Good idea Chief leave TeePee
See Medicine Man
Get Ginseng
Page 101
13 LAIRD KIRCHER
14 a witness herein, having been first duly sworn, was
15 examined and testified as follows:
16 DIRECT EXAMINATION
17
BY MR. BAXTER:
18 Q. Would you state your name, please?
19 A. Laird Kircher.
20 Q. And where are you employed now?
21 A. I'm retired.
22 Q. And you're a retired Chief of Police?
23 A. Right.
24 Q. And prior to that time, Chief, how long
25 were you employed by West View Borough? When did you
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1 start with the Borough?
2 A. 37 years.
3 Q. And did you live in the Borough before that
4 time?
5 A. Yes.
6 Q. So how long have you been
7 A. Since '54, 1954.
8 MR. CLEMENT: Since 154 what?
9 THE WITNESS: 1954.
10 MR. CLEMENT: You've lived in the
11 Borough?
12 THE WITNESS: Yes.
13 Q. During that course of time, have you had an
14 opportunity to observe the property at 479 Perry
15 Highway?
16 A. Oh, yes.
17 Q. Would that have been as a --
18 A. As a police officer.
19 Q. Now, you've been listening to testimony
20 here this evening. During that course of time, did
21 you ever notice automobiles parked in front of the
22 building located at 479 Perry Highway?
23 A. Not for any length of time. Someone would
24 drop off people or -- the elderly used to go up to
25 the hairdressers, and they would drop them off on the
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1 edge of that sidewalk there blocking it. But they
2 would stay there long enough for them to get out or
3 get in the car, and they would leave.
4 Q. And when was it, Chief, that you retired
5 from the Borough?
6 A.In 196.
7 Q. 1996. Okay. During any of that period of
8 time -- do you know Mr. Ballon?
9 A.Oh, yes.
10 Q. Did you ever notice Mr. Ballon parking as
11 depicted in these photographs that have been marked
12 Borough's Exhibits 1, 2, 3, and 4?
13 A. No. The only time I ever observed vehicles
14 there was either loading or unloading.
15 Q. You heard testimony here this evening that
16 on a regular basis Joe Barr would have parked his van
17 on that slot in front of that building. Did you ever
18 make that observation?
19 A. I know Joe, and I knew his van; and I knew
20 he -- his business, as bad as it was for him, I know
21 he wouldn't have parked in front of the building.
22 MR. CLEMENT: That calls for
23 speculation.
24 MR. WATSON: Overruled.
25 MR. CLEMENT: He's not basing it on an
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I observation. He's basing it on what he thinks Joe's
2 business was.
3 Q. Let me clarify that. Did you ever see his
4 van, Joe Barr's van in front of that building?
5 A. Always only to unload.
6 Q. And did you ever see Mr. Ballon's car
7 parked in front of the business?
8 A. only to unload when he had his business
9 there.
10 Q. Did you ever notice any customers parked
11 there?
12 A.Not for any length of time.
13 Q. Did you ever make any observations of that
14 building prior to the time -- prior to 1970?
15 A. Yes.
16 Q. Did anyone park on that sidewalk prior to
17 1970 while you were a police officer?
18 MR. CLEMENT-: I object to the
19 characterization as "sidewalk." I think it's
20 confusing the witness. Are you talking about the red
21 brick portion, or are you talking about the concrete
22 portion?
23 MR. WATSON: Overruled. That's
24 subject to cross-examination. Go ahead.
25 Q. We're talking about the area in front of
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1 the building we've been talking about all night.
2 A. The area in front of the building.
3 Correct.
4 Q. Did you notice anybody prior to 1970 park
5 anything in that area?
6 A. only on occasion where somebody would be
7 unloading. Not overnight parking or not parking for
8 hours on end.
9 Q. What was the use of that building, if you
10 can recall, prior to Mr. Ballon purchasing it? Do
11 you know what business was in there?
12 A. I believe it was a paint shop there.
13 Q. A paint shop?
14 A. Yes.
15 Q. And the customers of the paint shop, from
16 your observation, didn't park there either. Is that
17 correct?
18 A. No.
19 MR. BAXTER: Cross-examine.
