LAKEPORT — The week of testimony in the toddler-killing trial ended with a relative of some of the shooting victims in tears and visibly irritated on the stand while under cross-examination Friday afternoon.
Judge Doris L. Shockley adjourned the proceedings for the day immediately after interrupting the final back-and-forth between witness Crystal Pearls and attorney Stephen Carter, who represents Orlando Joseph Lopez Jr.
Lopez, 24, and Paul William Braden, 22, both of Clearlake Oaks have pleaded not guilty to 15 felonies — including one count of murder and five counts of attempted murder — and denied nearly three dozen special allegations in connection with a late-night shooting in Clearlake last year.
Authorities allege the two men shot into a crowd of people gathered for a barbecue on June 18, killing Skyler Rapp, 4, and injuring five others.
Braden and Lopez are standing trial in the same courtroom but have different lawyers and separate juries.
Lake County District Attorney Don Anderson, who is prosecuting the case, called Pearls as the third witness Friday at the Lake County Courthouse.
Pearls said some of her nephews, including Ross Sparks, were victims in the June 18 incident. Sparks” girlfriend was Rapp”s mother.
Pearls called herself Rapp”s “aunt.”
She testified she arrived at Sparks” house around 3 p.m. and soon thereafter heard Sparks arguing on the phone with Lopez.
She said at one point, Sparks handed her the phone and she talked to Lopez, who according to Pearls was trying to arrange a fight with another of her nephews, Josh Gamble.
After a brief conversation, Lopez hung up the phone, according to Pearls” testimony.
She said the same phone number then called back to Sparks” phone, with an unknown male on the other line.
Pearls said that person didn”t identify himself but threatened to kill her and her family.
After Pearls cut off that conversation by hanging up the phone, a man standing next to her dialed the same number, spoke to Lopez and asked for an apology, according to her testimony. She said Lopez apologized to her.
Pearls said she remained at Sparks” residence for a barbecue until about 9:30 p.m. when she left to go to her home roughly four blocks away.
About seven minutes later, she heard on a police scanner that a shooting occurred and ran back to Sparks” house, according to her testimony.
Anderson did not ask her about the aftermath of the shooting. Doug Rhoades, who represents Braden, declined to cross-examine Pearls on Friday.
Carter then questioned Pearls for roughly 25 minutes late in the afternoon, primarily about an October 2011 interview she gave to a Clearlake Police Department (CPD) investigator.
Carter asked why the CPD interview report mentioned nothing about Pearls talking to Lopez on the phone while at Sparks” house June 18.
Pearls said the CPD investigator didn”t inquire about conversations with Lopez but rather only asked about what Braden said on the phone.
“He didn”t ask. I didn”t volunteer any information,” Pearls said about the police interview.
Pearls tried several times to qualify her responses under cross-examination, but Shockley told Pearls on multiple occasions not to elaborate on answers to yes-or-no questions asked by Carter.
The judge also instructed Pearls and Carter not to become argumentative during the trial.
Though Pearls appeared slightly agitated on the stand early on while being questioned by Carter, her demeanor turned to tearful and irritated when the attorney began asking about what she observed upon returning to Sparks” home minutes after the shooting.
Carter asked whether Pearls told witnesses and victims that night, “Don”t tell them anything. Don”t tell the police anything.” She testified she “possibly” said that.
Carter attempted to have Pearls explain how the officers on-scene reacted to those comments, but Pearls began crying and saying she couldn”t understand why Carter was asking about that.
Shockley halted the proceedings while Pearls began making comments that were not answers to Carter”s questions. The judge then instructed the jurors to disregard the non-responsive statements.
Pearls is expected to retake the stand when the trial reconvenes Wednesday at 9 a.m. in Department 1.
Two other prosecution witnesses testified Friday.
Matthew Klaes finished the testimony he started the day before.
Klaes said he observed Braden bring a shotgun to a June 18 party they both attended at the home of Lopez”s brother.
He said he didn”t see Lopez handle any firearms that day but a second shotgun was located inside the house.
Nicole Newton, a records supervisor for CPD, testified for less than five minutes. She verified a CD she said contained recordings of dispatch calls from June 18. The audio was not played for the jurors.
