened in front of oneof thegang ' s drug

23 houses onUnderwood street wi tha rival gang. Therearea

24 significant number of conversat ions that happenedat 1023

25 Kishwaukee, whichwas the si teof thevideoandaudiooverhear ,


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1 involving thosewhowere involved in that shoot ing. Mr. Dodson

2 Mr. McSwain, theyclearlyhadknowledgeof i t . Someof those

3 conversat ions also relate todrug traffickingandwi l l be

4 presentedhere. Theydo touchon theUnderwood shoot ing toa

5 certainextent . Wewouldagree that nei ther Mr . Dodsonor

6 Mr. McSwainwerepresent at ei ther of those shoot ings.

7 THECOURT: Wel l , I wi l l -- thoseconversat ions, is it

8 on the tape that otherwiseyou ' re seeking toadmi t?

9 MR. IASPARRO: Yes, Judge.

10 THECOURT: Wel l , I may strike i t or I may l imi t i t in

11 someway.

12 MR. IASPARRO: I understand.

13 THECOURT: Anyother quest ions beforewe start? I

14 hope I 'veclearedupeverything.

15 MR. BYRD: No, your Honor.

16 MR. SULLIVAN: Noquest ions.

17 THECOURT: We ' regoing toget the jurydownhere, if

18 theyare ready, andwewon ' t takeabreak ' t i l about 10:30. We

19 probablywi l l not get to -- I ' l l probablyget throughabout

20 seven jurors or so, but we ' l l seehow that leaves us. So, we

21 won ' t takeabreakbefore that .

22 MR. TUNICK: Doyouhaveanextracopyof thecour t ' s

23 questions? I know i t was on thewebsi te.

24 THECOURT: I t ' s on thewebsi te. I personal lydon ' t

25 haveanextracopy, except myowncopy. The lawyers mayhave


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1 that .

2 MR. TUNICK: Thankyou .

3 THECOURT: Are the jurors ready?

4 THECOURTSECURITYOFFICER: Yes, sir.

5 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Get the jurors.

6 (The fol lowingproceedings werehad inopen cour t , in the

7 presenceandhearingof the jury:)

8 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Wi l l theclerkcal l thecase,

9 please?

10 THECLERK: 05CR50082, U.S.A. v. Montrel l McSwain,

11 BradfordDodson, andLeeAl len.

12 THECOURT: Is thegovernment ready toproceed?

13 MR. IASPARRO: Thegovernment is ready, Judge.

14 THECOURT: Are thedefendants ready?

15 MR. BYRD: Yes, your Honor.

16 MR. TUNICK: Yes, your Honor.

17 MR. SULLIVAN: Yes.

18 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Thankyou.

19 Goodmorning. I 'm JudgePhi l Reinhard . I ' l l be

20 presiding in thecase that has beencal led for trial . We

21 appreciateal l of youbeinghere. I know someof youwerehere

22 when I arr ivedat about 7:30, andwhenwehaveas many jurors a

23 wehave today, i t gets a l i t t lecongested, but I appreciate the

24 fact that youwerehereprompt ly, andwehave72 jurors for thi

25 case.


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1 The first part of this proceedingwi l l be the select io

2 of a jury, and I askquest ions of al l the jurors, andmy

3 questions aredesigned to findout a l i t t leabout youand to se

4 whether this is acase that youwouldbeanappropriatemember

5 of the jury.

6 I need truthful answers tomyquest ions, and I always

7 askaquest ion "Is thereanythingelse that you should tel l me

8 as i t may relate toyour abi l i ty to serveas a fair and

9 impart ial juror," and if there is something in thebackof your

10 mind, that ' s the t ime toanswer i t . So, I doneedyou tobe

11 candidwi th thecourt , andwe ' l l proceed.

12 At this time I 'mgoing toaskal l of you to riseand

13 raiseyour right hands. Youwi l l takeanoath to tel l me

14 truthful answers. Please raiseyour right hands.

15 (Jurypanel duly sworn.)

16 THECOURT: Thankyou. I hopeyouareable tohear me

17 I real izewe 'vegot jurors in theback rows. Are thereany

18 jurors whoarehavingadifficul t t imeat least hearingmeat

19 this time? Yes, sir. Areyouhardof hearing?

20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I am. I have t inni tus, about

21 30percent .

22 THECOURT: Whydon ' t you takea seat in the front row

23 Somebodyelse raised their hand.

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yeah, I have troublehearing.

25 THECOURT: Haveyouheardme so far?


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes.

2 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Eventual ly if somebodywi tha

3 hearingproblem is chosenas a juror, you ' l l be seateda lot

4 closer tome, but I wi l l quest ionyou further at a later point

5 if you ' recal ledas a juror just to findout theextent of your

6 hearingproblem.

7 Youhaveheard that this casehas been cal led for

8 trial . This is acriminal case. Thereare threedefendants in

9 this case. Thegovernment has brought this case. I 'mgoing to

10 giveyoua short statement of thecase, and then I 'mgoing to

11 introduce thosepeoplewhoare thepart icipants whoare seated

12 at counsel table.

13 Thedefendants Montrel l McSwainandBradfordDodsonar

14 bothchargedwi thconspiracy todistributeandpossess wi th

15 intent todistributemore thanoneki logramof heroinandmore

16 than50grams of cocainebase, which is commonly referred toas

17 crackcocaine. Thedefendant LeeAl len is chargedwi thaiding

18 andabet t ing that conspiracy. I wi l l later instruct youonce

19 you ' re seatedas a juror on theelements of what aconspiracy i

20 andalsowhat aidingandabet t ingaconspiracy is .

21 Thedefendant McSwain is alsochargedwi th twocounts

22 of possessionof a firearm in furtheranceof adrug trafficking

23 crime, and thedefendant Dodson is alsocharged wi th three

24 counts of possessionof a firearm in furtheranceof adrug

25 traffickingcrime. Al l defendants haveplednot gui l ty toeach


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1 count against them.

2 Thegovernment is represented -- and thesepeoplewi l l

3 stand to ident ify themselves -- byprosecutor Assistant U.S.

4 At torneyMichael Iasparro.

5 MR. IASPARRO: Goodmorning.

6 THECOURT: AndAssistant U.S. At torneyMarkKarner.

7 MR. KARNER: Goodmorning.

8 THECOURT: Seatedat counsel table is SteveSmi th, a

9 special agent wi th theBureauof Alcohol , Tobacco, Firearms &

10 Explosives. AndLisaSeck is aparalegal who is wi th the

11 U.S. At torney ' s Office, and shewi l l beherenot al l the t ime,

12 but somet imes tohelp themwi th someof theelectronicequipmen

13 that wi l l beused.

14 Thedefendants in thecaseareas fol lows, and theyar

15 representedby the fol lowingat torneys. MarkByrd is an

16 at torney.

17 MR. BYRD: Goodmorning.

18 THECOURT: He represents Montrel l McSwain.

19 DEFENDANTMCSWAIN: Goodmorning.

20 THECOURT: DonaldSul l ivan is anat torney, andhe

21 represents BradfordDodson.

22 MR. SULLIVAN: Goodmorning.

23 DEFENDANTDODSON: Goodmorning.

24 THECOURT: Mr. Sul l ivan is assistedbyhis paralegal ,

25 Shirel leMalone.


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1 MS. MALONE: Goodmorning.

2 THECOURT: And the last at torney is Mr. James Tunick.

3 MR. TUNICK: Goodmorning, ladies andgent lemen.

4 THECOURT: Andhe represents thedefendant LeeAl len.

5 DEFENDANTALLEN: Goodmorning.

6 THECOURT: I 'mgoing togoover a few recognized

7 principles of criminal law that I want you tobeawareof at

8 this time. Thedefendants arecharged inan indictment . The

9 indictment is the formal methodbywhichadefendant is charged

10 It is not anyevidenceof adefendant 's guilt . It is simply th

11 way inwhichacase is brought before thecourt andul t imately

12 jury.

13 Eachdefendant has plednot gui l ty toal l thecounts

14 against them. Under the laweachdefendant is presumed tobe

15 innocent of thechargeagainst him. This presumpt ion stays wi t

16 thedefendants throughout theent irecase, and it is not

17 overcomeunless youhaveheardevidence from thegovernment tha

18 proves that thedefendant is gui l tybeyonda reasonabledoubt .

19 Thegovernment has the soleburdenof proving thegui l

20 of adefendant . Adefendant does not have tooffer any

21 evidence. Adefendant may relyon thepresumpt ionof innocence

22 andadefendant neednot testify, and that fact that hedoes no

23 testifymaynot beconsideredbyyou inarrivingat your

24 verdict . Adefendant may relyon that presumpt ionof innocence

25 Eachdefendant ' s case is tobe judged separately. So,


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1 from t ime to t ime throughout thecourseof the trial , I wi l l

2 giveyouwhat wecal l admoni t ions or instruct ions that this

3 evidencemaybeappl icable toacertaindefendant or defendants

4 but not appl icable toanother. So, remember, eachdefendant

5 must be judged separately, as must eachcount . Certain

6 defendants , McSwainandDodson, have several counts that are

7 charged in this case. Youmust give separateconsiderat ionand

8 thegovernment has toproveeachcount beyonda reasonable

9 doubt .

10 Youare the sole judges of fact in this case. I wi l l

11 be rul ingonquestions of law, but nothing I sayor doduring

12 thecourseof theproceedings is intended togiveyouany idea

13 as towhat I feel about the facts because i t ' s not material .

14 I t ' s what youpeopleconclude from the facts . Andyouwi l l ,

15 therefore, judgewhat wecal l thecredibi l i tyof wi tnesses, and

16 that is your funct ion, andyoumaychoose tobel ieveal l of a

17 wi tness' testimony, someof awi tness' test imony, or noneof a

18 wi tness' testimony. I wi l l giveyou instruct ions at theendof

19 thecaseand throughout thecaseas toyour funct ion in judging

20 thecredibi l i tyof thewi tnesses.

21 I havehad theclerkprovideyouwi tha list of

22 possiblewi tnesses. Haveyoual l received that? Al l r ight . I

23 seeyou 'venodded. Youmust read that . I hopeyou ' ve read i t

24 bynowbecause that gives youa list of potent ial wi tnesses. I

25 does not mean that thesepeoplewi l l testify, but the reason fo


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1 the list is that younowcan lookat i t anddeterminewhether

2 you ' reacquaintedwi thanyof thesepotent ial wi tnesses. That

3 does not el iminateyou frombeinga juror, but I wi l l askyou

4 questions about that if youareacquaintedwi th anyof the

5 wi tnesses.

6 Someof youmayhave servedas a juror before. Youma

7 cont inue -- that 's not anyprohibi t ionon serving in this case.

8 Just remember youmust fol low the instruct ions of law that I

9 giveyou in this case.

10 Now, I wi l l askyouquestions about your background

11 whenyou ' recal led to the jurybox. It wi l l be fami ly, i t wi l l

12 beemployment , and i t wi l l becertainother questions that I

13 thinkare relevant to thecase. Pleasegiveme truthful

14 answers. I 'mnot trying topry intoyour personal affairs, but

15 that ' s theonlyway inwhich I and the lawyers areable to in

16 this short spandeterminewhether you ' re sui ted tobea juror i

17 this case. The fact that somebody ' s excusedas a juror, don ' t

18 take that as apersonal insul t or that there ' s somethingwrong

19 wi thyou. I t ' s just that for some reason thecourt and the

20 lawyers have fel t that i t wouldbebet ter tohave somebodyelse

21 serve rather thanyou.

22 This case is scheduled togoal l weekand intonext

23 week. Fromwhat the lawyers have toldme, this casewi l l endo

24 Tuesdayof next week. I 'mgoing to just play i t safeandask

25 you tobeavai lable intoWednesday. I think I ' l l finish i t


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1 maybeonMonday. Maybewe ' l l f inish i t onFriday. But at the

2 outside, I 'mgoing toneed jurors whocan serve throughnext

3 Wednesday.

4 What wi l l happen ina fewminutes is that I 'mgoing to

5 askal l of you somegeneral questions, and that way someof you

6 wi l l beexcused, perhaps, at that t ime. Then theclerkwi l l

7 cal l twelve jurors to the jurybox. I wi l l question them

8 individual ly. Somewi l l beexcused, andothers of youwi l l be

9 replacing them. Eventual ly, wewi l l have twelve jurors. And

10 we ' regoing topick twoal ternates. Thoseal ternates must be

11 hereandconsider thecaseas if theyweregoing tobe the fina

12 jurors because somet imes weneed to replacea juror.

13 Pleasepayat tent ionwhen I 'masking thesequest ions o

14 the jurors in theboxbecause i t wi l l readi lymakeyou

15 understand if you takea seat that theremaybe something that

16 I ' l l askyou that youcan readi lyvolunteer.

17 I amgoing toaskyoua series of general quest ions

18 now. I want final ly, before I say that , to tel l you that we

19 appreciateyoubeinghere. That as aci t izen, i t ' s real lyan

20 obl igat ionanda right that youhave tobea juror, to sit in

21 judgment onyour fel lowci t izens. This is an important

22 funct ion, anddon ' t t ry toget out of i t . Weal l maywishwe

23 were someplaceelse today, but I 've found that the jurors who

24 haveul t imately servedoncases feel that this has beenavery

25 rewardingexperience. So, I recognize that I ' l l have some


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1 excuses at a later point , but don ' t t ry to just avoid service.

2 I 'mgoing toaskal l of youa series of questions, and

3 if youhaveanaffirmat iveanswer, please stand, ident ify

4 yourself , we ' l l get amicrophoneover there, andyoucanexplai

5 your answer .

6 Now, I have introduced thepeopleat counsel table.

7 Theat torneys, theparalegals , and thedefendants. Is there

8 anyonewho is acquaintedwi th themor their fami l ies? If so,

9 please stand. Al l right . Your name, please.

10 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: El lenVonHaden.

11 THECOURT: What ' s the last name?

12 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: VonHaden.

13 THECOURT: Andwhereareyou from?

14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Poplar Grove.

15 THECOURT: Whoareyouacquaintedwi th?

16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Wel l , I knowMr. Sul l ivan.

17 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Andwhat ' s thenatureof

18 your --

19 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Wehiredhim todoacase for us.

20 THECOURT: How longago?

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: About ayear.

22 THECOURT: Is he still your at torney --

23 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No.

24 THECOURT: -- on that mat ter?



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1 THECOURT: Was that theonlyoccasion?

2 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Right .

3 THECOURT: Was that acivi l or acriminal mat ter?

4 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Civi l , I think. Yeah.

5 THECOURT: Wereyouacquaintedwi thhimprior to that


7 THECOURT: Andother than that relat ionship, haveyou

8 ever hada social relat ionshipwi thhim?


10 THECOURT: Wi thout going into that legal mat ter , do

11 you feel that your associat ionwi thhim is such that youwould

12 beconsidering that if youwere selectedas a juror and,

13 therefore, considering something that real ly is improper?

14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I wouldhopenot .

15 THECOURT: Al l r ight . You 'veused thewordhope, and

16 that 's why I ' l l probe that a l i t t lebi t . I want tomake sure

17 that whenhe representedyou, was thereanything that was so

18 favorableor sounfavorable that i t wouldbedifficul t for you

19 tobe fair to thegovernment?

20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Howabout thequest ions if would I

21 hirehimagain? No.

22 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Thendoes that mean that -- is

23 thereanything that aroseout of that relat ionship that would

24 spi l l over andcauseyou in someway touse those facts in that

25 relat ionshipas it relates to this case? You saidyouhoped


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1 not --

2 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Right .

3 THECOURT: -- but I 'vegot toprobea l i t t le further .

4 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Youwant ayes/noanswer. You

5 would l ikeayes/noanswer .

6 THECOURT: Yes. I don ' t needanexplanat ion.

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Wel l , I guess if there ' s adoubt ,

8 should sayyes.

9 THECOURT: I 'mgoing toexcuseyou.

10 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Okay.

11 THECOURT: But I want to thankyou. Is thereanyone

12 else?

13 (No response.)

14 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Nobodyelsehas stood. And I '

15 laboringunder a l i t t lecold that I have.

16 Are thereanyof you that after reading the list of

17 potent ial wi tnesses areacquaintedwi thanyof thosepersons?

18 If so, please stand. Al l r ight . We ' l l start wi th the front

19 row. We ' reget t ingyouamicrophone. Or the second row, the

20 gent leman. Your nameandwhereyou ' re from.

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: James McKinley fromByron.


23 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Detect ives JohnRichardsonandDan

24 Ivancich.

25 THECOURT: Howareyouacquaintedwi th them?


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Richardson is aneighbor, and then

2 Ivancich, I t reatedhis wife -- or his mother.

3 THECOURT: And for what? Areyouaphysician?

4 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I 'maphysical therapist.

5 THECOURT: Okay. Areyoupersonal lyacquaintedwi th

6 himor just his mother?


8 THECOURT: Al l r ight . So, I take i t you ' re just

9 acquaintedwi thhis mother .

10 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes . I ' vemet him too, as wel l .

11 I 'm sorry. Yes.

12 THECOURT: You 'vemet him.


14 THECOURT: As far as Richardson, didyou sayhewas a

15 neighbor?

16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Neighbor.

17 THECOURT: How longhaveyouknownhim?

18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Twoyears.

19 THECOURT: Next door or just down the street or what?

20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Down the street .

21 THECOURT: Doyouhavea social relat ionshipwi thhim

22 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I have.

23 THECOURT: He ' s been inyour house?


25 THECOURT: You 'vebeen inhis house?


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2 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Now, areyouable to

3 independent ly judgehis test imony if he testifies in this case

4 baseduponnot a friendshipor anythingelse that you 've

5 experiencedwi thhim?


7 THECOURT: You feel that i t would influenceyou?


9 THECOURT: I ' l l excuseyou.

10 Your name, sir .

11 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Myname is AaronHegge.

12 THECOURT: Whereareyou from?

13 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Byron. I l ive right across the

14 street from Jamie.

15 THECOURT: Al l r ight . So, youknowMr. Richardson, a

16 wel l .

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes, I know Johnverywel l . I buy

18 Girl Scout cookies fromhis daughter.

19 THECOURT: Al l r ight . What 's your answer tomy

20 question? Doyou feel that you could judge this caseandnot

21 consider the fact youknowhim?



24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Thankyou.

25 THECOURT: Your name.


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Toni Garland.


3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I 'm fromSterl ing.


5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: TheGal lent ines. Laurie

6 Gal lent ine.

7 THECOURT: Al l r ight . And I 'mnot fami l iar wi thwho

8 thesewi tnesses are. Doyouknowwhether she ' s apol ice

9 officer?

10 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I don ' t think so.

11 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Andwhat ' s thenatureof your

12 acquaintanceship?

13 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I went tohigh school wi thLaurie

14 Gal lent ine, and I knowhim just to seehim, DeanGal lent ine. I

15 knowwhohe is.

16 THECOURT: Andwho ' s on thewi tness list? Is it --

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Both.

18 THECOURT: Bothof themare; is that correct?

19 MR. IASPARRO: Yes, Judge.

20 THECOURT: Al l r ight . The fact that youknowLaurie,

21 is that , again, going toaffect you? If youwereasked to judg

22 this case, canyou judge i t on the facts whenyouhear test imon

23 rather than somebackground that youknow someone?

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I don ' t think so. I don ' t know.

25 probablycould. I don ' t know.


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1 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Wel l , what i t takes is that yo

2 mayhavehada relat ionshipwi thher inhigh school . Haveyou

3 hadone since then?

4 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No. Wel l , I haven ' t seenher for

5 probably tenyears.

6 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Peoplechange. Condi t ions

7 change. Al l I 'masking is if shewere to testify, you ' regoing

8 tohave to judgeher credibi l i ty, andcanyoudo that as if you

9 didn ' t knowher?


11 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Then I 'mgoing toexcuseyou.


13 THECOURT: Thankyou. Is thereanyoneelse that 's

14 acquaintedwi th -- I have two in theback. I 'm sorry. Al l

15 right . Your name, please.

16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: JonnaAdolphson.


18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Rockford.


20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Officer Mat t Gibbons.

21 THECOURT: Howareyouacquaintedwi thhim?

22 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: He ' s amember at theclub that I

23 workat .

24 THECOURT: Doyou seehim regularly?

25 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yeah.


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1 THECOURT: What club is that?

2 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: UniversityClub.

3 THECOURT: Andhaveyouhadany relat ionshipwi thhim

4 other than in that club?


6 THECOURT: Doyou feel that basedonwhat you 've told

7 me that youcould judge -- ifhe testifies, you could judgehis

8 testimony l ikeyouwouldanyoneelse that youwouldn ' t know?


10 THECOURT: Andyou ' reconvincedof that?


12 THECOURT: Thankyou.

13 Your name, please.

14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: KathrynChamberlain.




18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I 'mnot even sure that I am.


20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Detect ivePatrickGirardi . I 'ma

21 nurse, and I bel ievehehas recent lycome intoour pract ice, bu

22 I don ' t evenknow if i t 's the sameperson.

23 THECOURT: Does i t mat ter? Inother words, if you

24 haven ' t met theperson, shouldyou recognize -- shouldhe

25 testifyand shouldyou recognizehimas coming intoyour


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1 pract ice, would that makeanydifference?


3 THECOURT: You 'dbeable to judgehis test imony l ike

4 youwouldanyother wi tness?


6 THECOURT: And the fact that hemight beacl ient of

7 theplacewhereyouworkat , there ' s noeconomic si tuat ion

8 that 's going to -- youwould feel pressured toaccept his

9 testimony?


11 THECOURT: Al l r ight . That 's al l .

12 I ' ve readyoua short statement about this case.

13 Anybodyheardof i t or knowanythingabout i t? If so, raise

14 your hand.

15 (No response.)


17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I 'mnot real lyget t inghalf of

18 this. I haveahearingaid, but --

19 THECOURT: What is your nameagain?

20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Robert Hooper .

21 THECOURT: I 'mgoing toexcuseyou. I ' l l excuseyou.

22 If youhaven ' t heardhal f , that ' s aproblem.

23 This is acriminal case. I 'mgoing togoover those

24 principles of law that I 'vealready talked toyouabout . The

25 defendant is presumed innocent throughout theent ire trial . He


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1 does not have toproveanythingor offer anyevidenceor

2 testify. The indictment is not anyevidenceof gui l t nor is hi

3 arrest . Thegovernment must provehimgui l ty, eachdefendant ,

4 beyonda reasonabledoubt . Youperformyour dutyas a juror

5 whether you returnagui l tyor not gui l tyverdict .

6 Does anyonedisagreewi thanyof thoseprinciples or

7 not understand them? If so, please stand.

8 (No response.)

9 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Nobodyhas stood.

10 Does any juror haveanyphysical condi t ionwhichwould

11 prevent you fromyour abi l i ty to serveas a juror? And I 'm

12 talkingabout hearingor someother medical reasonwhyyoucan '

13 si t here for anhour andahalf at a t ime. Thenwe takea

14 recess. Or someai lment of that type. Yes, sir. Your name.

15 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: VerlanSmi th.



18 THECOURT: What ' s your question?

19 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I 'mgood for about twohours. The

20 I have toget upandgo.

21 THECOURT: Wewon ' t behere for more than twohours.


23 THECOURT: You remindme. And if you ' re selectedas

24 juror andwego -- I let themgoover twohours, you raiseyour

25 hand. You 'ddo that?


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Al l r ight .

2 THECOURT: Yes, sir. Your name.

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Jay Jonagan. I 'mhavingahard

4 t imehearingyouwhenyoubackaway from themike. Whenyou ' re

5 up in front of i t , I 'mokay, but whenyoukindof get away from

6 i t , I 'mhavinga l i t t le trouble.

7 THECOURT: Haveyougot ten the substanceof what I 've

8 said so far?


10 THECOURT: Al l r ight . I f you ' rehere, we ' l l see if w

11 canget youa spot --


13 THECOURT: -- that you 'dbeable to -- doyouhave

14 hearing inoneear problem?

15 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No, both.

16 THECOURT: Bothof them. Al l r ight .

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I have ringing in theears and

18 about a30percent loss.

19 THECOURT: I understand. I ' l l questionyou further.

20 Yes, ma 'am. Your name.

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: MarieZammuto. And I wear hearing

22 aids. I canhear youqui teclearly, but somet imes i t kindof

23 fades away.

24 THECOURT: Just remindmeof that if you ' recal ledup

25 to the jurybox, andwe ' l l --


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I canhereyouplainly.

2 THECOURT: Okay. Thankyou. But I take i t youcan ' t

3 hear mequi teas wel l -- canyouhear menow?


5 THECOURT: Okay. Now, does any juror haveany

6 personal , moral , or rel igious bel ief that would prevent you fro

7 determining thegui l t or innocenceof apersonchargedwi tha

8 crime? If so, raiseyour hand. Goahead.

9 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I spent 27years as aChicago

10 pol iceofficer, and I 'vemadearrests wi thguncharges --

11 everything. Homicide, narcot ics. And I think that would

12 prejudiceme. I wouldhave to tend togowi th theofficers.

13 THECOURT: I ' l l excuseyou. Anyoneelse?

14 (No response.)

15 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Nobodyhas stood.

16 Is thereanythingabout thenatureof this case -- and

17 you 've just got tena l i t t lebi t of i t , but i t involves the

18 al legat ionof conspiracy to sel l certaincontrol led substances

19 and that in furtheranceof that conspiracycertainpeople

20 possesseda firearm. Is thereanythingabout that that you jus

21 couldn ' t be fair in this case? If so, please stand. Your name

22 please, andyour --

23 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Vicky Johnson, Belvidere.


25 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I havea sonwho ' s adrugaddict .


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1 THECOURT: Al l r ight . And I 'venot iced inmy

2 questioningof other jurors inother criminal cases that i t ' s

3 not uncommon tohave someone ina fami lyor a relat ion that has

4 hada substanceabuseproblem. Is this something that youwoul

5 then feel that youwould take i t out against thedefendants who

6 arechargedhere?

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Defini tely. I 'vehad thosepeople

8 cal l ingmyhouse.

9 THECOURT: Al l r ight . I ' l l excuseyou.


11 THECOURT: As I said toher, therewi l l beothers of

12 youwhohavehadpersons in their fami ly that havehadadrug

13 addict ionproblem, andwhat I 'm striving for is twelve jurors

14 whocanbe fair and independent . That is, al l of us havehad

15 experiences inour affairs that we 've reacted to. I needpeopl

16 whocanbe fair and impart ial and judge this caseon thebasis

17 of theevidenceandon the law that I giveyou.

18 I wi l l giveyou instruct ions throughout thecaseanda

19 theendof thecase. Is thereany juror who if they fel t that

20 my instruct ionwas not right wouldnot fol low i t? Inother

21 words, createyour own instruct ion. Is thereanyonewhowould

22 do that? If so, raiseyour handor standup.

23 (No response.)

24 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Nobodyhas stoodup.

25 I ' ve toldyou that this casewi l l last no longer than


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1 Wednesdayof next week. Is thereanyonewhocouldnot serve fo

2 that periodof t ime? Al l r ight . Anumber of people raised

3 their hands. I t ' s the summer season. I knowpeoplehave jobs

4 andvacat ions. Yes, ma 'am. Your nameandwhereyou ' re from.

5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: LisaDurovey inMcHenry.

6 THECOURT: Yes.

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: And I 'vehada tripplanned for

8 next weekwhere I 'm scheduled to leaveonThursday, and I would

9 just beconcerned that --

10 THECOURT: Youwon ' t go intoThursday.


12 THECOURT: I wi l l assureyou that .

13 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: And then I dohaveadeadl ineat

14 work that 's due the23rd, and I 'dbea l i t t leconcernedabout

15 making that date, but I understand -- I 'mmoreworr iedabout --

16 anyway, that 's al l .

17 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Wel l , the23rd is Wednesday.

18 Youhadwhat on the23rd?

19 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Adeadl ineat work.

20 THECOURT: I don ' t thinkyouhave toworryabout that


22 THECOURT: I wi l l workwi thyouon that .

23 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Okay. Thankyou.


25 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Myname is LisaElcock, and I 'm


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1 fromDeKalb.

2 THECOURT: Yes.

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I amaneducator, andwehave

4 16days of school left . Myhusband -- I have three smal l

5 chi ldren, andmyhusband left yesterday for twoweeks for DARE

6 school . He ' s apol iceofficer inDeKalb.



9 THECOURT: What was your nameagain?

10 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: LisaElcock. I t ' s E-l-c-o-c-k.

11 THECOURT: Yes, sir. Your name.

12 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Ross Lamont fromBelvidere.

13 THECOURT: What ' s your comment?

14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: What was that?

15 THECOURT: What ' s your comment?

16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I 'mamaintenance technician for

17 Sears Holdings Corporat ion, and there ' s myself andacoworker

18 who is onvacat ion this weekdue tohis wifegoing into surgery

19 and I 'm theonlyother technician inour district for this area

20 So, I maybe required to -- I 'moncal l for this week.

21 THECOURT: I ' l l consider that . Let me seewho ' s

22 cal ledandhowmanyothers are there. Employment is important ,

23 but I wi l l consider that .

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Hi . Myname is KristyKaminski

25 fromCort land, and I work for avery smal l company. I 'ma


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1 project manager, whichmeans get t ing theprojects goingand

2 implement ing, as wel l as our accounts receivableandpayable.

3 So, i t is ahardship for me tobeout that long.

4 THECOURT: Is it ahardship for your company?

5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yeah. There ' s onlyeight of us.

6 THECOURT: What would happen if you ' re sick?

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Our bi l ls don ' t goout , andwe

8 don ' t payour bills, and theprojects are stal ledunt i l I 'm

9 there.

10 THECOURT: I ' l l consider that , but at this point I 'm

11 not going toexcuseyou.

12 Wehave someover on theother side.

13 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: JohnGruben fromRochel le,

14 I l l inois.


16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Mydaughter 's wedding is on

17 Saturday, and I ' vegot tobehonest . I think i t ' s anhonor and

18 aprivi lege to serve, but mymind is real lynot going tobe

19 where i t needs tobe.

20 THECOURT: I understand. I ' l l excuseyou.

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: MaryLee fromFreepor t . I 'm

22 leaving townonThursdayandwouldnot beable tobehere for

23 theent ire lengthof trial .

24 THECOURT: Areyougoingonvacat ion?

25 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes. Wehavenonrefundable


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1 t ickets.

2 THECOURT: Al l r ight . No, I understand.


4 THECOURT: What ' s your nameagain?

5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: MaryLee.


7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: MikePlocinski fromLoves Park. M

8 wife is pregnant wi th twins, andwewereat thehospi tal over

9 theweekendwi thcontract ions. So, shecouldgoat any t ime.

10 THECOURT: I understand i t . I ' l l excuseyou.

11 Al l r ight . Anyoneelse?

12 (No response.)

13 THECOURT: Final ly, is thereanyother reasonwhy

14 somebodycouldnot --

15 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I just haveone, your Honor.

16 THECOURT: Your name, please.

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Myname is Al Staskauskas from

18 Machesney. Mywifehas cancer, and she ' s due tohavechemonex

19 Tuesday, andusual ly I gowi thher to takecareof her. She ' s

20 survived for about sevenyears now, and I 'd l ike tokeepher

21 that way, but I thought i t wouldbemaybea short trial and tha

22 i t wouldn ' t beaproblem.

23 THECOURT: I understand. I ' l l excuseyou.


25 THECOURT: Anyoneelse?


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1 Al l r ight . I amgoing tohave theclerkcal l twelveo

2 you to the jurybox, and the first onecal led takes the first

3 seat in the front row. Then thenext fivego to thenext five

4 seats. So, leave the last seat in the front rowvacant . The

5 seventh juror wi l l take the first seat in theback, andwe ' l l g

6 al l theway to thenext to the last in theback.

7 MR. TUNICK: Your Honor, beforewedo that , maywe

8 approach? Wehaveaquest ion for you.

9 THECOURT: Wel l , youmayapproach, counsel . Make i t

10 brief. Whatever you ' regoing toask, we ' renot havinga sideba

11 on i t . Step forward.

12 MR. TUNICK: It has todowi th jury select ion.


14 MR. TUNICK: And if canwedo i t on the side, I 'd

15 appreciate i t .

16 (The fol lowingproceedings werehadat the sidebar, out of

17 thepresenceandhearingof the jury:)

18 THECOURT: This is the last --

19 MR. TUNICK: Judge, i t ' s very important tome, and

20 that ' s the fact that , youknow, the trial -- thegovernment sai

21 i t wouldprobablygo intoTuesday, andyou 've indicated to the

22 jurors that theywouldn ' t have to serveunless Wednesday -- or

23 upunt i l Wednesday, and I have somevery serious concerns. Thi

24 is avery, veryclosecaseas tomycl ient , and they ' regoing t

25 have todel iberate. I donot want them tobe rushed intoa


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1 verdict .

2 THECOURT: I thought you said theent irecasewouldg

3 throughTuesday.

4 MR. TUNICK: I bel ieve i t wi l l , Judge. And that gives

5 themmaybeaday todel iberateon threedefendants andmul t iple

6 counts. I haveconcerns as toLeeAl lenandwhether or not

7 they ' regoing toproperlyconsider this caseas tohim.

8 THECOURT: Al l r ight . You 've said i t on the record.

9 (The fol lowingproceedings werehad inopen cour t , in the

10 presenceandhearingof the jury:)

11 THECOURT: We ' l l cal l twelvenames now.

12 THECLERK: SherryWessel , W-e-s-s-e-l . Kathryn

13 Chamberlain, C-h-a-m-b-e-r-l-a-i-n. StephenFaivre,

14 F-a-i-v-r-e. SusanWells, W-e-l-l-s. JerryAnderson,

15 A-n-d-e-r-s-o-n. MarieZammuto, Z-a-m-m-u-t-o. JerryFortner ,

16 F-o-r-t-n-e-r. Sheri Geishecker , G-e-i-s-h-e-c-k-e-r. Jennife

17 Meade-Schi l l , M-e-a-d-ehyphenS-c-h-i-l-l . JoanneTkadletz,

18 T-k-a-d-l-e-t-z. Pat t i Blumenthal , B-l-u-m-e-n-t-h-a-l . Cathy

19 Jager, J-a-g-e-r .

20 THECOURT: The first juror always gets a lot of

21 questions, andyou ' re the first one that I ' l l beasking the

22 questions of, but the rest of youbear wi thme. What I 'm

23 interested in is , as I toldyoubefore, truthful answers, andw

24 try toproceedas expedi t iouslyas possible.

25 Again, givemeyour name.


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: SherryWessel .

2 THECOURT: Howoldareyou?

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: 52.



6 THECOURT: How longhaveyou l ived in theRockford

7 area?

8 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: 28years.

9 THECOURT: Andbefore that?

10 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Plano, I l l inois.

11 THECOURT: Didyougrowup in thePlanoarea?


13 THECOURT: Go tohigh school there?


15 THECOURT: Whodoyou residewi th?

16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Myhusband. I haveone son in

17 col legeyet .

18 THECOURT: And that 's your fami ly?


20 THECOURT: Areyouemployed?

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes, I am.

22 THECOURT: Wheredidyouwork?

23 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: RockfordHeal thSystem, payrol l

24 department .

25 THECOURT: How longhaveyouworked there?


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Twelveyears.

2 THECOURT: Before that?

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Insuranceagent .

4 THECOURT: Andessent ial lyyou 'vebeen in

5 record-keepingor a secretarial capaci ty?

6 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: That 's right .

7 THECOURT: Your husband ' s employment?

8 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Self-employed.

9 THECOURT: What does hedoes?

10 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I t ' s a sandblasting, powder coat in

11 operat ion.

12 THECOURT: Does hehavehis owncompany, or does he

13 work for somebodyelse from t ime to t ime, or howdoes hework

14 i t?

15 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I t ' s his owncompany. He ' s the

16 onlyemployee.

17 THECOURT: Andhow longhas hehad that?

18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: About 25years.

19 THECOURT: Now, what ' s your educat ional background?

20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: High school graduate.

21 THECOURT: What high school?

22 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Plano.

23 THECOURT: Andhaveyouever servedas a juror before

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Not in federal .

25 THECOURT: Al l r ight . But youhave served in state


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1 court?

2 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: In thecounty.

3 THECOURT: Andwas that whenyouwere residinghere i

4 WinnebagoCounty?

5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: In Winnebago.

6 THECOURT: Howmany t imes?

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Just once that I actual ly served.

8 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Andhow longago?

9 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: About eight years.

10 THECOURT: What typeof case?

11 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: It was a lawsui t .

12 THECOURT: Civi l caseversus acriminal case?


14 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Youunderstandyou ' l l f ol low

15 the instruct ions that I ' l l giveyou in this case, and they ' l l b

16 almost completelydifferent fromacivi l case.

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I understand.

18 THECOURT: Now, has anyone inyour fami ly -- andwhen

19 I talkabout fami ly, I 'mprobably referring toyour parents or

20 sibl ings or grandparents or chi ldren. Anyone inyour fami ly

21 ever worked for the federal government?


23 THECOURT: Has anyone inyour fami lyever hadaclaim

24 or brought a lawsui t against anyagencyof the federal

25 government?


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2 THECOURT: Has anymember of your fami lyever served

3 in lawenforcement?


5 THECOURT: Haveyouor any fami lymember ever hadan

6 experiencewi tha lawenforcement officer, ei ther part icularly

7 goodor part icularlybad, that maycauseyou to judge the

8 testimonyof apol iceofficer different fromanyother wi tness?


10 THECOURT: Andwouldyou judge the testimonyof a

11 pol iceofficer or anypersonof prominenceor of authori ty the

12 samewayyouwould judge the testimonyof anywi tness? That is

13 you ' renot going togiveanymoreor less weight to that wi tnes

14 just becauseof that person ' s position?

15 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: That 's right .

16 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Haveyouor any fami lymember

17 ever testified inacriminal case?


19 THECOURT: Haveyouever been thevict imof acrime?


21 THECOURT: Andhas anyone inyour fami lyever been

22 arrestedor chargedwi thanoffenseother thana traffic relate

23 offense?


25 THECOURT: Doyoubelong toanyclubs or


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1 organizat ions?



4 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Just mychurch.

5 THECOURT: Okay. Doyouhaveanyobject ions or

6 disagreements wi th laws that might prohibi t thepossessionor

7 distribut ionof certain types of control led substances?


9 THECOURT: Andareyouamember of anygroupor have

10 youever takenapositionei ther for or against gun laws?


12 THECOURT: Doyouhavea firearm inyour home?

13 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No, wedonot .

14 THECOURT: Now, therewi l l beevidence in this caseo

15 membership ina street gangbycertainof thesedefendants on

16 trial andothers. Suchmembership is not aloneacrime. Can

17 yougiveagangmember a fair trial and require thegovernment

18 toprove thedefendant gui l tybasedonal l theevidenceas i t

19 relates to thecrimes charged?


21 THECOURT: Now, is thereanyquest ion that I haven ' t

22 asked that youhave in thebackof your mind, wel l , maybe I

23 ought to tel l the judge this?

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I don ' t knowof any.

25 THECOURT: Al l r ight . I f you ' re selected, canyou


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1 promisemeyou 'dbea fair and impart ial juror in this case?

2 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I wi l l .

3 THECOURT: Pass themicrophone.

4 Givemeyour nameagain.

5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: KathrynChamberlain.

6 THECOURT: Your age?


8 THECOURT: And I thinkyou saidyouwere from the

9 Rockfordarea?


11 THECOURT: How longhaveyou l ived in this area?

12 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Twelveandahalf years.


14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Champaign-Urbana for twoyears and

15 thenFondduLac, Wisconsin, for thedurat ion.

16 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Andwhodoyou residewi th?

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Myhusband.

18 THECOURT: Doyouhavechi ldren?

19 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I do.

20 THECOURT: Are theyoutside thehome?


22 THECOURT: Howmanychi ldren?

23 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Three. Andmyhusbandhas three.

24 So, I have three stepchi ldren.

25 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Giveme just brieflywhat thei


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1 occupat ions are.

2 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: One is acomputer analyst . One is

3 anurse. One is stil l acol lege student . One is aphysical

4 therapist. One is incosmetology. Andone is in l ibrary, work

5 ina l ibrary, or abookstore.

6 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Now, areyouemployed?

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I am.

8 THECOURT: Andyouareemployedbywhat?

9 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: SwedishAmerican.

10 THECOURT: Andhow longhaveyouworked there?

11 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Twelveandahalf years.

12 THECOURT: Andwhat 's your capaci ty? What doyoudo

13 there?

14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I 'ma registerednurse in the

15 cl inic.

16 THECOURT: Wheredidyouworkbefore that?

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: In acl inic inChampaign-Urbana.

18 THECOURT: Andhas that beenyour profession then?

19 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Nursing.

20 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Wereyou theone that stoodup

21 and saidyou recal l aname?

22 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yeah, I recognized thename, and I

23 didn ' t want anypropriety tobequest ioned later if indeed i t

24 was the sameperson.

25 THECOURT: I understand. Andyou ' reassuringme that


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1 if you recognize theperson, shouldhe testify, that wouldhave

2 nobearingonyour abi l i ty to judge this case fairly?

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: That 's correct .

4 THECOURT: Is your husbandemployed?

5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes, sir.

6 THECOURT: Whereandwhat does hedo?

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: He ' s aphysicianwi thSwedish

8 American.

9 THECOURT: And I take i t he ' s beenaphysician for a

10 number of years?


12 THECOURT: What is his special ty?

13 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Internal medicine.

14 THECOURT: Andhegoes by the samenameas you?


16 THECOURT: What ' s your educat ional background?

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I haveaBachelor ' s of Science in

18 nursing.

19 THECOURT: Haveyou servedas a juror before?


21 THECOURT: Now, has anybody inyour fami lyever worke

22 for the federal government?


24 THECOURT: Anybody in your fami lyever suedor madea

25 claimagainst anyagencyof the federal government?


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2 THECOURT: Anyone inyour fami lyever work in law

3 enforcement?

4 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes. My first cousinwas a local

5 sheriff inmyhome town.

6 THECOURT: And is that going tocauseyouany reason

7 to, let ' s say, bel ieveapol iceofficer more thanyouwould

8 bel ieveanyother wi tness?


10 THECOURT: If hewas a sheriff, I take i t was he

11 elected, or was headeputy?

12 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No, hewas the sheriff.

13 THECOURT: Hewas theelected sheriff.


15 THECOURT: And I take i t heprobablydiscussed someo

16 his business wi thyou?

17 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Not professional ly.

18 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Youcouldassure -- and I thin

19 maybe thedefendants and their lawyers areobviously interested

20 becauseof that relat ionship. Youcanassureus that i t ' s not

21 going tomakeanydifference.

22 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Oh , no. Wehadahuge fami ly, and

23 wenever talkbusiness.

24 THECOURT: Al l r ight . And this was your former

25 husband?


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Pardonme?

2 THECOURT: Whowas i t?

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Mycousin.

4 THECOURT: Oh. I thought you said i t was your former

5 husband.

6 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No, my first cousin.

7 THECOURT: Now, haveyouor anybody inyour fami ly

8 ever hadapart icularlygoodor badexperiencewi th law

9 enforcement that couldcauseyou to judge the testimonyof a la

10 enforcement officer different thananyother wi tness?

11 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Wel l , I havehadagoodexperience

12 in that my sonhas amental i l lness, and I had tohavehim

13 commi t ted toSinger involuntari ly, and thepol icecame to the

14 home, and they treatedhimwi th respect .

15 THECOURT: Okay. In tel l ingmeabout that , doyou

16 agree, again, though, that you ' regoing to judge thepol ice

17 officers, if they testify in this case, basedonnot your past

18 experiencewi thonegoodofficer , but --


20 THECOURT: -- basedonal l the testimonyof al l the

21 wi tnesses?


23 THECOURT: Andyou ' l l do that?


25 THECOURT: Anddoyou agree that you shouldn ' t takea


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1 person ' s prominence in thecommuni tyor the fact that theywear

2 abadgeas giving that personmoreweight than someother

3 wi tness?

4 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I do.

5 THECOURT: Haveyouever testified in acriminal case


7 THECOURT: Ever been thevict imof acrime?



10 chargedwi thacriminal offense?


12 THECOURT: Other than traffic.



15 organizat ions?

16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I belong to theNat ional

17 Associat ion for theMental ly I l l , theNat ional Al l iance for the

18 Mental ly I l l , andAmericanContract BridgeLeague.

19 THECOURT: Now, doyouhaveanydisagreement wi th law

20 that would regulateandmake i l legal certain types of control le

21 substances?


23 THECOURT: Anddoyou haveanyobject ion to laws that

24 alsoprohibi t certainweapons frombeingpossessed?



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1 THECOURT: Doyoubelong toanygroups or

2 organizat ions that areproor congunpossession?


4 THECOURT: Youheardmeask the first juror about

5 where there ' s evidenceof membership inagangandmycomment

6 that just beingamember of agang is not i l legal . Andmy

7 question is if there is evidenceof gangmembership, canyou

8 giveapersonwhomight beamember of aganga fair trial and

9 base this caseon theevidenceand thechargeagainst him?


11 THECOURT: Anyquest ion that I haven ' t askedyou that

12 youwouldbring tomyat tent ionas i t mayaffect your abi l i ty t

13 be fair and impart ial?


15 THECOURT: Youcanbe fair and impart ial toboth side

16 if selected?



19 Mr. -- is it --

20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Faivre.

21 THECOURT: Mr. Faivre. Howoldareyou, sir?



24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Kingston, I l l inois.

25 THECOURT: How longhaveyou l ived there?


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Sevenyears.

2 THECOURT: Before that?

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Threeyears inDeKalb, I ll inois;

4 before that threeyears inPlat tevi l le; andbefore that

5 25years, 30years inDeKalb.

6 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Andwhodoyou residewi th?

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Mywife.

8 THECOURT: Doyouhavechi ldren --

9 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes, two.

10 THECOURT: -- outside thehome?

11 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: One is stayingwi thus at the

12 moment , a son.

13 THECOURT: Is heemployed?


15 THECOURT: What does hedo?

16 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: He ' s acomputer engineer.

17 THECOURT: Theother chi ld?

18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Theother chi ld is inCal ifornia.

19 THECOURT: Doingwhat?

20 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: She ' s takingcareof twochi ldren.

21 THECOURT: Andareyouemployed?


23 THECOURT: What doyoudo?

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I amamarket ingmanager for John

25 Deere.


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1 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Andhow longhaveyoubeen in

2 that job?

3 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Sevenyears.


5 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Fiveyears wi thCaseCorporat ion.


7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: 25years farming inDeKalb,

8 I l l inois.

9 THECOURT: Al l r ight . And inyour present job

10 market ing, what doyoudo?

11 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: My job is toworkonproduct

12 concepts that are three to tenyears out .

13 THECOURT: How toadvertise thoseand --

14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No. Product concepts anddesigns.

15 THECOURT: Okay. Areyou supervisinganyoneelse?


17 THECOURT: Now, what ' s your educat ional background?

18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I haveaMaster 's inbusiness

19 administrat ion.

20 THECOURT: Andhaveyou servedas a juror before?

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes. Acivi l case inDeKalbCount

22 about 15years ago.

23 THECOURT: Andyouunderstandmyquest ionof theothe

24 juror that had servedbefore. You ' l l f ol low the instruct ions

25 that areappl icable to this case?


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2 THECOURT: Theburden of proof is different . Most

3 every inst ruct ion is different . Youunderstand that .


5 THECOURT: Now, has anyone inyour fami lyever worked

6 for the federal government?


8 THECOURT: Tel l meabout i t .

9 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: I come fromavery large fami ly.

10 So, I ' vehadpeopleat the federal level fromWashingtonD.C.

11 through several stateagencies andat thecounty level .

12 THECOURT: Anybodyever worked in lawenforcement in

13 your fami ly?

14 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes. I have several relat ives tha

15 are in lawenforcement .

16 THECOURT: Have theyever worked for a federal law

17 enforcement agency, suchas theDEAor theFBI?

18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No. I haveacousin that 's worked

19 for theFBI , yes.

20 THECOURT: Is he local?

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: She.

22 THECOURT: Is she local?

23 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Out inWashington state.

24 THECOURT: Does that makeanydifference, as far as

25 youareconcerned, in judging thecredibi l i tyof wi tnesses --


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2 THECOURT: -- that youhavea relat ivewhoworks in

3 ei ther a local or federal lawenforcement?


5 THECOURT: Is thereanybody, anyof your brothers or

6 sisters or parents or grandparents, that haveworked in law

7 enforcement?


9 THECOURT: Has anyone inyour fami lyever madeaclai

10 against the federal government or sued the federal government?


12 THECOURT: Other than what you 've toldmeabout those

13 persons inyour fami ly that havebeenconnected wi th law

14 enforcement , is thereanybody that ' s in local lawenforcement

15 that ' s inyour fami ly?


17 THECOURT: What department?

18 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: In both thecounty sheriffand the

19 ci typol icedepartments .

20 THECOURT: Andwould that be inDeKalb?


22 THECOURT: Anddoyou see thosepersons fairly

23 regularlyor not?

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Several t imes ayear.

25 THECOURT: What ' s the relat ionship? Is it cousins?


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1 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Cousins.

2 THECOURT: And is that , again, going tomakeany

3 differenceas far as your abi l i ty tobe fair and impart ial?


5 THECOURT: Andyouwould judge the testimonyof a

6 pol iceofficer l ikeanyoneelse, nomoreweight or less weight

7 becauseof their job?


9 THECOURT: Haveyouor someone inyour fami lyever ha

10 apart icularlygoodor badexperiencewi th lawenforcement that

11 couldaffect your abi l i ty to judge lawenforcement officers?


13 THECOURT: Haveyouever testified in acriminal case



16 chargedwi thacriminal offenseother thana traffic related

17 offense?



20 organizat ions?

21 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Yes . I 'mamember of theAmerican

22 Societyof Agricul tural andBiological Engineers, amember of

23 theKnights of Columbus, and I serveon theboardof directors

24 of theElwoodHouseMuseum inDeKalb.

25 THECOURT: Al l r ight . Doyouhaveanyopposition to


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1 laws that prohibi t certain types of control led substances?


3 THECOURT: And the samequest ion regardingcertain

4 types of firearms.


6 THECOURT: Doyouown a firearm?

7 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: No, I don ' t .

8 THECOURT: Andyou ' renot amember of anyorganizat io

9 pro firearmor ant i firearm?


11 THECOURT: Now, as i t relates toevidenceof

12 membership inagang, theremaybeevidenceof that , and there

13 maybeevidence that adefendant was in thegang. Thequest ion

14 is wi l l you judge this casebasedonwhether thegovernment

15 proves its casebeyonda reasonabledoubt andas to thecharges

16 that theyhavebrought rather than just associate if aperson i

17 inagang, he ' s going tobegui l ty? Doyouunderstand that?


19 THECOURT: Anddoyou agreewi thwhat I said?


21 THECOURT: Anything I 've fai led toaskyou that you

22 wouldbring tomyat tent ionnowas i t mayaffect your abi l i ty t

23 be fair and impart ial?

24 PROSPECTIVE JUROR: Only related tocontrol led

25 substances. Inaprevious position I was publ icl

allen trial 1 may 14 2007

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