Disorder in American courts
These are from a book called Disorder in the American Courts, and are things people actually said in court, word for word,
taken down and now published by court reporters that had the torment of staying calm while these exchanges were
actually taking place .
ATTORNEY: Now doctor, isn’t it true that when a person dies in his sleep, he doesn’t know about it until the next morning?
WITNESS: Did you actually pass the bar exam?
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ATTORNEY: The youngest son, the twenty-year-old, how old is he?
WITNESS: He’s twenty, much like your IQ .
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ATTORNEY: She had three children, right?
WITNESS: Yes .
ATTORNEY: How many were boys?
WITNESS: None .
ATTORNEY: Were there any girls?
WITNESS: Your Honor, I think I need a different attorney Can I get a new attorney?
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ATTORNEY: How was your first marriage terminated?
WITNESS: By death .
ATTORNEY: And by whose death was it terminated?
WITNESS: Take a guess
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ATTORNEY: Is your appearance here this morning pursuant to a deposition notice which I sent to your attorney?
WITNESS: No, this is how I dress when I go to work .
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ATTORNEY: ALL your responses MUST be oral, OK? What school did you go to?
WITNESS: Oral .
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ATTORNEY: Do you recall the time that you examined the body?
WITNESS: The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m.
ATTORNEY: And Mr . Denton was dead at the time?
WITNESS: If not, he was by the time I finished .
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And the best for last:
ATTORNEY: Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?
WITNESS: No .
ATTORNEY: Did you check for blood pressure?
WITNESS: No .
ATTORNEY: Did you check for breathing?
WITNESS: No
ATTORNEY: So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?
WITNESS: No .
ATTORNEY: How can you be so sure, Doctor?
WITNESS: Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar
ATTORNEY: I see, but could the patient have still been alive, nevertheless?
WITNESS: Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practicing law.