Crushing impeachment of a
hostile witness. It's what every trial lawyer dreams about.
All that being said by no other person than a "wise defense witness" who found himself in a political fixture that makes him turns into a "
hostile witness" and turns the table up-side-down, one is inclined to ask the international community whether it will consider other options in dealing with the situation or continue entertaining the Old Monkey's proverbial code of silence "See no evil, hear no evil, and speak no evil".
Mr Mainstone, who was granted permission to crossexamine Mr Haigh as a
hostile witness, read back the initial statement he gave to police on June 6 in which he gave a detailed account of the assault.
The smallest piece of information may be enough to convict them." O'Riordan, originally went on trial for murder last July, but he pleaded guilty to manslaughter after his girlfriend was declared a
hostile witness. The court was told that Aidan and Gearoid had been driving into Dundalk together on December 12, 2006, when their car was rammed from behind at Faughart.
David Boies, the lead lawyer for Hands and London-based Terra Firma, told US District Judge Jed Rakoff yesterday that he will call Wormsley as a
hostile witness in the trial, which began this week.
Beyond that, though, the series plays like a pretty straightforward procedural--similar in tone to "Homicide," including one profane (and frequently bleeped) interview with a
hostile witness. It's not bad, but it initially looks relatively uninspired next to TV's best copshows, including current entries such as TNT's "Southland."
Could it be that getting a
hostile witness to answer questions is as hard as catching a snipe?
You may also be called by the other side, perhaps as a
hostile witness. If you are called as a
hostile witness, the other side may ask leading questions on direct examination, so the effect is simply to reverse the order of events: the cross-examination comes first, followed by direct and then re-cross.
The prosecution was so frustrated by Reyat's evasions that it applied to have him declared a
hostile witness. Justice Josephson refused the request.
It should be a human right to ask to take such a test or to demand that a
hostile witness do the same.
Lambertson was also surprised to discover that the defendant, General Crook, was a
hostile witness, as were several of Crook's subordinates who had carried out the Interior Department's orders by arresting the Poncas.
Just as an admission by a
hostile witness is more valuable than one made by a friendly witness, an admission by a witness who fights yon every step of the way is even more valuable.