Exhaustively parsing the transcript of a Nov. 12, 2008 telephone conversation between Rod Blagojevich and former Deputy Governor Bob Greenlee Monday, defense attorney Aaron Goldstein asked Greenlee to explain what a question mark (“that squiggly line”) is to the jury.
“It is a character that indicates a change of intonation,” Greenlee said.
In cross examination, Goldstein pointed to two lines from Blagojevich in the transcript of the phone call Blagojevich and his aide had about proposed rate increases for children’s Medicaid expenses .
“The pediatric doctors,” Blagojevich said at one point, “has that gone out yet or is that on hold?”
Later, Blagojevich asks: “Could we pull it back?”
Goldstein proceeded to walk Greenlee and the jury through a winding tutorial about what the words could mean.
“You speak English, don’t you?” Goldstein asked Greenlee, to the affirmative.
“Do you know what the meaning of the word ‘could?” Goldstein asked Greenlee, to which the prosecution objected. Goldstein’s request to show the “witness a dictionary,” also drew a sustained objection from the prosecution.
“I’m getting kind of lost,” Greenlee said at one point.”
“I am too,” Goldstein replied.
Before Monday’s testimony, the prosecution informed Judge James Zagel that Greenlee had done contract corporate legal work for former Blagojevich counsel Bill Quinlan since leaving the governor’s office. Zagel denied the defense’s request to bring this up in cross-examination.