Hearing Set on Video Deposition in Olson Case
The judge in the trial of former radical Sara Jane Olson set a hearing Tuesday to hear arguments that he should allow the videotaped testimony of a defense witness dying of cancer in Oregon.
Defense attorney Susan B. Jordan says that Jack Scott, 57, will contradict key details of Olson’s alleged involvement with the Symbionese Liberation Army’s 1970s crime rampage. Jordan said Scott’s testimony needs to be recorded because he is terminally ill and may not live to testify in person.
“This is an effort to preserve his testimony,” Jordan said.
At Friday’s hearing, Superior Court Judge James M. Ideman told Jordan that he’s “willing to be convinced” of her argument, but that she had cited the wrong section of the California Penal Code as the authority for him to order a court-sworn deposition out of state.
The judge set a new hearing for Tuesday.
Deputy Dist. Atty. Michael Latin said the prosecution opposes an out-of-state deposition.
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