http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/breaking/chi-drew-peterson-trial-updates-decision-expected-today-on-mistrial-20120802,0,1805576.storyDrew Peterson trial updates: Paramedic testifies about Savio's death Related
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By Matthew Walberg, Steve Schmadeke and Andy Grimm Tribune reporters
11:33 a.m. CDT, August 2, 2012
Continual coverage of the trial of Drew Peterson for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio.
11:25 a.m. Paramedic testifies about scene of death
Under questioning from prosecutors, a paramedic called to the scene after Savio's body was discovered said he thought it was odd that there was no bath rug on the floor or large towels in the bathroom.
"It did not appear that she was getting ready to take a bath," said Bolingbrook paramedic Louis Oleskiewicz said. "At home, if I don't put that stuff down on the floor and my wife's socks get wet, she gets mad."
11:05 a.m. Testimony focuses on towel
As the trial resumed, testimony focused on a towel seen in a photograph of Kathleen Savio's body. The defense contends Savio died after falling in the tub, while prosecutors say the death was staged to look like an accident.
Defense attorney Steven Greenberg asked Bolingbrook paramedic Louis Oleskiewicz if the pink towel seen in the photo looked like one a person would use to dry off after a bath or shower.
"It wouldn't work for me," Oleskiewicz said. "It's too small. The pink towel looks like a hand towel."
Oleskiewicz said that, on the night Savio's body was discovered, he had to lean over the tub to check Savio for signs of life and didn't notice a rubber mat in the tub or a bathrug on the floor outside the tub.
"So you didn't see anything in that tub that would keep a person from slipping?" Greenberg asked.
"Not that I remember seeing," the paramedic replied.
Oleskiewicz said he told state police investigators that "Sgt. Peterson appeared sad at the death of his wife and his eyes were red."
In other testimony, Oleskiewicz said his report noted that paramedics found Zoloft, Celebrex and Sudafed in Savio's home and that Savio had a heart murmur.
10:35 a.m. Jurors urged to be 'dispassionate'
Before the first witness took the stand this morning, Judge Edward Bermila instructed jurors to disregard any testimony from a neighbor, Thomas Pontarelli, regarding a bullet in his driveway or that he "got the message" from Drew Peterson.
He appeared to admonish prosecutors before the jury, saying the stricken testimony was purposely drawn out by prosecutors.
"During her redirect examination of Mr. Pontarelli, (Asst. State's Atty.) Kathleen Patton asked a question which she knew would draw an inadmissable response," the judge said.
He said the state was prohibited from further questioning Pontarelli, and told jurors that the state's attorney job is "not that it shall win at all costs, but that justice be done."
He told jurors they could consider the rest of Pontarelli's testimony and reminded them to remain "dispassionate" in their judgment of the case.
10:20 a.m. Disputed testimony to be stricken
Instead of a mistrial being declared and jurors sent home, they will be instructed to disregard testimony from a neighbor, Thomas Pontarelli, about a bullet found on his driveway.
Under questioning from prosecutors Wednesday, Pontarelli said he was "intimidated" by Drew Peterson during a contentious period in Peterson's divorce from Kathleen Savio.
"We had a conversation where he was accusing me of changing the locks. I said I didn't, but I got his message yesterday," Pontarelli testified. "He asked what was that. I said I found a .38-caliber bullet on my driveway."
Prosecutors later told the judge they could not prove Peterson left the bullet there, prompting Burmila to call it a "low blow."
Defense attorney Steven Greenberg argued that the statement was part of a pattern of prosecutors attempting to bias jurors with evidence that was not admissible, including a remark during the first minutes of State's Attorney James Glasgow's opening statement on Tuesday.
Glasgow had mentioned that Peterson offered $25,000 to an acquaintance, an apparent reference to an allegation that Peterson was trying to hire a hit man.
Greenberg said prosecutors were intentionally trying to "goad" the defense into seeking a mistrial after a series of setbacks during the first two days of the trial.
"They intentionally did this and why? ... Because they didn't get the hitman evidence in," Greenberg said. "They didn't get other evidence in. They want to start over.
"We are not creating this situation," he said. "They are trying to goad us into it."
10:15 a.m. Worries about bias against Peterson
In arguing for a mistrial, defense attorney Steven Greenberg said prosecutors would continue to try to get banned evidence and testimony before the jury, and that continued objections from the defesne would bias the jury against Drew Peterson.
"The jury's perception is, 'What are they trying to keep us from hearing?" Greenberg contended.
Greenberg expressed shock at the state's argument that the previous judge in the case, Stephen White, had allowed them to introduce evidence for one purpose, even though he had barred it for other reasons.
"This is one of those 'wow' moments where someone gets up here and says the rules of evidence don't apply to them," Greenberg said.
10:05 a.m. Judge says Peterson can still get fair trial
In denying the defense motion for a mistrial, Judge Edward Burmila ruled that "the defendant's ability to receive a fair trial has not been extinguished at this time" by disputed testimony from a neighbor.
He said a "curative instruction" to the jury -- instructing them to disregard the testimony -- should resolve the issue.
Burmila also found that prosecutors did not elicit the testimony with the intent to cause a mistrial.
9:57 a.m. Judge denies motion for mistrial
Judge Edward Burmila denied a defense motion for a mistrial, saying he did not believe missteps by the prosecution warranted such action.
Instead, jurors will be instructed to disregard testimony from a neighbor,Thomas Pontarelli, about a bullet he found in his driveway. Under questioning by prosecutors Wednesday, Pontarelli said he felt intimidated.
But prosecutors admitted to Burmila that they could not prove Peterson left the bullet there.
9:50 a.m. 'They intentionally did this'
As the trial resumed this morning, defense attorney Steve Greenberg again asked for a "mistrial with prejudice," a ruling that could lead to the case against the former Bolingbrook police sergeant being dropped.
Greenberg argued that prosecutors purposely introduced improper testimony from a neighbor to goad the defense team into seeking a mistrial. The neighbor, Thomas Pontarelli, testified he felt intimidated when he found a bullet in his driveway.
"They intentionally did this," Greenberg said. "They didn't get other evidence in and they want to start over."
8:45 a.m. Peterson jokes about handcuffs
Drew Peterson arrived in court around 8:45 a.m., dressed in a gray suit, and joked with deputies that his pants were falling down.
When defense attorney Joel Brodsky asked how his handcuffs fit as they were being unlocked, Peterson smiled and said, "I asked for some fur ones."
8:30 a.m. Doubts about a mistrial
As he arrived at the Will County courthouse this morning, defense attorney Steven Greenberg said he did not believe there would be a mistrial over the improper questioning of a witness.
"Probably not," he said. "But that doesn't mean we're not going to try."
Greenberg said he believes prosecutors are trying to derail the trial.
"We think this was calculated," Greenberg said. "The prosecution wants to goad us into a mistrial so they can start over and they can recover from their mistakes."
State's Atty. James Glasgow scoffed at the charge. "Absolutely false," he said as he walked into the courthouse with the prosecution team.
6:55 a.m. Decision on mistrial expected today
The third day of Drew Peterson's murder trial is expected to open today with a renewed call for a mistrial from his defense team, as the highly publicized case again faces a possible derailment over statements by prosecutors.
Defense attorneys called for a mistrial on Wednesday after prosecutors questioned Peterson neighbor Thomas Pontarelli about a 2004 incident in which he found a .38-caliber bullet on his driveway. Peterson attorney Steven Greenberg argued that the testimony was meant to imply the shell had been left as a threat from the former Bolingbrook police sergeant, on trial for the murder of his third wife, Kathleen Savio.
Pontarelli said he discovered the bullet after Peterson, in the midst of an acrimonious divorce from Savio, had told Pontarelli not to help Savio.
"We had a conversation where he was accusing me of changing the locks. I said I didn't, but I got his message yesterday," Pontarelli testified. "He asked what was that. I said I found a .38-caliber bullet on my driveway."
The defense immediately objected and, after a recess, asked the judge for a mistrial.
It was the second mistrial motion from Peterson's attorneys in the first two days of testimony in a trial that has seen numerous — and mostly successful -- defense objections over evidence, despite years of evidentiary hearings that preceded the start of the trial.
An animated Judge Edward Burmila glared at the prosecution table as he agreed with the defense that the statements would bias jurors, but he offered an alternative to a mistrial: Instructing jurors to ignore all of Pontarelli's testimony.
::snipping2::
If the trial continues, prosecutors have said they intend to call two locksmiths who let Pontarelli and his wife, Mary, their son Nick and Peterson into Savio's house the evening her body was discovered in her bathtub. A Bolingbrook paramedic who responded to the house also is set to testify.