"He held her underwater, and he pushed her down. Because of that, we are asking that you find him guilty, ladies and gentlemen of the jury.

Thank you." This ends the prosecution's closing argument.

In Session The judge calls a brief recess at this time. He leaves the bench.

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
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Drew Peterson trial updates: 'We are asking you to find him guilty'

11:25 a.m. Prosecution ends closing argument

Prosecutor Chris Koch ended his 70-minute argument.

“Taking all of that information together and drawing reasonable inference from them... we have proved to you beyond a reasonable doubt that he entered that home with the intent to kill her, that he forced her down, that he held her under water to cause her to drown, and she died, and because of that, ladies and gentleman, we are asking you to find him guilty.”

Following Koch's argument, Judge Edward Burmila gave a brief break to the jury.

updates at link
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/loca ... 3423.story

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Drew Peterson trial blog: Savio family members "nervous"

September 4, 10:55 a.m. Kathleen Savio's, good friend Mary Pontarelli, wiped tears from her eyes as Chris Koch told the jury about the night Mary, and her family found Savio in the tub. Koch said that Drew, who was a Bolingbrook Police watch commander that evening in March of 2004, didn't call for police backup to do a well being check, but instead let neighbors and locksmith enter the home. Koch added upon discovering Savio's body, Mary Pontarelli is heard screaming upstairs but Drew Peterson "doesn’t have his gun drawn, or a flashlight," because he knows what happened. "He Killed her, he knows she¿s up in the tub."

Updates at link
http://www.wgntv.com/news/wgntv-drew-pe ... .htmlstory

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Joe Lopez presenting Closing Argument for Derense


...you’re basically just a bunch of strangers, and we throw you in a room and you bond with each other. The United States of America is the only place where you have a jury system. It’s been going on for centuries . . . the only place in the world where you have people determine your fate . . . the standard is ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ It’s not ‘are you kidding me?’ but ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ And you took an oath not to hold it against Drew Peterson that he didn’t testify . . . you are not to consider that in any way when you consider your verdict. If you do that, you’re turning your back on the American flag, and violating your oath. Trials are kind of like Monopoly games; there’s rules you have to follow . . . a trial has rules, and nobody can cheat. And you have to follow the judge’s instructions.”

The other thing that’s very important with the presumption of innocence is you have to have this little voice in your head tell you, ‘Sgt. Peterson is innocent.’ That’s what you have to do, it’s the presumption of innocence. You have to weigh the evidence, and apply the standard ‘beyond a reasonable doubt.’ Those are the rules we live by . . . when you watch the Bears play football on the weekends, against the Packers, there’s rules: you can’t go off sides, out of bounds. There’s rules. There are rules . . . and we have to keep that in mind as we go through this process. It’s a tedious process . . . but you rely on your collective memories . . . you know why you’re here today? Because Sgt. Peterson exercised his right to a jury trial. That’s why you’re here today.”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

“The judge is a very important person, isn’t he? A distinguished jurist, important person; he’s got the robe on. That’s because he’s the judge of the rules. But the jury is just as important, because you’re mini-judges. You’re judges of the facts . . . you don’t have to believe any of it, not one word of it. Whatever comes out of that witness stand, you determine whether or not you’re going to believe it. Just because someone says something doesn’t mean it’s so . . . and let’s not forget that this case was a divorce case. I guess in a divorce case, everybody’s truthful, huh? People say things because they’re mad, they want the advantage, they want sympathy from other people. They’ll blow their horn, and blow it until somebody sympathizes with them. It’s the same on both sides; there’s no such thing as a divorce without tears. But the State hasn’t proven anything in this case; this case is riddled with holes, like a piece of Swiss cheese . . . it’s all speculation. Speculation. You just heard Mr. Koch tell you he drowned her in the tub. How did he get in the house? How did he restrain her? . . . they can’t even prove how it happened. It’s speculation . . . you don’t have to like Drew Peterson; you don’t have to like Sgt. Peterson at all. You know what you have to like? You have to like that flag, the principles that we live by in this great United States of America, no other country like it. We’re exercising through the Bill of Rights the U.S. Constitution.”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

We asked you to serve, and we appreciate that. No matter what your verdict is, we appreciate that . . . we know how hard that is. Let’s talk about the case; I want to say a few things . . . one of the things the State told you is they want you to use your common sense to rely on hearsay. What is hearsay? The judge will define it for you . . . you heard about circumstantial evidence . . . if you leave a pie at home with your kids and tell them ‘don’t eat it,’ and you leave and come home and somebody’s in the pie, ‘the cat ate it,’ you look at the cat to see if he’s got any pie on his face. And then you realize the cat has pie on his neck. Does that mean the cat ate it, or the kids smeared pie on the cat, to make it look like he ate it. So it’s not that clear. Circumstantial evidence is not that clear.”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Drew Peterson trial updates: 'Sgt. Peterson is presumed innocent'

11: 55 a.m. State's theory called laughable

Defense attorney Joe Lopez derided the state's theory as laughable.

“'Oh, excuse me, Kathleen. Can you fall in the bathtub so I can strangle you and hit you in the back of the head,'“ Lopez said. “The state has no evidence.”

“You don't have to like Sgt. Peterson at all. You know what you have to like? That flag. You have to like America. You have to like the Constitution...You have to like the principles that we live by in this country.”

11:53 a.m. Trial is like football, Lopez says

Defense attorney Joe Lopez likened a trial to a football game, in which there are rules both teams have to play by, and he got in an early dig at the state.

“And you know, the state violated the rules a couple of times — the judge gave you cautionary instructions, and things like that happen sometimes.”

11:50 a.m. 'Sgt. Peterson is presumed innocent'

Defense attorney Joe Lopez started out softly, saying how jury service is unique, throwing people from diverse backgrounds together who sometimes form lasting friendships as a result of their service.

He then turned to the merits of the U.S. criminal justice system.

“It's the only place in the world, were you have the people decide your fate,” he said. “You took an oath -- it's like being in the Army. You violate your oath, it's like going AWOL.”

Lopez reminded jurors that they took an oath to hold the state to the standard of beyond reasonable doubt, to not hold it against the defendant for not testifying, and to follow the instructions of the court as they deliberate.

“As we sit here today, and you're listening to my mumbo jumbo, you have to have this little voice in your head reminding you that Sgt. (Drew) Peterson is presumed innocent.”

11:45 a.m. Defense begins its closing argument

The jury is back in the courtroom and defense attorney Joseph Lopez has begun his closing argument.

Updates at link
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/loca ... 3423.story

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

In Session “Sometimes people go fishing and tell their friends. Before you know it, it’s a ten pound fish, instead of a two pound fish. You not only have to believe it beyond a reasonable doubt, but you have to believe that the person who said it said it accurately, didn’t put their own spin on it, or their interpretation of it. It’s dangerous. Circumstantial evidence is dangerous. That’s what this case is about, only this and nothing else. And that’s something you can’t forget. What are the charges here? Indictments aren’t convictions . . . all it is is a document, a piece of paper . . . they’re just accusations, and they’re not proof of anything. All they’re good for is a paper shredder, or to be put in a garbage bag . . . the State must prove guilt – GUILT – beyond a reasonable doubt. It’s something you feel, that’s what reasonable doubt it. When you look in the mirror, you have to be perfectly content with what you do in this case. It’s not like going to Walmart or Target; you can’t change your mind at the end of the case . . . once you ink it, it’s forever. It’s forever. The State has failed to prove Drew Peterson is guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. Let’s start with Dr. Mitchell, the poor dead guy . . . Kathy’s death was already ruled an accident. The death certificate says accident . . . and it says the date of injury is unknown. Has the State told you when she was supposedly killed by Sgt. Peterson? Absolutely not . . . not one micron of evidence, one hair, on follicle, one print, nothing. We don’t even know when it happened . . . when did it happen? Proof beyond a reasonable doubt is the standard here. Proof beyond a reasonable doubt. And they haven’t even proved that. They’ve proved it was an accident, all right, they’ve proved that. Do you think Drew hated her so much that he would take her away from the mother of the children he loved? Absolutely not! Do you think Tommy Peterson would have come in here and testified as a defense witness? Tommy said Drew broke down . . . it breaks your heart . . . imagine how that must have felt? And Tommy picked up it. Kids pick up on all the things their parents do.”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

“Sgt. Deel finds a condom upstairs. And Steve Maniaci says it was downstairs . . . how embarrassing; I hope I didn’t offend anybody, but it’s important . . . it’s part of the evidence, because of what Deel said. Did Steve forget he put it on downstairs, they went upstairs and he tossed it? Probably. Probably that’s how she got bruises. Nobody can say she got those bruises at the hands of Sgt. Peterson, not one person. They can’t even tell you how those bruises occurred. They can’t offer any evidence of how the injuries happened, except in a slip in a fall. Are you gong to tell me that no one’s suffered a slip and fall in the bathtub before? Why do you think they sell those rubber bath mats with the little suction cups?”

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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

“They can’t even tell you when she suffered these injuries . . . the science ain’t there! Dr. DiMaio is a renowned expert from around the world; he worked for the U.N. Think they just pulled up some quack to do that? Absolutely not!”

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___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

“Steven Maniaci asked Kathy if she could come over; he wanted to order Chinese food and order a movie. And she said, ‘No, I have to study.’ And Mary Pontarelli said she was invited to a party, and Kathy told her, ‘No, I have to study.’ That was the last time anyone had physically seen her. Maniaci had a phone call at midnight, and they had a fight; you can understand how upset she must have been, looking at her ex-husband down the block with a new family. And here was this guy who didn’t want to marry her. And they can’t even prove that Ms. Savio was the victim of a homicide, because it was an accident. They wanted to make it a homicide, but it was an accident. They talk about, ‘Oh, Stacy told Schori’ . . . that she gave this falsie alibi, that he coached her for four hours. All we heard was that Drew told her, ‘We made bacon and eggs, or whatever it was.’ “ The prosecution then has an objection, and the parties go to a sidebar.

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

The sidebar ends, and attorney Lopez resumes his closing. “None of the State’s witnesses could tell you how she received the injury. What was it really? It was the bath tub, the curvature of the bath tub. What happens when you drop a water balloon? It explodes! The back of your head, same thing. Dr. DiMaio told you that . . . these experts can’t agree on anything, can they? Is the glass half full or half empty? That doesn’t’ meet the burden of reasonable doubt, it actually raises the level of reasonable doubt. They look at something, and they all see something different. That’s not beyond reasonable doubt, that IS doubt . . . that’s not proof beyond a reasonable doubt. That IS doubt . . . and this case is nothing but reasonable doubt, about what happened.”

We didn’t want to hide Harry Smith. We put him up there . . . the most important thing you should remember is how it is that they made an accident into what they tell you is a homicide. They can’t tell you when it happened, how it happened . . . what evidence do you have that Drew Peterson murdered his wife? None. NONE! ZERO! The State wants you to rely on hearsay evidence . . . they had this big motive . . . there was no motive . . . he agreed to extend the pension date in the bifurcated divorce case? He was not a beneficiary of the insurance police, the kids were . . . even the showbiz doctor came in here [Dr. Michael Baden], Autopsies Gone Wild.”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

How does Drew even know she’s home? She could be over at Maniaci’s house . . . she doesn’t discuss her plans with him . . . remember that show that used to be on Sunday nights, that cartoon show where the guy used to hang out in the back yard and drink with his neighbors? . . . King of the Hill . . . I used to love that show! The neighbors go over to Kathy’s, and tell her about this party . . . she goes to the Samba Room with Maniaci, they return home and have sex, and the condom is discarded. Remember Maniaci is the guy who slept in the bed with her, and he never says anything about this giant knife; wouldn’t he be the first to know?”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

Kathy and Steve had a midnight quarrel, and Kathy hung up on Steve . . . that’s around midnight [on Saturday]. We know the Pontarellis come home, in two different vehicles at two different times . . . they saw the light on from inside the bedroom. And Mary [Pontarelli] is her best friend . . . so Mary assumes she’s studying. That evening, no dogs bark, no neighbors overheard [anything]; the neighborhood is nice and quiet. Those houses are very close together, not a lot of side yard . . . but nobody hears anything coming out of that house. It’s peaceful and it’s quiet. Sunday, Drew and his family go to the Shedd Aquarium . . . he tries to return the kids on Sunday, but there’s nobody there. It’s a three day weekend, so that’s why there’s no attempt to call anybody; Tom Peterson agreed with that . . . you are the judges of the facts, you’re mini-judges, just like the judge. Sunday, Mary tries to contact Kathy to invite her over for spaghetti and meatballs; Nick also tries to contact Kathy in the afternoon. He went to the house, banged on the door, and didn’t see anything unusual. Steve Maniaci didn’t attempt to call her on Sunday, or on Monday, either. We don’t even know if she’s home when Nick goes over there. Maybe she already slipped and hit her head. Nobody knows if she’s in the house or out of the house. Nobody knows that. She’s not answering her phone; we don’t know where she’s at. The State doesn’t know where she’s at. And, again, Monday, Drew’s looking for Kathy again. He finally calls Kathy . . . everybody’s looking for Kathy . . . she doesn’t have to account for every move to her ex-husband; she can do whatever she wants. [But] no one can find her.”

“They decided to call a locksmith. And it took Robert Akins, a trained locksmith, six minutes to open that door. And you now why Drew didn’t go in there? I’ll tell you why. It’s a divorce case; it’s a bifurcated divorce . . . the case could have been settled at any time; this case didn’t have to go to trial. Remember, there was issues about the pension, the house . . . remember Mr. Brodsky saying . . .” Objection. The parties go to a sidebar.

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Objection by prosecution sustained, Jury brought back

Judge says defense can mention court order, but must introduce the order via the witness who testified to it.

Lopez continues "The reason Drew didn't go into (Savio) house..he would've violated court order" giving home solely to Savio...

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

In Session The jurors are now gone. Prosecutor Koch is objecting to the fact that an exhibit attorney Lopez is attempting to use in his closing was never actually entered into evidence. “It was never presented to be in evidence.” Attorney Lopez responds: “The only part of this order we’re using is the part about when all remaining issues are to be resolved.” Judge: “Was there a stipulation about this exhibit?” Koch: “There was a stipulation, but they still have to move it into evidence.” Lopez: “It was something that was shown to a witness . . . I’m only asking that I be allowed to refresh the jury’s memory.” Judge: “You can certainly refer the jury to the particular testimony without using the exhibit . . . the objection will be sustained.” He sends for the jury.

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

In Session The jurors are now back in the courtroom, and attorney Lopez continues his summation. “I told you something I forgot to follow up on. The reason Drew didn’t go into the house was because he wasn’t there on police business; he was following the divorce court order. On March 22, 2002 Kathy got exclusive possession of the marital home. His going in that house violated the court’s order! . . . this order was in effect until the property was distributed and there was a final decision. So that Monday when Drew was there, he was under a court order not to enter that house. Not because he knew that Kathy was upstairs in that bath tub, but because the court ordered him not to do it.”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light

In Session “Drew can’t go in there without her permission. Nick and Tom [Pontarelli] are on the first floor, Steve [Carcerano] and Mary [Pontarelli] go upstairs . . . Nick sees orange juice and pills; he puts the orange juice away . . . Drew doesn’t have permission to go into the house. All of the lights are off. Mary doesn’t’ see anything unusual; the bed wasn’t made. There’s no signs of any struggle, any forced entry, absolutely nothing. Drew didn’t go in because he was ordered by the court not to do it. Steve goes into the bathroom; Mary goes into the bathroom and screams. Kathy is lying in the bath tub; everything else in the bathroom is intact. The State wants to tell you she didn’t fall in there because none of the bottles have moved. Well, that’s a framed-in tub, and they shouldn’t move if the contractor did it the right way . . . whoever put that tub in right, it would be solid, it would be anchored. The whole thing’s framed out around the tub. Why does Drew have to have his gun out? ‘What am I going to tell my kid?’ are the first words out of his mouth. It’s ridiculous! He didn’t do it. Because it’s an accident . . . it’s ridiculous! That’s a ridiculous theory. They’re trying to nail Jell-O to a tree. It’s an accident. Pure and simple.”

In Session “The blue towel’s a fallacy. It’s a fallacy. It’s what in law enforcement is called a red herring, to get your eye off the ball . . . when Drew left, the towel wasn’t there. The house is secured and Drew’s outside; he can’t go back in . . . the last time anybody saw Drew upstairs, the towel wasn’t there . . . so if somebody put that towel up there, it certainly wasn’t Drew Peterson, because he wasn’t there. Is this another conspiracy? Did somebody put that towel up there because they were down on their hands and knees? I don’t know. They’re all outside while [Rob] Sudd secures the scene. Who knows who put it there? Somebody put it there, or it was there and everybody forgot it was there. Steve [Maniaci] arrives, and has some words with Drew; Drew denies having anything to do with it.”

In Session “They [the first responders] know it’s an accident . . . it is what it is, it’s an accident! It’s a weird accident, but it happens . . . people win the lottery with longer odds than that . . . they walk through the scene, and they see nothing.”

In Session “They [the Illinois State Police] didn’t even know Sgt. Peterson. They didn’t have to protect him, didn’t have to do anything for him . . . they never asked him if he killed his wife! Do you want to know to know why? Because they knew it was an accident . . . they never returned to question him again. Collins knew it was an accident. They went to interview Stacy . . . that’s not proof of anything. Whatever was told to them they never went back and checked out. They were satisfied, because they knew it was an accident. Dr. Blum said that Dr. Mitchell said the mark on Kathy’s buttocks appeared to be healing. Even their own experts can’t agree if the glass is half empty or half full . . . that is not proof beyond a reasonable doubt, that is nothing but doubt! And their own experts can’t get it!. Dr. Blum stated that Dr. Mitchell did a sound job . . . the tongue was partially clenched between the teeth; that’s Blum, looking at Mitchell’s autopsy . . . he [Dr. Mitchell] still found it was an accident, that her death was related to an accident, and that she drowned. The cause of death is drowning. Not only did Dr. Mitchell do the autopsy, but he also photographed the autopsy. He’s the only one who actually saw how Kathy appeared shortly after she was found. He’s not in a conspiracy to protect Sgt. Peterson . . . he looked at it, and that’s how he came to his conclusion, based on all the evidence. The coroner’s inquest, Susan Doman testified, and never said anything about threats to kill her sister. Want to know why? Because they made it up later! The coroner said it was an accidental death, just like Dr. Mitchell.”

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Do not go gentle into that good night.
___________ Rage, rage against the dying of the light