Deepa Bharath
Prosecution and defense teams rested their cases Thursday afternoon
in a high-profile trial involving three teenagers accused of raping
an unconscious 16-year-old girl.
Prosecutors say Greg Haidl, son of Orange County Assistant Sheriff
Don Haidl, Kyle Nachreiner and Keith Spann raped the girl, identified
only as Jane Doe, and sexually assaulted her with various objects at
the assistant sheriff's Corona del Mar home.
The defendants also made a videotape of the incident, which has
been played for jurors and other expert witnesses during the trial.
The jury trial began on May 3.
On Thursday, the prosecution presented Brad Hagen, a new video
expert, to interpret the "frozen frames" or blackout in the digital
videotape as well as a "flutter" in the end of the tape. Joe
Micalizzi, the defense's video expert, had testified that the tape
was very likely a copy and missing several minutes of footage.
David Dustin, who previously testified for the prosecution, has
said he believes the tape is an original and that the flutter was
probably caused by sudden loss of power to the camera.
Hagen showed jurors through an experiment he conducted that the
flutter on an original looks different from one on a copy.
"The image goes back and forth in a copy," he said.
Hagen demonstrated using a different tape that officials had
confiscated from Greg Haidl, which had skateboarding action on it.
Then he showed jurors the sex tape and a copy of it to prove his
point that the flutter in the original skateboarding tape was
consistent with the flutter in the original tape of the alleged
gang-rape.
Nachreiner's attorney, John Barnett, who cross-examined Hagen,
said he did not believe that the prosecution's new witness
accomplished anything significant.
"Neither of the prosecution's witnesses have been able to say for
sure that this tape is not a copy," he said. "[Hagen's] testimony
didn't prove anything."
Deputy Dist. Atty. Susan Schroeder declined to comment on the
testimony.
Earlier in the day, the defense brought back neurologist Harris
Fisk to rebut testimony of the prosecution's expert, Peter Fotinakes.
Fisk said he believes the victim appeared to be conscious during the
incident. He observed that her movements as she was drinking beer in
the beginning of the tape were fluid and coordinated.
He also said the girl's position on the pool table suggested she
was willing to receive the objects that were inserted into her.
Another defense witness, Marvin Corman, a specialist in colorectal
