Apr 14, 2008 8:57 pm US/Eastern
Tensions High In Closing Arguments Of Bell Trial
Lawyers Argue Over 'Witness' Credibility'
NEW YORK (CBS) ―
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The trial for the three detectives charged in the killing of Sean Bell enters its last phase as both the prosecution and the defense rested their respective cases Thursday morning, with all evidence submitted to the judge.
CBS
Closing arguments at the trial of three police officers charged in the 50-shot killing of an unarmed groom-to-be turned into a sharp exchange of attacks on key witnesses Monday, with the surviving victims portrayed as lying thugs and the shooters depicted as trigger-happy cowboys.
In a three-hour dissection of the shooting of Sean Bell, prosecutor Charles Testagrossa took aim at undercover detective Michael Oliver, who fired 31 shots -- even pausing to reload -- at a car carrying 23-year-old Sean Bell and two friends who were seriously injured.
Oliver "was taking his time," Testagrossa said before he broke the silence in a packed Queens courtroom by mimicking gunshots -- "Bam! Bam! Bam!"
He continued: "Thirty-one shots. Thirty-one separate pulls of the trigger. ... Thirty-one separate decisions to use deadly force. Thirty-one opportunities to pause and reassess whether continuing firing was necessary. Thirty-one opportunities to save an innocent life."
It was Nov. 25, 2006, Bell's wedding day, and he "had everything in the world to live for," Testagrossa added.
Earlier, Oliver's attorney, James Culleton, accused prosecutors of building their case on the unreliable testimony of Bell's friends, including two survivors with criminal records and multi-million-dollar claims against the city.
Culleton called it "a parade of convicted felons, crack dealers and men who were not strangers to weapons."
Oliver and Gescard Isnora, who fired 11 shots, have pleaded not guilty to manslaughter in the slaying of Bell outside a seedy Queens topless bar where he had a bachelor party. A third undercover investigator who fired five times, Marc Cooper, pleaded not guilty to reckless endangerment. Two other officers who fired were not charged.
The case, which lasted seven weeks, was heard by Justice Arthur Cooperman instead of a jury. He announced on Monday that he will deliver a verdict on April 25.
The defense has argued the shooting was justified because the detectives, who were investigating reports of prostitution at Kalua Cabaret, believed Bell and his friends were possibly armed. They also believed that as the bullets began flying, they were the ones under fire -- and responded bravely, the defense says.
But the prosecution argued on Monday that the officers were guilty of using excessive force first and fabricating a reason later.
"Before we pin medals on the defendants for their heroism, let's look at what they did" when they unleashed their needless barrage, Testagrossa said.
The defense, he argued, wanted to convince the judge that "unnecessary shots that take innocent lives are just acceptable collateral damage in the effort to enforce our laws."
At trial, an undercover working with Isnora testified that they became alarmed after witnessing a heated argument outside the club between Bell's friends and another patron who appeared to have a gun. He claimed they overheard Guzman, say, "Yo, go get my gun."
Defense attorney Paul Martin, who represents Cooper, portrayed Guzman, a burly ex-convict, as "the catalyst of the event. He's the reason we're here today."
In grand jury testimony, Isnora said that he decided to follow Bell, Guzman and Benefield to their car because he believed they were going to commit a drive-by shooting.
Guzman denied saying anything about a gun; other witnesses also testified that the dispute ended peacefully. He and another passenger in Bell's car who survived serious gunshot wounds, Trent Benefield, also testified that they never heard the officers yell warnings before opening fire, and tried to drive away because they feared for their lives.
Isnora gave a different account: When he confronted the men, he only resorted to deadly force after Bell bumped him with the car and smashed into an unmarked police van, and after he spotted Guzman make a sudden move as though he were going for a gun.
"He used enormous restraint," said defense attorney, Anthony Ricco, representing Isnora.
The defense cited testimony by a police shooter who wasn't charged that he heard Isnora yell "Stop, police!" and other commands before the gunfire erupted.
"Gunfire all about, windows blown out -- what was he to believe?" Martin said of Cooper. "He responded appropriately."
The defense suggested that Guzman and Benefield had reason to lie since they both have filed $50 million lawsuits against the city.
Testagrossa countered by calling Benefield "the personification of the innocent victim" -- someone who got into Bell's car for a ride home and ended up wounded for no reason. Once he came to court to testify, the defense treated him "like he is a criminal although he did nothing," the prosecutor said.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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