Trial Transcripts

Defense Witness #1: Annie Lund

THE COURT:  You may proceed for the defense.
Mr. BRANDBORG:  Thank you, Your Honor.
DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. BRANDBORG:

Q	Good afternoon, Ms. Lund.
A	Good afternoon.
Q	Could you state your full name for the record?
A	Annie Marie Lund.
Q	And could you spell that please?
A	A-n-n-i-e, M-a-r-i-e, L-u-n-d.
Q	Ms. Lund, where do you live?
A	South Fargo, like specifically?
Q	No, that’s fine, Fargo. And Ms. Lund, do you work somewhere?
A	Precision Diagnostic Services.
Q	Precision Diagnostic, and what do they do?
A	We perform sleep studies.
Q	Okay, and do you in fact work with a lady named Chanda Hidanovic?
A	Yes, I do.
Q	Ms. Lund, do you know Mevludin Hidanovic?
A	Yes.
Q	And how do you know him?
A	He’s married to a friend of mine.
Q	And that would be Chanda?
A	Chanda, correct, yup.
Q	Okay, and you work with Chanda?
A	Yes.
Q	Ms. Lund, if I direct your attention back to last summer during  the Cass County Fair, it was the 24th of June. Were you at the fair that day?
A	Yes.
Q	And could you maybe just start out by telling me what time you arrived?
A	Oh my goodness, I actually arrived pretty early. We probably got there around 1:00 in the afternoon.
Q	Okay, after you arrived at the fair, just tell the jury a little bit about what you did?
A	We – I was there with my two year old, so we did all the kiddie rides and ate food. It was pouring rain for probably over an hour, so we sat inside and did nothing for awhile. Then rode more rides, got our picture taken. Once evening hit after dinner time, I ran into Chanda and Mevludin, we got our ages and our weights guessed and –
Q	Let me stop you there for a second, Ms. Lund. Sorry to interrupt you. Ms. Lund let’s go back just a little bit, you say about evening you ran into Mr. and Mrs. – I guess at the time they weren’t married, but now they are, Mr. and Mrs. Hidanovic, correct?
A	Uh-hum.
Q	And where abouts in the fair did you run into them?
A	We were back in the corner by the petting zoo.
Q	Okay, and were they with – who were they with?
A	It was the two of them, and their four children.
Q	Okay, and do you have any idea how old these children are?
A	Oh my goodness. Five to ten, maybe – I’m not sure, the oldest is ten and I think the youngest is five.
Q	Okay, and now tell the jury – you say you were getting your ages or your weight checked or guessed or –
A	Guessed – yup.
Q	Is that a game?
A	Yeah, it’s just – you give the guy a ticket, and if he gets your age or weight wrong, then you win a prize.
Q	From what you observed, did everyone seem to be in a good mood?
A	Yes.
Q	Was everybody having fun?
A	Yup.
Q	And the rain had stopped by this point?
A	Yes.
Q	Okay, Ms. Lund, on this day, how long did you spend with the Hidanovic’s and their children?
A	I ran into them the first time, and we played the game, and then I went on some rides with my son. And their kids being a little bit older, they went down the walk just a little ways. And then I ran into them twice after that, brief – pretty brief encounters, but I mean a conversation.
Q	During these encounters, did you have an opportunity to observe what Mr. Hidanovic was wearing that day?
A	Yes, I did.
Q	And tell the jury about why you’re smiling?
A	It’s actually – was a sort of a ridiculous outfit, especially if you’ve ever been to the fair in Fargo, it’s not exactly the most cleanly place. And he was wearing a light pair of  white linen pants, and I mean the fairgrounds had actually flooded during the rain. So, and he was wearing what appeared to be very expensive pointy toe dress shoes. And expensive pastel blotchy sweater, so it was a little bit of a ridiculous outfit, and so we poked fun a little bit.
Q	Would you characterize it as wild looking?
A	Yes, I would, but it’s just not really my style.
Q	Would you in fact recognize that sweater he was wearing, if you saw it again?
A	Yes.

MR. BRANDBORG:  Your Honor, may I approach?
THE COURT:  You may.

Q	(BY MR. BRANDBORG)  Ms. Lund, I’ll have you just take a look at that sweater you picked up. You can hold it up. Is that in fact the sweater that you saw Mr. Hidanovic wearing –
A	Yes it was.
Q	-- on that date?

MR. BRANDBORG:  Your Honor, at this time I’d offer Defense Exhibit 5 into evidence.
THE COURT:  Mr. Boening.
MR. BOENING: Can I take a look at the sweater?
THE COURT:  You may, could you retrieve that from the witness, and hand it to Mr. Boening?
MR. BRANDBORG:  Yes.
THE COURT:  Thank you Mr. Brandborg.
MR. BOENING:  Your Honor, may I ask a question for purposes of imposing an objection?
THE COURT:  You may.
VOIR DIRE EXAMINATION BY MR. BOENING:

Q	Ma’am, do you live with the Defendant and his wife?
A	No, I do not.
Q	How do you know for a fact that this is literally the sweater that was being worn by the defendant on the 24th of June?
A	I guess I don’t know that for a fact. I know that it sure looks like it, it’s a hard sweater to forget.
Q	So you think this sweater looks like the sweater that the Defendant was wearing as best you can recall, is that correct?
A	Yes.
Q	But this may not be the sweater the Defendant was wearing, is that correct?
A	Correct.

MR. BOENING: Okay. Your Honor, we would object on the grounds that there’s an inadequate foundation to establish that this was in fact the sweater the Defendant was wearing on the night of the 24th of June. It may be possible for the Defendant to lay a foundation for the receipt in evidence of this sweater, but if they’re offering it to establish that this was in fact the sweater the Defendant was wearing on the 24th of June. We submit that there’s no foundation for that.
THE COURT: Mr. Brandborg, would you like to try to –
MR. BRANDBORG: Your Honor, I would like to lay a foundation that the – and have the – and I’ll re-offer it in a minute, that this is in fact – looks like the sweater he was wearing. And at a later time I will – can re-offer it with a different witness, this was the actual sweater, Your Honor.
THE COURT: You may proceed then.
MR. BRANDBORG: Thank you.
CONT’ DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. BRANDBORG:

Q	Ms. Lund, as far as you can remember, this looks like the sweater that the Defendant was wearing on that day?
A	Yes.
Q	And while you said you don’t live with the Defendant, this is either the sweater or it’s one that looks like the sweater he was wearing that day?
A	Yes.

MR. BRANDBORG: Your Honor, I would ask that Defense Exhibit 5, I would submit for entry into evidence, Your Honor.
THE COURT: And you renew your objection, Mr. Boening?
MR. BOENING: Yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained for now. It certainly will remain as marked, and  you can re-offer it through a later witness if you so choose, Mr. Brandborg.
MR. BRANDBORG: No problem, Your Honor.

Q	(BY MR. BRANDBORG)  Ms. Lund, if we get back to the rest of the clothing, would you also recognize clothing that he was wearing , his pants for instance?
A	Yes.

MR. BRANDBORG: Your Honor, may I approach?
THE COURT: You may.

Q (BY MR. BRANDBORG)  Ms. Lund, can you pick up those pair of pants and take a look at them for me? A Uh-hum. Q Do those in fact appear to be the pair of pants that you saw Mr. Hidanovic wearing on this day in question? A Yes. Q And is there not some – there’s even some mud on the bottom, isn’t there? A Yes there is. Q Is that at the very, very bottom cuff? A Yup. Q Would that be consistent with the weather that day? A Yes. Q And again, you don’t live with the Defendant, so you can’t tell me that those are the exact pants? A No. Q But certainly those look like the pair of pants you saw Mr. Hidanovic wearing on the day at the fair? A Yes. Q Okay.

MR. BRANDBORG: May I approach again, Your Honor.
THE COURT: You may.

Q	(BY MR. BRANDBORG)  Ms. Lund, you had earlier testified that Mr. Hidanovic was wearing an odd pointy pair of dress shoes? Does Exhibit #7 in front of you appear to be either the same or similar dress shoes that he was wearing that day?
A	Yes.
Q	At any time that you saw Mr. Hidanovic that day, did you see him with a baseball bat?
A	No.
Q	Did you see him with a knife?
A	No.
Q	After this incident occurred – or let me jump back a little bit. Did you hear that there was an incident that occurred at the fairgrounds?
A	I was unaware of the incident until I had heard that Mevludin had been arrested.
Q	So you didn’t actually witness a fight?
A	No.
Q	A riot?
A	No.
Q	Okay, at no time did you ever see Mr. Hidanovic engaging in any fighting or rioting?
A	No.
Q	Since this has occurred, has anybody told you that Mr. Hidanovic was involved in the riot or fight?
A	No.

MR. BRANDBORG: Objection, heresay.
THE COURT: The objection is sustained, the last answer will be stricken from the record. Mr. Brandborg –
MR. BRANDBORG: Is that a heresay objection, Your Honor?
THE COURT: That was a heresay objection, sustained. You may proceed, Mr. Brandborg.

Q	(BY MR. BRANDBORG)  After the – the last time you saw Mr. Hidanovic that evening, did you pack up and head home shortly thereafter?

MR. BOENING: Objection, leading.

A	Yes, I did.

THE COURT:  Just a second ma’am. Answer is stricken and withdrawn, the objection is overruled, pursuant to Rule 611 of the Rules of Evidence. The Court will allow that leading question in regards to the matter, based upon Rule 611. Do you remember the question ma’am?

A	Yes.

THE COURT:  Okay, you can answer the question now.

A	Yes, I did.

MR. BRANDBORG: Okay, thank you, I have nothing further, Your Honor.
THE COURT: Cross examination, Mr. Boening.
CROSS EXAMINATION BY MR. BOENING:

Q	You were not with the Defendant the entire evening at the fairgrounds, is that correct?
A	Correct.
Q	So if you weren’t with him the whole time, you of course have no idea what he did when you weren’t with him, do you?
A	No I do not.
Q	Do you know whether the Defendant brought with him a change of clothing to the fairgrounds?
A	Uhm –
Q	Did you see him carrying a change of clothing with him?
A	No sir.
Q	Do you know whether or not he changed his clothes after you saw him dressed in these clothes?
A	I don’t remember anybody carrying a bag where a change of clothes could have been carried.
Q	Do you have any personal knowledge of the fact that the Defendant changed his clothes or not?
A	No.
Q	What’s your relationship with the Defendant’s wife?
A	We’re co-workers.
Q	What job do you do?
A	I’m a receptionist, an office assistant.
Q	What job does his wife do?
A	She’s a scheduling coordinator.
Q	Do you know that the mud on the pants on the counter there, came from the Red River Valley Fairgrounds or not?
A	No sir.

MR. BOENING:  Nothing further.
THE COURT:  Re direct for the defense?
MR. BRANDBORG:  Nothing, Your Honor.
THE COURT:  And may this witness be excused for the defense?
MR. BRANDBORG:  Yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT:  For the State, same question?
MR. BOENING:  Yes, Your Honor.
THE COURT:  Ma’am, you can step, you’re free to go.
MS. LUND:  Thank you.
THE COURT:  We’re just going to hold on just for a second here, we’ve got to reboot a computer, I think, so hold tight folks.
          We are on the record, had to reboot the computer, that took a minute or two. Defendant remained in the courtroom, counsel for both parties remained, the interpreters remained, our twelve member jury remained as well. So we’re on the record and continue to be on the record in regards to the matter.