In Part 2 of his look at a high-profile civil rights case, host Keith Fuicelli interviews the young trial team that secured $20 million. These “main brains” behind the verdict – Ciara Anderson, Omeed Azmoudeh, and Crist Whitney – reveal how they divided duties to represent six bystanders who were injured when a former Denver police officer shot into a crowd. Tune in for their insights about voir dire (“we went in with the strategy of finding liberal gun owners”), themes in opening (“you do not shoot into a crowd”) and witness preparation (“for our client, I wanted to get his emotional story out to the jury.”). Learn more about the case in Part 1.

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Episode Snapshot

1. Ciara's opening focused on establishing credibility while withholding powerful evidence like the defendant’s criminal conviction.
2. In voir dire, Crist’s strategy was to find “liberal gun owners” who understood gun safety principles and would recognize the recklessness of firing into a crowd.
3. The team distilled their case theme to a simple rule: "You do not shoot into a crowd.”
4. Officer Ramos suggested that a worse backdrop than shooting into a crowd of people would be "senators, presidents, and very important people." In his closing, Omeed noted that their clients are “very important people.”
5. Omeed organized his cross-examination of Officer Ramos into chapters, each making one narrow point, with questions becoming increasingly focused during preparation: A "know your target" chapter split into separate chapters on "know your target" and "know what's beyond.”
6. The team's collaborative preparation involved often working until 3:00 a.m. and extensive role-playing where Ciara portrayed Officer Ramos for Omeed's cross-examination practice.
7. For punitive damages, the team dismantled the defense attempt to minimize Officer Ramos’ criminal conviction. He had pleaded guilty in a “sweetheart” deal that avoided jail time. Omeed told the jury: “Look, folks, if you're as enraged as we are, here's what you should note. This guy has never been punished for this conduct.”

The information contained in this podcast is not intended to be taken as legal advice. The information provided by Fuicelli & Lee is intended to provide general information regarding comprehensive injury and accident attorney services for clients in the state of Colorado.