From the San Fran Chronicle: The showdown between a prosecutor and a defendant who takes the witness stand can make or break a trial.
But
on Monday, a man accused of murdering his ex-girlfriend and her male
friend in a shotgun rampage at the Richmond-San Rafael Bridge toll plaza
snapped his fingers as he asked a jury to find him guilty quickly so he
could be back in jail in time for "Monday Night Football."
"I did it. So what?" said Nathan Burris, 49, who is representing himself in his capital trial in Contra Costa County Superior Court in Martinez. "No remorse, no regrets, no mercy. ... You want me to draw it out in crayon?"
In
the audience, a dozen of the victims' family members stared hard at
Burris, who occasionally giggled and - through a speech impediment -
cursed the people he killed.
Veteran prosecutor Harold Jewett,
a fierce interrogator, sought to drill in during cross-examination,
asking Burris if his father would have been proud of him. But Burris
stopped answering questions within 30 minutes.
"This isn't Sesame Street," Burris said, referring to the jury. "They get it, bro."
Burris did not get his verdict Monday, and after seven days of testimony his trial may be far from over.
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