Shaking hands with jurors

[page 62, line 4]

JUDGE VANCE: Let me ask — I was just asking Donna if she wanted to take a break. She doesn’t, but let me encourage you, if you want some cake, drinks or anything, go ahead and get them while we’re going on.

I’ll ask Judge Ellis to come up, please.

JUDGE ELLIS: McCollum, are you all right now?

JUDGE McCOLLUM: Yes, Judge.

JUDGE ELLIS: You’re not going to fall off the minute I speak?

JUDGE McCOLLUM: I guess I ought not.

JUDGE ELLIS: Good evening, lovers of the law. I may not have the funniest story to tell, but I’ve got the most recent story to tell. This happened just this afternoon.

You know back in the olden days when we were trained by Henry Wade, we’d put our witness on and we’d say, “State your name.” And they’d state their name. You’d say, “What is your occupation?” He’d say he was a police officer. Well, for some reason now in the District Attorney’s office, the first question they say is “Introduce yourself to the jury.” Well, this little Mexican fellow this afternoon heard those words. So he got down off the witness stand, and he went over to the jury box and started shaking hands with all the jurors.

Now, I don’t know whether the defense lawyer put him up to that or not, but it sounds like a Randy Taylor deal to me. Honest to goodness, it happened just this afternoon.