Sept. 21--MILFORD -- A prosecution motion seeking to use a computer animation of a crash that killed two Orange teens three years ago could result in a first for the state.
Defense attorney Hugh F. Keefe of New Haven, however, called the animation a "Disney World-created fantasy tape."
As to the newness of the technology, Milford-Ansonia Judicial District State's Attorney Kevin D. Lawlor said, "There's a first time for everything."
The issue of the computer animation was heard Wednesday by Superior Court Judge Denise D. Markle.
Fired city police Officer Jason Anderson will go on trial next month. He has been charged in the deaths of Ashlie Krakowski and David Servin, both 19.
Anderson's police car hit the teens' vehicle at about 2:15 a.m. June 13, 2009, on Boston Post Road at Dogwood Lane in Orange. The cruiser was going 94 mph. Anderson was not responding to an emergency call nor had he activated his lights and siren.
Keefe is seeking to move the trial to Litchfield, and has argued his client cannot get a fair trial in Milford because of publicity.
Of the animation, Lawlor argued for its limited use at trial.
State Trooper Joseph J. Russo, the accident reconstructionist who sought Anderson's arrest warrant, would use the animation to enhance his testimony, Lawlor told the judge.
Russo responded to the accident scene within two hours of the crash, he said.
He produced the animation with data he collected, and used computer software and images from the Google Earth mapping program.
Russo said the work is his first animation and the first time the state has tried to use such an aid at trial.
The animation was shown on three laptops in court Thursday.
Scenes 1-6 are computerized interpretations of the crash from various directions. Scenes 7-9 show hypothetical scenarios, such as what would have happened if Anderson had been traveling the posted speed, 40 mph, and if the accident had happened during the day.
Keefe questioned use of the animation. He pointed out that footage from the dashboard camera of another cruiser at the scene was available.
"We have an actual videotape. I don't know what we have to confuse the jury with nine different scenarios."
Keefe said the animation fails to show the lights on the back or front of the vehicles, Anderson's brake lights going on, all the buildings on the Post Road, and the ambient light.
He questioned Russo:
"You don't know what these people saw?"
"You don't know what was going on in the Servin car?"
"You don't have a clue as to what they saw, do you?"
"And you don't have a clue as to what Officer Anderson saw?"
Russo answered that he did not.
Lawlor countered that the animation is a tool that will illustrate Russo's technical testimony.
Anderson's driving at the time of the crash is at issue.
"The speed that the defendant's car was traveling was the proximate cause of this accident," Lawlor said.
The other officer's dashboard camera doesn't give people a sense of the speed and distance traveled by the cruiser, Lawlor said.
"If that car weren't speeding, that accident would not have happened," Lawlor said.
The animation will help the jury understand the issue of speed, time and space.
"People have trouble understanding those types of concepts," Lawlor said.
Computer animation replaces the chalkboard or models used years ago in courtrooms, Lawlor said.
The animation would not be taken into the jury's deliberation room, he said.
"The state is not offering it as an exact duplication of what happened," Lawlor said.
"At the end of the day, the evidence is what comes out of the trooper's mouth," Lawlor said.
Keefe countered: "This case is one of first impressions. This is fantasy evidence." He said the animation is prejudicial and "outweighs its value."
What difference does it make, if the animation is only allowed as backup to Russo's testimony, Keefe asked. "Once a jury sees something, it's evidence. Call it what you want."
Lawlor said the animation should be allowed as the state "has a high burden of proof."
Keefe has claimed Anderson can't get a fair trial because of adverse publicity. He said the video of the crash, taken from the other cruiser, has been played on YouTube and shown repeatedly on news broadcasts for three years.
He introduced clippings and DVDs from various area news outlets, including the New Haven Register.
Markle asked Keefe if he had read all the material.
"I read enough to know that the slant against Officer Anderson was negative right from the get-go, and continues today."
Anderson is charged with two counts of second-degree manslaughter and reckless driving. He is free on $250,000 bail.
The case continues at 2 p.m. Oct. 2.
Copyright 2012 - New Haven Register, Conn.
