Direct Examination by Prosecutor

Q. Would you state your name for the record and spell it for the court reporter please?

A. Juanita Molina, J U A N I T A , M O L I N A

Q. Directing your attention to the evening of  April 1, 2005, did you have occasion to go to the 7/11 store on 8930 Anthony Avenue?

A. Yes

Q What time was that?

A. I went to the store about 11:30 that evening to get some candy and a soft drink.

Q. What was the lighting like inside the store?

A. It was very bright. There are lots of overhead lights.

Q. And did you see anything unusual occur that evening?

A. Yes the store was robbed by two men. They came into the store with their guns drawn and made the cashier give them all the money in the cash register.

Q. Who was in the store at that time?

A. Just me and Betsy, the cashier.

Q. Can you describe the two men?

A. Yes, one was a short, stocky, black man who had a long jagged scar on his left cheek. He was wearing a white T-shirt and blue jeans. The other was a tall white man.

Q. Did either of the men speak to you?

A. Yes, the short, black man yelled at me to get down on the ground.

Q. How far was he from you when this happened?

A. About 15 feet

Q. Where was the tall white man?

A. He was at the counter.

Q. And what was the white man doing?

A. He was pointing a gun at Betsy.

Q. About how long were the two men in the store before they left?

A. I would say about five minutes before I heard them drive away.

Q. Was there anything obstructing your view of the two men?

A. No, I could see them both quite clearly.

Q. Directing your attention to the afternoon of  April 14th,  did you have occasion to go down to the police station and view a line-up?

A. Yes, I did.

Q. Did the officer conducting the line up give you any instructions?

A. Yes, he said that one of the robbers might be in the line up or he might not be. He said  that I should just take my time and be sure.

Q. Were you able to identify anyone at the line-up?

A. Yes, the tall white man, I picked him out.

Q. Now I would ask you to look carefully around the courtroom and tell us if the man who you saw point the gun at the cashier is present today?

A. Yes, that him, sitting over there at the table next to the man in the blue suit. ( pointing)

Prosecutor. Your Honor, may the record reflect that the witness has identified Albert Green, the defendant?

Judge: It will so reflect.

Q. Ms. Molina, how confident are you that the defendant here, Mr. Green is the same man who held up the 7/11 store?

A.  I am absolutely certain he is the one. There is no doubt at all.  I still have nightmares about what happened that night. I will never forget that face as long as I live.

Q. No further questions

Cross Examination by Defense Counsel

Q. Good afternoon, Ms. Molina

A. Good afternoon

Q. You were shopping in the back of the store when the robbers entered, is that correct?

A. Yes

Q. Is it fair to say you were about 25 feet away from the front counter where the cash register is?

A. Yes

Q. When the robbers first entered the store you were looking for a soft drink in the cooler?

A. Yes

Q. The soft drink cooler is on the back wall of the store isn’t it?

A. Yes.

Q. You had opened the door to the cooler?

A. Yes.

Q. Had you decided what drink to purchase?

A. No. I never had time.

Q. So you were facing the cooler with your back to the front door, at the time you were looking for a soft drink, correct?

A. Well, yes, I guess so.

Q. And you first realized there was a robbery going on when the short, black man pointed a gun at you, and yelled at you to get face down on floor, is that correct?

A. Yes.

Q. That must have been an awful experience. You were frightened when you saw the gun pointed at you?

A. Well of course, I was scared to death. He was angry and yelling at me. I thought he might shoot me.

Q. So you quickly got down on the floor, is that right?

A. Yes

Q. Face down, staring at the floor?

A. Yes.

Q. And the short, black man  told you to keep your head down, facing the floor, is that right?

A. Yes.

Q. And you did what he told you, correct?

A. Yes.

Q. Now the first robber-- the short, black man, who threatened you with a gun--you were able to give a detailed description of him, isn’t that right?

A. Yes,

Q. You were able to give his height –5’7”?

A. Yes.

Q. And his weight- about 180 pounds, correct?

A. Yes.

Q. You described his clothes in detail- a white T-shirt, blue jeans, black tennis shoes and a blue windbreaker?

A. Yes

Q. And you were able to describe his face as clean-shaven?

A. Yes

Q. You even noticed a long jagged scar on his left cheek?

A. Yes, I did.

Q. Do you remember the color of the gun he was pointing at you?

A. Yes, it was black.

Q. Now the first robber was closest to you correct?

A. Yes

Q. And the second robber, the tall white man,  was standing behind him, further away, at the counter?

A. Yes

Q. Now after you got face down on the floor, everything happened pretty fast after than didn’t it? They grabbed the money and left the store?

A. Yes

Q. You were only able to get a glimpse of the second robber, out of the corner of your eye,  as they left the store,  isn’t that correct?

A. Yes.

Q. When the police came you told them that the second robber wore a baseball cap, isn’t that right?

A. Yes

Q. You told the officer the baseball cap was pulled down to his eyebrows, correct?

A. Yes.

Q. There were letters on the cap?

A. Yes.

Q. But you were not able to make them out, were you?

A. No.

Q. You couldn’t tell the officer whether the second robber had a mustache or not, could you?

A. No, I don’t remember if he did or not.

Q. You couldn’t tell the officer whether he had long sideburns or short sideburns?

A. No.

Q. And you were not able to identify the color of any piece of his clothing, were you?

A. No, I just remember he had light colored clothing, and I think he might have been wearing blue jeans.

Q. But you’re not sure about that are you?

A. No.

Q. You were not able to estimate for the officer the second robber’s weight?

A. No.

Q. Other than the fact he was tall and had brown hair, you were not able to give the officer any other details about the second robber were you?

A. No. Except he was white.

Q. Do you remember the color of the gun in the second robber’s hand?

A. No

Q. Now about a week later you were asked to come to a detective’s office to view some photos, is that correct?

A. Yes.

Q. And did you also happen to see Betsy there, waiting to see the detective?

A. Yes

Q. Do you know Betsy well?

A. Yes, we went to high school together

Q. And did you have a conversation with her about the robbery while waiting for the detective?

A. Yes, we talked about it.

Q. And did Betsy tell you that she thought they had arrested one of the robbers and that was why they wanted you to come down to the detective’s office?

A. Yeah, that’s what she believed.

Q. Who did the detective call into his office first?

A. Betsy went in first.

Q And when she came out of the detective’s office was she happy or sad?

A. She was smiling.

Q. Did she tell you that she had been able to pick out one of the robbers from the photos?

A. Yes. She said: “It’s your turn. See if you can pick them out. I was able to identify one of them.”

Q. When you came into the detective’s office you saw 6 photos already spread out on his desk, is that correct?

A. Yes. There were three photos of white men and three photos of black men.

Q. And you were able to immediately pick out the first robber, the short black man?

A. Yes, I recognized him by the scar on his cheek.

Q. Did you spend a longer time looking at the three photos of the white men?

A. Yes, I spent several minutes looking at them. I wasn’t sure at first, but the third photo looked similar to the man who robbed Betsy so I tried to imagine him with a baseball cap on.  I told the detective: “This one looks like the man at the counter.”

Q. What did the detective say to you at that time?

A. He said, “Good. That’s the same man that Betsy picked out.” And then he thanked us and told us we had both been a big help to them.

Q. Now, directing your attention to April 14th, two weeks after the robbery. You attended a line up at the police station?

A. Yes.

Q. There were six white people in this line up?

A. I think there were six.

Q.  Was anyone taller than the defendant, Mr. Green?

A.  No, he was the tallest- just slightly taller than the others.

Q. Do you recall that Mr. Green had no shoes on during the line-up?

A. Yes. He looked like he just woke up. His hair was all messed up.

Q. Did the other men in the line up have shoes on?

A. Yes

Q. Did the other men in the line up have their hair combed?

A. Yes

Q. When you picked out Mr. Green from the line up, did the officer in charge of the

line-up say anything to you?

A.  Yes. He said “Good , that wraps this case up.” And then he thanked me for coming down.

Q. Did you see Betsy at the line up?

A. No, Betsy got married and is spending the next year on a yacht sailing around the world.

Q. This morning, when you came to court, did you speak to the prosecutor?

A. Yes, for a minute or two, just before we came in here.

Q. Did he show you any photographs?

A. Well, yes. He showed me the same photo of Mr. Green that the detective showed me earlier in his office.

Q. Just the one photo?

A. Yes. He just asked me if I was sure he was the one.

Q. You testified earlier that you heard the robbers drive away in a car. Were you able to get a look at the car the robbers left in?

A. No, I was still on the ground when they left. I wasn’t going to stick my head up and get shot.

Q. Thank you , no further questions.
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