VOLUME 3 PAGES 415 - 613 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA BEFORE THE HONORABLE YVONNE GONZALEZ ROGERS, JUDGE CIARA NEWTON, ) ) PLAINTIFF, ) ) VS. ) ) EQUILON ENTERPRISES LLC DBA ) SHELL OIL PRODUCTS, ) ) ) DEFENDANT. ) ____________________________) NO. C-17-3961 YGR WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2018 OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA JURY TRIAL REPORTER'S TRANSCRIPT OF PROCEEDINGS APPEARANCES: FOR PLAINTIFF: BY: BY: FOR DEFENDANT: BY: REPORTED BY: MINNIS & SMALLETS LLP 369 PINE STREET, SUITE 500 SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA 94104 SONYA L. SMALLETS, ESQUIRE EVEN R. ETTHINGHOFF, ESQUIRE DICKSON GEESMAN LLP 1999 HARRISON STREET, SUITE 1945 OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA 94612 EMILY A. NUGENT, ESQUIRE LAFAYETTE & KUMAGAI LLP 1300 CLAY STREET, SUITE 810 OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA 94612 GARY T. LAFAYETTE, ESQUIRE BARBARA L. LYONS, ESQUIRE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, CSR 4909, RPR, FCRR OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER TRANSCRIPT PRODUCED BY COMPUTER-AIDED TRANSCRIPTION DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 416 1 I N D E X 2 PLAINTIFF'S WITNESSES: 3 NEWTON, CIARA 4 PAGE VOL. DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MS. SMALLETS (RESUMED) 429 3 5 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. LAFAYETTE 538 3 6 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. LAFAYETTE (RESUMED) 597 3 7 NEWTON, BRIANNA 8 DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MS. NUGENT 584 3 9 CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. LAFAYETTE 593 3 10 11 PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBITS: WITHDRAWN ID. EVD. VOL. 12 8 437 3 13 10 439 3 14 12 440 3 15 15 441 3 16 19 452 3 17 61 510 3 18 101 495 3 19 102 496 3 20 147 529 3 21 148 530 3 22 149 531 3 23 150A 523 3 24 151 532 3 25 152 531 3 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 417 1 PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBITS: WITHDRAWN ID. EVD. VOL. 2 153 532 3 3 154 532 3 4 155 532 3 5 156 534 3 6 157 534 3 7 158A 534 3 8 160 523 3 9 162 532 3 10 164 524 3 11 177A 525 3 12 194A 524 3 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 418 1 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2018 8:00 A.M. 2 P R O C E E D I N G S 3 (PROCEEDINGS HELD OUTSIDE THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) 4 5 THE CLERK: REMAIN SEATED. COURT IS IN SESSION. COME TO ORDER. 6 THE COURT: LET'S CALL THE CASE. 7 THE CLERK: CALLING CIVIL ACTION 17-4961 NEWTON 8 VERSUS EQUILON. 9 APPEARANCES. 10 11 12 COUNSEL, PLEASE COME FORWARD AND STATE YOUR MS. SMALLETS: GOOD MORNING. MS. SMALLETS FOR PLAINTIFF CIARA NEWTON. THE COURT: THE RECORD WILL REFLECT, WE HAVE 13 MS. NUGENT WITH US AND MR. ETTINGHOFF AND MS. NEWTON. 14 MORNING TO YOU ALL. 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 MR. LAFAYETTE: LAFAYETTE. GOOD MORNING, YOUR HONOR. GOOD GARY I'M HERE WITH BARBARA LYONS AND CHRISTINE LAYNE. THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. GOOD MORNING. ISSUES THIS MORNING, MS. SMALLETS? MS. SMALLETS: WE HAVE A FEW LOGISTICAL ISSUES RELATING TO EXHIBITS. THE COURT: GO AHEAD. SO JUST THE LOGISTICAL. ANYTHING ELSE? MS. SMALLETS: YES. WE HAVE THE REQUEST FOR 24 DISMISSAL, AND WE ALSO HAVE AN ISSUE THAT I THINK MAY COME UP 25 WITH THE PLAINTIFF'S TESTIMONY WITH RESPECT TO HOW HER JOB DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 419 1 SEARCH INTERACTS WITH THE UNION GRIEVANCE -- HOW HER JOB 2 SEARCH INTERACTS WITH THE UNION GRIEVANCE. 3 THE COURT: 4 MR. LAFAYETTE: ALL RIGHT. MR. LAFAYETTE. JUST ONE, YOUR HONOR. ANY ISSUES? IT HAS TO DO 5 WITH MY DESIRE NOT TO MAKE OBJECTIONS IF I DON'T HAVE TO, AND 6 IT HAS TO DO WITH THE WAY THE PLAINTIFF IS EXAMINED WHEN SHE 7 TESTIFIES. 8 9 THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. MS. SMALLETS. 10 MS. SMALLETS: 11 COURT AND FOR OPPOSING COUNSEL. 12 THE COURT: 13 MR. LAFAYETTE: 14 WE HAVE EXHIBIT 137A AND 70A FOR THE OKAY. YOU SHOWED IT TO MR. LAFAYETTE? I HAVE A COPY. THEY ARE FINE, YOUR HONOR. 15 THE COURT: 16 ALL RIGHT. (EXHIBITS HANDED TO COURT.) 17 18 LET'S START WITH YOU, MS. SMALLETS: I AM SORRY. I GAVE -- ONE OF THE COPIES WAS FOR US. 19 THE COURT: I DON'T -- FRANCES, I DON'T REALLY NEED 21 THE CLERK: OKAY. 22 THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. 23 MS. SMALLETS: 20 THEM. GREAT. WE ALSO ADDED ADDITIONAL EXHIBITS TO 24 MS. NEWTON'S EXHIBIT BINDER. 25 THEY'RE EXCERPTS FROM SOME VOLUMINOUS BENEFITS DOCUMENTS. A FEW OF THOSE EXHIBITS ARE A'S. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC WE 420 1 SENT THEM TO MR. LAFAYETTE LAST NIGHT. 2 3 MR. LAFAYETTE: I AM SORRY. I WAS IN THE HOSPITAL LAST NIGHT -- 4 THE COURT: SO, FIRST OF ALL, AGAIN, MR. LAFAYETTE, I 5 DON'T KNOW WHERE YOU TYPICALLY PRACTICE, BUT I REQUIRE MORE 6 DECORUM THAN YOU ARE EXHIBITING. 7 WHEN WE ARE ON THE RECORD, YOU CAN DO IT AS MUCH AS YOU WANT. 8 IN FACT, I ENCOURAGE IT WHEN WE ARE NOT. 9 10 MR. LAFAYETTE: DIDN'T SEE IT. THE COURT: 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: IF THEY SENT SOMETHING LAST NIGHT I ALL RIGHT. SO I JUST HAVEN'T HAD A CHANCE TO TALK WITH THEM ABOUT IT. 14 15 SO TALK TO ME. I WENT TO THE HOSPITAL BECAUSE OF MY LEG. 11 13 DO NOT TALK TO COUNSEL. THE COURT: OKAY. THEN I WILL GIVE YOU AN OPPORTUNITY TO CHAT. 16 MR. LAFAYETTE: 17 THE COURT: THANK YOU. SO SHE SAYS SHE SENT THEM TO YOU. I 18 DON'T KNOW THAT THIS IS -- I MEAN, AS LONG AS THEY'RE ON THE 19 LIST. 20 REDOING BINDERS EVERY NIGHT, SO THAT SHOULD BE FINE. 21 RIGHT. 22 I SAID YOU COULD ADD THINGS TO THE BINDER RATHER THAN WHAT ELSE? YOU HAVE THE REQUEST FOR DISMISSAL? 23 HAVE IT ON THE DOCKET? 24 MS. SMALLETS: 25 MR. LAFAYETTE. ALL DO WE WE JUST HAD THE STIPULATION SIGNED BY WE DO HAVE IT. WE WILL FILE IT ON THE -- DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 421 1 THE COURT: OKAY. 2 THAT'S FINE. 3 DO THAT EASILY ENOUGH? JUST FILE IT ON THE DOCKET. OR DO YOU WANT TO GIVE IT TO -- FRANCES, CAN WE 4 THE CLERK: DO -- YOU WANT -- 5 THE COURT: CAN WE FILE THAT? 6 THE CLERK: THEY SHOULD E-FILE IT. 7 MS. SMALLETS: 8 WE JUST GOT MR. LAFAYETTE'S SIGNATURE -- 9 THE COURT: 10 THAT'S FINE. WE CAN GIVE IT BACK THEN. (DOCUMENT HANDED TO COURT.) 11 THE COURT: HERE. GIVE IT BACK TO THEM SO THEY CAN 13 THE CLERK: OKAY. FOUR EXHIBITS -- 14 THE COURT: THEY ARE FROM THE OTHER SIDE. 15 MS. SMALLETS: 12 FILE IT. SO ONE OF THE THINGS MS. NEWTON WOULD 16 TESTIFY TO WITH RESPECT TO -- 17 THE COURT: 18 DO YOU NEED TO SIT, MR. LAFAYETTE? 19 20 JUST A MINUTE. MR. LAFAYETTE: NOW. NO, YOUR HONOR. I CAN STAND RIGHT I'M FINE. 21 THE COURT: 22 MS. SMALLETS: ALL RIGHT. GO AHEAD. ONE OF THE THINGS MS. NEWTON WOULD 23 TESTIFY TO WITH RESPECT TO HER JOB SEARCH IS THAT FOR A PERIOD 24 OF TIME SHE WAS HOPING TO GET HER JOB BACK AT SHELL. 25 WHAT MY HOPE THE TESTIMONY WOULD BE TO ELICIT WOULD BE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 422 1 SIMPLY THAT SHE FILED A UNION GRIEVANCE, IT WASN'T SUCCESSFUL 2 BECAUSE SHE WASN'T A MEMBER OF THE UNION. 3 US TO AVOID ANY ISSUES ABOUT THE INVESTIGATION WHILE ALLOWING 4 THE JURY TO KNOW THE FACT THAT THAT AFFECTED HER JOB SEARCH. 5 BUT BECAUSE ISSUES, WE SAID NOTHING ABOUT THE UNION 6 INVESTIGATION, EXCEPT TO THE EXTENT MITIGATION CAME IN, SO I 7 WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WERE IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE 8 COURT'S ORDER ON THAT TOPIC. 9 THE COURT: 10 11 I THINK THAT ALLOWS ANY RESPONSE? MR. LAFAYETTE: YES, YOUR HONOR. THE UNION -- WHATEVER THIS UNION THING WAS WAS OVER IN A 12 FEW MONTHS. 13 THOSE FEW MONTHS THAT SHE WASN'T LOOKING FOR A JOB. 14 RATHER -- I WOULD RATHER SAY THAT I WON'T ASK -- SAY THAT SHE 15 WASN'T LOOKING FOR A JOB UP UNTIL THAT TIME THE UNION THING 16 ENDED. 17 18 19 IT'S NOW 2018. I DO NOT INTEND TO ARGUE THAT FOR I MY MITIGATION ISSUES GO FOR PERIODS OF TIME MUCH MORE SUBSTANTIAL AFTER THAT. THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. SO DO THE PARTIES STIPULATE 20 THAT THERE IS -- HOW MANY MONTHS DID THE -- HOW MANY MONTHS 21 DID THE INTERNAL APPEAL -- 22 MS. SMALLETS: 23 THE COURT: 24 25 FOUR. FOUR MONTHS? MR. LAFAYETTE, DO YOU STIPULATE -MR. LAFAYETTE: YES, YOUR HONOR. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 423 1 2 THE COURT: -- THAT THE FOUR MONTHS IS NOT A... IS NOT EVIDENCE OF FAILURE TO MITIGATE? 3 MR. LAFAYETTE: 4 THE COURT: 5 MS. SMALLETS: 6 THE COURT: 7 ALL RIGHT. OKAY. YOUR HONOR. THANK YOU. THAT STIPULATION, I WILL INSTRUCT THE JURY. MS. SMALLETS: 9 THE COURT: OKAY. OKAY. MR. LAFAYETTE: THE EXAMINATION, MR. LAFAYETTE. I LISTENED TO WHAT YOU SAID 11 YESTERDAY, YOUR HONOR, AND -- 12 THE COURT: THAT'S GOOD BECAUSE I THINK EVERYONE IN 13 THE COURTROOM HEARD ME. 14 MR. LAFAYETTE: 15 THEN IT IS A NONISSUE. WITH THAT STIPULATION, IF HE VIOLATES 8 10 YES. MY PATIENCE HAD BEEN EXTINGUISHED. YES. THERE IS A CONCERN I HAVE. AS YESTERDAY, THE PLAINTIFF WAS TESTIFYING THERE WOULD BE 16 A QUESTION ASKED AND THEN SHE WOULD GO ON AND ON AND ON. 17 CONCERN BECOMES I DON'T KNOW IF SHE'S ABOUT TO SAY 18 SOMETHING THAT I -- 19 THE COURT: 20 21 MY I DON'T DISAGREE, MR. LAFAYETTE, RIGHT? IT'S CALLED A NARRATIVE. SHE CANNOT NARRATE. THAT SAID, WHAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT WAS REALLY BASIC 22 BACKGROUND STUFF. 23 WHEN THE OTHER SIDE TRIES TO MAKE THE WITNESSES MORE HUMAN AND 24 ACCESSIBLE TO THE JURY. 25 CONSTANT OBJECTIONS ARE UNNECESSARY. YOU KNOW? I KNOW THAT PEOPLE DON'T LIKE IT YOU DON'T LIKE IT. I GET THAT. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC BUT 424 1 THE LEGAL OBJECTION IS... IS, YOU KNOW, IT COULD BE 2 OUTSIDE THE SCOPE OF THE QUESTION BUT IT IS ALSO A NARRATION. 3 I WILL SUSTAIN NARRATIONS. 4 TRIGGER A LITTLE BIT TOO QUICKLY. 5 THIS. 6 BUT YOU KNOW, YOU WERE PULLING THE BOTH SIDES HAVE BEEN DOING NOT JUST YOU, BOTH SIDES. MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD SAY, YOUR HONOR, THAT WHAT -- 7 HAVING TAKEN HER DEPOSITION AND THE DIFFICULTIES I ENCOUNTERED 8 THERE WITH THE NARRATIONS, I BECAME CONCERNED THAT WE WERE NOW 9 TALKING ABOUT JEFF FISCHER, WHO IS A FOCAL POINT OF THEIR 10 11 CASE. AND WHEN WE GOT TO TALKING ABOUT JEFF FISCHER, I HAD A 12 HEIGHTENED SENSE OF AWARENESS OF WHAT I UNDERSTOOD SHE WOULD 13 BE SAYING. 14 APPRECIATES, BUT HAVING TAKEN HER DEPOSITION AND GONE THROUGH 15 HER TRANSCRIPT, THAT IS WHERE MY CONCERN CAME IN. 16 WOULD LIKE NOT TO HAVE TO DO THAT. AND THAT MAY NOT BE SOMETHING THAT EVERYBODY AND SO I 17 AND I WOULD LIKE FOR THE PLAINTIFF NOT TO MAKE THOSE 18 NARRATIONS LIKE THAT BECAUSE IT PUTS ME IN A POSITION WHERE I 19 RUN THE RISK OF SOMETHING BEING SAID THAT I CAN'T PULL BACK. 20 THE COURT: YOU ARE ORDERED TO TALK TO YOUR WITNESS 21 AND HAVE HER FOCUS ON THE QUESTION THAT YOU ARE ASKING AND 22 ONLY ANSWER THAT QUESTION. 23 IF I HAVE TO INSTRUCT THE WITNESS, JUST LIKE IF I DECIDE 24 THAT THE WITNESS -- YOU'RE LISTENING TO ME, MS. NEWTON, LISTEN 25 TO THE QUESTION AND ONLY ANSWER THE QUESTION. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 425 1 THE OTHER SIDE HAS THE RIGHT TO OBJECT. 2 AND ON AND ON, WE DON'T KNOW WHAT'S COMING. SO THIS IS NOT A 3 CONVERSATION. THAT'S THE WAY IT 4 WORKS. 5 IT IS A QUESTION AND ANSWER. SO, EVERYBODY HAS BEEN PUT ON NOTICE. IF YOU JUST GO ON IF I HAVE TO 6 REPRIMAND, AND I DON'T LIKE TO REPRIMAND IN FRONT OF THE JURY, 7 BUT I WILL IF I NEED TO REPRIMAND A WITNESS OR REPRIMAND A 8 LAWYER. 9 EVERYBODY HAS NOW BEEN PUT ON NOTICE. TRY TO FOLLOW THE RULES. OKAY? THE RULES ARE YOU ANSWER THE 10 QUESTION ONLY. 11 SOME MORE, OR WHATEVER. 12 THAT'S YOUR JOB TO PROTECT HER FROM ME REPRIMANDING HER. 13 RIGHT? IF YOU ARE CONCERNED, JUST SAY DO YOU WANT BUT YOU NEED TO CUT HER OFF, TOO. ALL KEEP IT FOCUSED. 14 MS. SMALLETS: 15 THE COURT: 16 MR. LAFAYETTE: 17 THE COURT: YES, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT. YES, YOUR HONOR. ONE OTHER THING. WHO IS THE KEEPER OF 18 THE EXHIBIT LIST? 19 BACK TO THE JURY, I AM GOING TO NEED THE LIST OF EVERYTHING 20 THAT IS BEING ADMITTED. 21 GAVE YOU THE LIST YESTERDAY. 22 23 AS SOON AS EVIDENCE CLOSES AND I SEND THIS I HAVE NOW ADMITTED QUITE A FEW. WHO IS PUTTING THAT TOGETHER? I IT SHOULD BE AN ONGOING AFFAIR. 24 MS. SMALLETS: 25 MR. LAFAYETTE: WE HAVE ONE, YOUR HONOR. WE DO, TOO. WE SHOULD COORDINATE AT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 426 1 THE END OF EACH DAY TO MAKE SURE WE ARE ON THE SAME PAGE. 2 WILL DO THAT. 3 MS. SMALLETS: 4 THE COURT: YES, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT. 5 UNTIL THE JURY IS HERE. 6 MR. LAFAYETTE: 7 THE COURT: 8 THEN WE WILL STAND IN RECESS THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. WHERE ARE THE EXHIBITS THAT I AM EXPECTING FROM THE DEFENSE? 9 10 MR. LAFAYETTE: JUST A SECOND. MR. SU IS BRINGING THEM AND HE SENT ME A TEXT MESSAGE. 11 THE COURT: 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: ALL RIGHT. WE WILL STAND IN RECESS. OKAY. 13 (RECESS TAKEN AT 8:13 A.M.; RESUMED AT 8:18 A.M.) 14 (PROCEEDINGS HELD OUTSIDE THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) 15 THE COURT: 16 MS. NUGENT: WE ARE BACK ON THE RECORD. OKAY. AFTER WE JUST WENT OFF THE 17 RECORD, WE GOT A TEXT FROM ONE OF THE WITNESSES WHO WAS 18 SUPPOSED TO BE HERE TODAY. 19 AND KIDS JUST GOT INTO A CAR ACCIDENT AND TAKEN TO THE 20 HOSPITAL. 21 MR. NAVARRO. 22 WE HE HAS LET US KNOW HIS GIRLFRIEND SO OBVIOUSLY THAT TAKES PRIORITY. THAT WAS JOSE NAVARRO. HE WAS ONLY GOING TO BE A SHORT WITNESS ANYWAY. MY 23 SUGGESTION LAST NIGHT WITH COUNSEL WAS THAT, IF THERE WAS ANY 24 TIME REMAINING, WE WOULD CALL MS. OSTROFE, THE ECONOMIST. 25 DIDN'T GIVE THAT NOTICE IN THE MORNING, BUT IN THE AFTERNOON. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC WE 427 1 HE ASKED US IF MAYBE WE WILL REST AFTER THESE WITNESSES. 2 SAID, NO, IF THERE IS STILL TIME, WE WILL CALL HER. 3 4 THAT WOULD BE OUR PLAN. WE MAY -- MAY NOT HAVE TIME FOR HER, BUT I JUST WANTED TO ALERT THE COURT TO THIS. 5 6 I OKAY. THE COURT: SO THE PLAN FOR TODAY, MS. NUGENT, IS WHAT? 7 THE PLAN FOR TODAY IS MS. NEWTON, CIARA MS. NUGENT: 8 NEWTON, HER SISTER, BRIANNA NEWTON, AND WE WERE ALSO GOING TO 9 CALL MR. NAVARRO. 10 ESTIMATES, IS GOING TO TAKE UP MOST OF THE DAY. 11 12 I IMAGINE MS. NEWTON, JUST GIVEN THE TIME THE COURT: AND THEN -- AND THEN THE PLAN FOR TOMORROW IS WHAT? 13 PLAN FOR TOMORROW IS MS. OSTROFE, MS. NUGENT: 14 MR. BECK -- MIKE BECK, JEFF FISCHER, RAY JONES, AND RICHARD 15 METCALF. 16 MAY HAVE TO TAKE HIM OUT OF ORDER AT SOME OTHER TIME. AND IF MR. NAVARRO CAN MAKE IT, PERHAPS. IF NOT, WE 17 THE COURT: AND WAS THE INTENT TO REST TOMORROW? 18 MS. NUGENT: THAT WAS THE INTENT, YES, OR FRIDAY 19 MORNING AT THE LATEST. 20 THE COURT: 21 MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 23 OKAY. ALL RIGHT. ANY COMMENTS? YES, YOUR HONOR. WITH REGARD TO MS. OSTROFE ONLY. WE DIDN'T GET NOTICE OF HER YESTERDAY MORNING. WE GOT A 24 LIST THAT INCLUDED ONLY THE PLAINTIFF AND THEN BRIANNA NEWTON, 25 AND AFTER HER IT WAS JOSE NAVARRO. SO, AS I WAS GOING OUT OF DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 428 1 MY OFFICE TO THE HOSPITAL, I SENT AN EMAIL AND I ASKED 2 PLAINTIFF IF THEY INTENDED TO REST TOMORROW. 3 SHE SENT AN EMAIL AND SHE SAID NO. 4 THE COURT: 5 MR. LAFAYETTE: 6 7 8 9 10 REST TOMORROW MEANING? MEANING TODAY. THE LIST, AND I WANTED TO KNOW WHERE WE WERE. SHE SAID NO. SHE SAID SOMETHING TO THE EFFECT OF, IF WE RUN -- IF WE RUN SHORT THAT THEY WOULD CALL MS. OSTROFE. WELL, I'M NOT IN A POSITION TODAY TO CROSS-EXAMINE MS. OSTROFE. 11 THE COURT: 12 MS. NUGENT: ABSOLUTELY. 13 THE COURT: THAT'S FINE. 14 OKAY. MR. LAFAYETTE: 16 THE COURT: 17 MS. NUGENT: 18 THE COURT: 20 21 22 23 24 25 I UNDERSTAND. YEAH. IF NOTHING ELSE, THEY CAN PUT ON DIRECT AND YOU CAN CROSS TOMORROW. 15 19 BECAUSE I LOOKED AT THAT'S FINE, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. OKAY. THANK YOU. (RECESS TAKEN AT 8:21 A.M., RESUMED AT 8:35 A.M.) THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. BRING OUT THE JURORS. BRING THEM ON IN. (PROCEEDINGS HELD IN THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) THE COURT: GOOD MORNING. THE RECORD WILL REFLECT THE JURY IS BACK WITH US. I KEEP AN EXCEL SPREADSHEET WITH THEIR TIME, AND SO THAT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 429 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 IS WHAT WE WERE TALKING ABOUT IN TERMS OF HOW MANY MINUTES 2 THEY HAVE LEFT AND HOURS. 3 HOURS. HOW IS EVERYBODY THIS MORNING? 4 5 I SHOULDN'T JUST SAY MINUTES, AND ARE WORKING? EXCELLENT. WE ARE ALREADY TO GET STARTED. 7 ALL RIGHT. EXAMINATION. ANY QUESTIONS? NO? WE WILL CONTINUE WITH THE -- MS. NEWTON'S MS. SMALLETS, YOU MAY PROCEED. OATH. OKAY. THANK YOU. 11 GO AHEAD. DIRECT EXAMINATION RESUMED 12 BY MS. SMALLETS: 13 Q. GOOD MORNING, MS. NEWTON. 14 A. GOOD MORNING. 15 16 ALL OUR PENS AND I WILL REMIND YOU, MS. NEWTON, YOU ARE STILL UNDER 9 10 GOOD. OKAY. 6 8 GOOD? THE COURT: MORE TIME? TURN UP HER MIC PLEASE. ALL RIGHT. ONE ALL RIGHT. PERFECT. GO AHEAD. 17 18 Q. 19 ERIC PEREZ IN MARCH. 20 WE TALKED YESTERDAY ABOUT A CONVERSATION THAT YOU HAD WITH TO ORIENT YOU, THAT WAS THE CONVERSATION WHERE YOU SAID 21 YOU DISCUSSED YOUR SCHEDULE WITH ERIC PEREZ AMONG OTHER 22 THINGS. 23 HOW MANY CONVERSATIONS HAD YOU HAD WITH ERIC PEREZ PRIOR 24 TO THAT CONVERSATION? 25 A. THAT WAS OUR FIRST CONVERSATION. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 430 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 HAD WITH ERIC PEREZ IN WHICH YOU DISCUSSED THE TARDY THAT 3 MR. FISCHER GAVE YOU. 4 AND YOU ALSO TESTIFIED TO ANOTHER CONVERSATION THAT YOU DO YOU RECALL THAT? 5 A. YES. 6 Q. HOW MANY CONVERSATIONS DID YOU HAVE WITH ERIC PEREZ 7 BETWEEN THOSE TWO CONVERSATIONS? 8 A. NONE. 9 Q. NOW, I WOULD LIKE TO RETURN YOUR ATTENTION TO THE TRAINING 10 ENVIRONMENT UNDER JEFF FISCHER. 11 DID MR. FISCHER MAKE ANY OTHER COMMENTS THAT YOU 12 CONSIDERED OFFENSIVE? 13 A. 14 ALREADY SAID. 15 Q. 16 MECHANICAL ABILITIES? DID WE GO OVER THIS YESTERDAY? I'M NOT SURE WHAT I DID MR. FISCHER EVER MAKE ANY STATEMENTS ABOUT YOUR 17 MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 THE COURT: OBJECTION, LEADING. IT IS BUT I'M GOING TO GIVE HER A LITTLE 19 BIT OF LATITUDE BECAUSE SHE JUST INDICATED SHE DIDN'T REMEMBER 20 WHAT SHE ALREADY SAID. 21 YOU REMIND HER WHICH ONES SHE TALKED ABOUT ALREADY AND THEN 22 YOU WON'T HAVE TO LEAD. 23 MS. SMALLETS: 24 BY MS. SMALLETS: 25 Q. OR COULD YOU REMIND HER -- WHY DON'T SURE. YOU TESTIFIED REGARDING A CONVERSATION ABOUT GIRLS ON THE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 431 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 TEAM, REGARDING MR. FISCHER'S DECISION TO HIRE YOU -- SORRY 2 THAT'S -- SHELL'S DECISION TO HIRE YOU. 3 MAKE SURE THAT IS ACCURATE. 4 GATE AND YOU TESTIFIED REGARDING COMMENTS MR. FISCHER MADE 5 ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT WOMEN WOULD MAKE IN OPCEN AND WHETHER 6 WOMEN LAST AND MAKE IT IN OPCEN? 7 A. O AHEAD AND ANSWER? 8 Q. YES. 9 A. SO ONE OF THE OTHER THINGS THAT JEFF SAID WAS THAT HE SAID I'M SORRY. I WANT TO AND COMMENTS ABOUT WALKING TO THE 10 HE WASN'T MECHANICALLY INCLINED. 11 Q. WHAT DID HE SAY? 12 A. MANAGERS WOULD PEAK THEIR HEAD IN AND CHECK ON OUR 13 PROGRESS, AND EVERY TIME HE WOULD LET THEM KNOW THAT I DID, HE 14 THOUGHT I WAS HAVING TROUBLE THAT I WASN'T MECHANICALLY 15 INCLINED. 16 Q. DO YOU RECALL ANY MANAGERS HE SPECIFICALLY SAID THAT TO? 17 A. GRAYSON HILDERBRAND. 18 Q. DO YOU KNOW WHAT GRAYSON'S JOB AT THE PLANT WAS? 19 A. I THINK HE WAS THE MAIN MANAGER OF THE PLANT I WAS WORKING 20 IN. 21 Q. 22 MECHANICALLY INCLINED DID YOU THINK THAT WAS TRUE? 23 A. NO. 24 Q. WHY NOT? 25 A. I DIDN'T THINK IT WAS TRUE BECAUSE AT THE POINT HE WAS DO YOU KNOW IF MR. FISCHER'S STATEMENT THAT YOU WEREN'T DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 432 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 SAYING IT, WE HAD MOSTLY BEEN IN THE CLASS DOING THINGS ON THE 2 BOARD. 3 THOUGHT OF MYSELF AS MECHANICALLY INCLINED AND I TOOK THE SAME 4 MECHANICAL APTITUDE TEST THAT EVERYONE ELSE TOOK. 5 Q. 6 THIS TO OTHER PEOPLE? 7 A. 8 I WANTED TO IMPRESS IN THE WORKPLACE. 9 Q. 10 SO I DIDN'T KNOW WHERE HE DREW THIS CONCLUSION. AND I HOW DID IT MAKE YOU FEEL WHEN YOU HEARD MR. FISCHER SAY I THOUGHT HE WAS SETTING A BAD REPUTATION FOR PEOPLE THAT DID MR. FISCHER MAKE ANY OTHER STATEMENTS TO THE MANAGERS IN YOUR TRAINING CLASS ABOUT YOUR PROGRESS? 11 MR. LAFAYETTE: 12 THE COURT: 13 THE WITNESS: OBJECTION, FOUNDATION, HEARSAY. OVERRULED. HE JUST REPEATEDLY TOLD THEM THAT I HAD 14 FALLEN BEHIND. 15 BY MS. SMALLETS: 16 Q. WAS THAT TRUE? 17 A. NO. 18 FOR BEREAVEMENT, BUT IT WASN'T VERY LONG -- IT DIDN'T TAKE 19 VERY LONG FOR ME TO CATCH UP, AND HE KEPT ON SAYING IT. 20 Q. TELL THE JURY ABOUT MR. FISCHER'S DEMEANOR TOWARD YOU. 21 A. HE WAS VERY AGGRESSIVE AND JUST SEEMED REALLY ANNOYED 22 ABOUT MY PRESENCE RIGHT FROM THE VERY BEGINNING. 23 Q. DID HE MAKE ANY GESTURES TOWARDS YOU? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. COULD YOU DESCRIBE THEM? WELL, IT WAS TRUE WHEN I RETURNED FROM FIVE DAYS OFF DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 433 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 YOU OR.... 3 Q. MAY THE WITNESS DEMONSTRATE? 4 A. WHENEVER HE -- HE WOULD DO LIKE THIS (INDICATING) THE 5 ENTIRE TIME WHILE HE ASKED ME THE QUESTION AND KIND OF JUST 6 GLARE AT ME. 7 FELT.... 8 Q. HOW DID THAT MAKE YOU FEEL? 9 A. I FELT INTIMIDATED. 10 Q. DID -- HOW DID MR. FISCHER TREAT THE OTHER TRAINEES? 11 A. HE TREATED THEM DIFFERENTLY THAN HE TREATED ME. 12 OVERLY FRIENDLY, BUT HE DEFINITELY DIDN'T TREAT THEM IN THE 13 SAME MANNER. 14 Q. HOW DID MR. FISCHER TREAT PATRICK NEUMAN? 15 A. HE TREATED HIM PRETTY GOOD -- THE MOST -- MOST OF THE 16 TRAINING. 17 A LITTLE FRUSTRATION WITH HIM AS WELL. 18 Q. DID HE SNAP HIS PAPER AT PATRICK? 19 A. NOT THAT I REMEMBER. 20 HE WOULD WHENEVER HE WOULD ASK ME A QUESTION, CAN I SHOW YEAH. AND IT JUST MADE IT A LITTLE HARD TO FOCUS AND I HE WASN'T ONCE PATRICK STARTED TO FALL BEHIND, HE DID EXPRESS MAYBE ONCE OR TWICE WHEN PATRICK GOT AN ANSWER 21 WRONG BUT NOT WHILE HE WAS ASKING HIM THE QUESTION. 22 Q. 23 TRAINING WITH MR. FISCHER THAT YOU FOUND OFFENSIVE? 24 A. NOT THAT I CAN THINK OF RIGHT NOW. 25 Q. DID ANYTHING HAPPEN THAT DELAYED YOUR PROGRESS IN THE DID ANYTHING ELSE HAPPEN DURING THE TIME THAT YOU WERE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 434 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 CLASS? 2 A. 3 OFF, HE LET ME KNOW THAT HE COULDN'T CATCH ME UP. EVENTUALLY, 4 I FELT LIKE I DID CATCH UP. 5 FOLLOW THEM IN THEIR TRAINING, AND HE TOLD ME TO STAY BEHIND 6 AND SAID THAT I WASN'T READY. 7 INSISTING THAT I WAS READY. 8 Q. 9 DRAWINGS? WHEN I GOT BACK FROM -- WHEN I GOT BACK FROM SOME TIME SO I ATTEMPTED TO GO OUT AND AND I JUST HAD TO KEEP AS PART OF YOUR TRAINING DID YOU HAVE TO DRAW -- MAKE 10 A. YEAH. 11 Q. AT ANY -- WHAT HAPPENED WITH THAT DRAWING? 12 A. IT WAS A PRETTY DETAILED DRAWING OF WHAT IS GOING ON IN 13 THE PROCESS AND I WAS HALFWAY DONE. 14 MORNING, WE ALL HAD OUR FLOW PROCESS ON A WHITE BOARD. 15 ERASED. 16 DUST. 17 Q. 18 ERASED? 19 A. 20 KNOW JEFF FISCHER WAS PRESENT AND I BELIEVE JOSE NAVARRO. 21 Q. WHAT WAS MR. FISCHER'S REACTION? 22 A. HE DIDN'T -- HE JUST SEEMED LIKE HE DIDN'T CARE. 23 DIDN'T -- HE JUST SAT THERE TO SEE HOW I WOULD REACT. 24 Q. DID -- 25 A. AND JOSE -- SO WE DREW A FLOW CHART ON A WHITE BOARD. WHEN I SHOWED UP ONE IT WAS MINE WAS COMPLETELY ERASED AND HAD IT SAID FAIRY WAS ANYONE ELSE PRESENT WHEN YOU SAW YOUR CHART HAD BEEN I KNOW JEFF -- WHEN I WALKED INTO THE CLASS TO SEE THAT, I DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC HE 435 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. DID YOU TALK -- YOU SAY ANYTHING ABOUT IT? 2 A. NOT REALLY. 3 SAID JUST TO START OVER. 4 Q. 5 YOUR CLASS DOING WHILE YOU WERE STARTING OVER? 6 A. 7 RESTARTING MINE. 8 Q. 9 EXHIBIT 83 IN YOUR BINDER. AND WHAT WERE THE OTHER -- THE OTHER THREE TRAINEES IN THEY CONTINUED ON, SO THEY FINISHED THEIRS AND I WAS I WOULD LIKE TO TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO YOUR PD LOG. 10 11 I JUST SAID SOMEONE ERASED MY CHART AND HE MR. LAFAYETTE: IT'S I COULDN'T HEAR THE EXHIBIT NUMBER, YOUR HONOR. 12 THE COURT: 83, WHICH IS ADMITTED. 13 BY MS. SMALLETS: 14 Q. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT A PD LOG IS? 15 A. IT'S A POSITIVE -- POSITIVE REINFORCEMENT LOG. 16 CAN WRITE POSITIVE THINGS AND NEGATIVE THINGS IN YOUR CHART. 17 Q. DID MR. FISCHER EVER MAKE ANY ENTRIES IN YOUR PD LOG? 18 A. YES. 19 Q. I WOULD LIKE YOU TO TAKE A LOOK AT THE ENTRY FOR 20 APRIL 4TH -- 21 22 SO THEY THREE. THE CLERK: IT IS TAKING A SECOND TO GET IT UP ON THE SCREEN. 23 (PAUSE IN THE PROCEEDINGS.) 24 BY MS. SMALLETS: 25 Q. CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT THAT ENTRY ON APRIL 4TH WAS ABOUT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 436 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 FURTHER ALONG. 3 COACHING AT THE TIME. 4 Q. 5 IT SAYS THAT I FELL BEHIND AND THAT I SHOULD BE MUCH I DON'T THINK HE EVER TOLD ME ABOUT THIS DID YOU THINK THAT COACHING WAS FAIR? DID YOU THINK THAT COACHING WAS FAIR? 6 A. I DID NOT. 7 Q. WHY NOT? 8 A. I FELT THAT I HAD CAUGHT UP BY THAT TIME. 9 THAT ANOTHER STUDENT HAD FALLEN BEHIND FURTHER THAN ME AND HE 10 DIDN'T MISS ANY TIME, SO I THOUGHT MAYBE THE SITUATION SHOULD 11 HAVE BEEN INCLUDED. 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: OBJECTION, YOUR HONOR, IT IS OUTSIDE 13 THE SCOPE OF HER KNOWLEDGE. 14 IT IS HEARSAY. 15 THE COURT: I ALSO FELT NO FOUNDATION FOR THIS TESTIMONY. OVERRULED. 16 BY MS. SMALLETS: 17 Q. WHAT WAS THE -- WHO WAS THAT OTHER STUDENT? 18 A. PATRICK NEUMAN. 19 Q. DID YOU RECEIVE ANY -- TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 8 IN YOUR 20 WITNESS BINDER. 21 CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THIS IS? 22 A. 30-DAY PROGRESS REPORT, THE THIRD ONE. 23 Q. WHO GAVE YOU THIS REPORT? 24 A. JEFF FISCHER. 25 Q. DID YOU DISCUSS THIS REVIEW WITH JEFF FISCHER? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 437 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. YES. 2 3 MS. SMALLETS: YOUR HONOR, WE WOULD LIKE TO ADMIT EXHIBIT 8 INTO EVIDENCE. 4 MR. LAFAYETTE: 5 THE COURT: 6 NO OBJECTION. ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 8 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 7 BY MS. SMALLETS: 8 Q. 9 REVIEW? DO YOU RECALL WHAT MR. FISCHER SAID TO YOU ABOUT THIS 10 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 11 A. 12 BEHIND. 13 Q. 14 REVIEW? 15 A. 16 AND REGULATIONS WE HAVE AT THE REFINERY. 17 SAFETY HABITS WHEN DOING THE REQUIRED FIELD WORK. 18 FIRST ONE TO PUT ON GOGGLES. 19 Q. YEAH. SO THIS IS, AGAIN, HIM TELLING ME THAT I WAS WHAT DID MR. FISCHER SAY ABOUT YOUR SAFETY HABITS IN THIS CIARA IS BEGINNING TO UNDERSTAND THE VARIOUS SAFETY RULES SHE HAS SHOWN GOOD ALWAYS THE WHAT DID MR. FISCHER SAY ABOUT YOUR STRENGTHS? 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 THE COURT: 22 BY MS. SMALLETS: 23 Q. 24 THAT'S ON PAGE 2. 25 A. I COULDN'T HEAR THE QUESTION. REPHRASE. GO AHEAD. WHAT WITH DID MR. FISCHER SAY ABOUT YOUR STRENGTHS? AND CIARA IS NEW TO REFINING AND IS VERY ATTENTIVE AND EAGER DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 438 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 TO LEARN. 2 HELPS OTHERS WHEN NEEDED. 3 Q. 4 THE REVIEW PERIOD? 5 A. DOES THIS DOCUMENT STATE HOW MANY TIMES YOU WERE LATE IN YES. 6 7 IT SAYS ONCE. MR. LAFAYETTE: OBJECTION, DOCUMENT IS ITS OWN BEST EVIDENCE. 8 9 SHE GETS ALONG WELL WITH OTHERS IN THE CLASS AND THE COURT: OVERRULED. BY MS. SMALLETS: 10 Q. 11 AS YOUR TRAINING WITH MR. FISCHER WAS DRAWN TO AN END, WERE 12 THERE ANY TESTS YOU HAD TO TAKE? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. WHAT TESTS WERE THOSE? 15 A. THERE WAS A WRITTEN TEST AND A WALK-THROUGH TEST WITH 16 GRAYSON HILDERBRAND. 17 Q. 18 19 DURING YOUR TRAINING WITH MR. FISCHER, WERE THERE ANY -- TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 10 IN YOUR WITNESS BINDER. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? A. THIS IS THE FINAL WRITTEN EXAM. 20 21 THERE WAS TWO. MS. SMALLETS: EVIDENCE. 22 THE COURT: 23 MR. LAFAYETTE: 24 25 WE WOULD LIKE TO MOVE EXHIBIT 10 INTO ANY OBJECTION? I'M TRYING TO FIND IT IN THE BINDER, YOUR HONOR. THE COURT: IT'S RIGHT IN THE BINDER, MR. LAFAYETTE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 439 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 ANY OBJECTION? 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: 3 THE COURT: NO, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. 4 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 10 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 5 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 6 BY MS. SMALLETS: 7 Q. WHAT WAS YOUR SCORE ON THIS FINAL EXAMPLE? 8 A. 96.12. 9 Q. TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 12 IN YOUR WITNESS BINDER. 10 CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? 11 A. THIS IS THE WALK-THROUGH TEST. 12 Q. WHO -- TELL US WHAT A WALK-THROUGH IS. 13 A. A WALK-THROUGH TEST IS WITH THE MAIN MANAGER, GRAYSON 14 HILDERBRAND, AND YOU WALK THROUGH THE PLANTS AND GO THROUGH 15 EACH PIECE OF EQUIPMENT AND EXPLAIN EXACTLY WHAT THAT 16 EQUIPMENT DOES AND WHAT IS HAPPENING IN THE PROCESS. 17 ASKS YOU QUESTIONS ABOUT EACH EQUIPMENT, WHAT'S HAPPENING AND 18 GRADES YOU ON, LIKE, 250 QUESTIONS. 19 Q. TAKE A LOOK AT THE LAST PAGE OF THIS DOCUMENT. 20 A. THOSE ARE NOT THE REAL QUESTIONS. 21 22 MS. SMALLETS: I AM SORRY. THEY ARE EXAMPLES. WE WOULD LIKE TO MOVE EXHIBIT 12 INTO EVIDENCE. 23 THE COURT: 24 MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 THE COURT: AND HE ANY OBJECTION? NO, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 440 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 12 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 2 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 3 BY MS. SMALLETS: 4 Q. CAN YOU TAKE A LOOK AT THE LAST PAGE? 5 A. YES. 6 Q. WHAT WAS YOUR SCORE ON THIS EXAM? 7 A. 292 OUT OF 296. 8 Q. OKAY. 9 EARLIER YOU WEREN'T READY TO TAKE OR EITHER OF THESE? AND ARE THESE THE TESTS THAT JEFF FISCHER SAID 10 A. YES. 11 Q. WHICH ONE OR BOTH? 12 A. BOTH. 13 Q. NOW, I WOULD LIKE TO TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO A LITTLE BIT 14 OF A DIFFERENT SUBJECT, THE PARALLEL TRAINING CHECKLIST. 15 A. OKAY. 16 Q. WE'RE GOOD. 17 A. PARALLEL TRAINING IS YOU GET ASSIGNED TO ONE TRAINER, A 18 QUALIFIED OPERATOR, AND NOW WE'VE PASSED BOTH TESTS AND NOW WE 19 ARE IN THE FIELD ACTUALLY BEING TRAINED IN THE FIELD. 20 LONGER IN THE CLASSROOM. 21 Q. WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU FINISH PARALLEL TRAINING? 22 A. ONCE YOU FINISH PARALLEL TRAINING, YOU'RE A QUALIFIED 23 OPERATOR AND YOU NOW WORK ALONE. 24 Q. 25 OPERATOR AS AN EMPLOYEE? MOSTLY THE WALK-THROUGH. DID YOU WANT MORE ABOUT THE WALK-THROUGH? WHAT IS PARALLEL TRAINING? IS THERE ANY BENEFIT TO YOU TO BECOMING A QUALIFIED DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC NO 441 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. ONE OF THE BENEFITS IS YOU CAN ARRANGE SHIFT SWAPS. 2 Q. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN? 3 A. YOU CAN EXCHANGE SHIFTS WITH OTHER EMPLOYEES. 4 Q. AND -- 5 A. SO, YOU CAN TAKE A DAY OFF AND THEY CAN WORK IT FOR YOU 6 AND YOU EXCHANGE THAT WITH THEM. 7 Q. WHO WAS YOUR TRAINER DURING PARALLEL TRAINING? 8 A. I HAD A FEW DIFFERENT TRAINERS. 9 ELZEY, KYLE SIBLEY, AND CHRIS SALAS. ASHTON, KYLE. 10 Q. 11 BINDER? 12 A. THIS IS THE PARALLEL TRAINING CHECKLIST. 13 Q. WAS THAT COMPLETED FOR YOU? 14 A. YES. WOULD YOU TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 15 IN YOUR WITNESS 15 16 ASHTON CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? MS. SMALLETS: YOUR HONOR, WE WOULD LIKE TO MOVE EXHIBIT 15 INTO EVIDENCE. 17 THE COURT: 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 THE COURT: ANY OBJECTION? NO OBJECTION. ADMITTED. 20 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 15 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 21 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 22 BY MS. SMALLETS: 23 Q. DID YOU COMPLETE YOUR PARALLEL TRAINING? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. AND DID YOU BEGIN WORKING ON SHIFTS? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 442 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. YES. 2 Q. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 3 A. NEXT, I WAS A QUALIFIED OPERATOR. 4 ALONE, UNSUPERVISED. 5 Q. 6 PARALLEL TRAINING CHECKLIST? 7 A. LATER. 8 Q. WHAT DID YOU AND MR. FISCHER DISCUSS? 9 A. HE ASKED TO SEE MY CHECKLIST AND HE TOLD ME THAT I WASN'T I WAS WORKING IN HP-2 DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATION WITH MR. FISCHER ABOUT THE YES, I DID. 10 QUALIFIED, AND HE TOOK A WHITEOUT AND WHITED OUT ALL OF THE 11 GUY'S SIGNATURES WHO HAD SIGNED OFF ON MY LIST. 12 Q. DID HE SAY ANYTHING WHEN HE DID IT? 13 A. HE SAID THESE GUYS AREN'T QUALIFIED TO SIGN OFF YOUR 14 PAPER. 15 Q. 16 FEEL? 17 A. 18 THE SAME SIGNATURES AND THEY -- 19 MR. LAFAYETTE: 20 THE COURT: 21 THE WITNESS: AND HOW DID THAT INTERACTION WITH MR. FISCHER MAKE YOU I WAS UPSET BECAUSE I KNEW THAT THE OTHER THREE GUYS HAD OBJECTION, HEARSAY. OVERRULED. YEAH. I SIGNED OFF ON SOME OF THESE 22 THINGS TOGETHER AS A GROUP, SO I KNEW THAT THE SAME SIGNATURES 23 WERE ON THEIR PAPERS. 24 MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 THE COURT: OBJECTION, HEARSAY. MOVE TO STRIKE. OVERRULED. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 443 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BY MS. SMALLETS: 2 Q. YOU CAN FINISH. 3 A. AND SO, I WAS UPSET. 4 ACCEPT IT AND HE ACCEPTED ALL OF THERE IS. 5 Q. WHAT DID HE SAY? 6 A. HE SAID THEY'RE NOT SMES, MATERIAL EXPERTS. 7 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHEN THIS TOOK PLACE? 8 A. THE WEEKEND BEFORE MEMORIAL DAY WEEKEND. 9 Q. THERE IS A 2016 CALENDAR IN FRONT OF YOU. WHY DID HE WHITE OUT MINE AND NOT SO I ASKED HIM. IT IS JUST A 10 BLANK CALENDAR WITH HOLIDAYS ON IT. 11 A. FRIDAY, MAY 27TH. 12 Q. WHY DO YOU RECALL IT WAS ON FRIDAY, MAY 27TH? 13 A. I RECALL THAT BECAUSE I HAD ARRANGED FOR THE SATURDAY, THE 14 NEXT DAY OFF, FOR A WEDDING. 15 Q. 16 YOUR SIGNATURES? 17 A. 18 MY SHIFT SWAP, AND I ASKED HIM WHY DID JEFF FISCHER DO THIS. 19 AND WHAT SHOULD I DO BECAUSE THERE'S FIVE MINUTES LEFT ON THE 20 SHIFT AND I'M SUPPOSED TO LEAVE TOWN. 21 AND SO.... AND SO WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT ONCE MR. FISCHER WHITED OUT I WENT TO MY SUPERVISOR, CAMERON, WHO HAD ALREADY APPROVED AND HE SAID I DON'T KNOW WHY JEFF DID THAT. THERE'S NO -- 22 NO REASON THAT I CAN THINK OF, BUT I'M NOT READY TO CHALLENGE 23 HIM. 24 Q. 25 NEXT? DID HE GIVE YOU ANY INFORMATION ABOUT WHAT YOU SHOULD DO DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 444 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 ERIC PEREZ. 3 Q. WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 4 A. I CALLED ERIC PEREZ. 5 OF HIM UNTIL 7:00, WHICH IS HIS PERSONAL HOURS, 7:00 P.M. -- 6 OR AROUND 7:00 P.M. 7 Q. 8 TIME THAT YOU TALKED TO HIM ABOUT YOUR TARDY AND THIS 9 CONVERSATION ON MAY 27TH? HE GAVE ME ERIC PEREZ'S PERSONAL CELL PHONE AND SAID CALL UNFORTUNATELY, I COULDN'T GET AHOLD HAD YOU HAD ANY CONVERSATIONS WITH MR. PEREZ BETWEEN THE 10 A. NO. 11 Q. WHAT DID YOU TELL MR. PEREZ WHEN YOU SPOKE TO HIM ON 12 MAY 27TH? 13 A. 14 OFF, BUT I'M NOT SURE WHAT TO DO BECAUSE I HAD APPROVED 15 SCHEDULE CHANGE APPROVED BY MY SUPERVISOR, CAMERON, BUT 16 ANOTHER SUPERVISOR WHITED OUT -- JEFF FISCHER WHITED OUT ALL 17 OF MY SIGNATURES AND SAID I AM NOT QUALIFIED EVEN THOUGH I 18 HAVE BEEN WORKING IN THE PLANT ALONE FOR A COUPLE OF WEEKS 19 NOW. 20 I SAID I'M REALLY SORRY TO BE CALLING YOU ON YOUR TIME AND HE SAYS I NEED TO COME IN TOMORROW AND I'M NOT SURE 21 WHAT TO DO. 22 Q. WHAT WAS MR. PEREZ'S RESPONSE? 23 A. HE SEEMED IRRITATED. 24 BUT I'M NOT THERE, SO JUST GO AHEAD AND TAKE THE DAYS OFF AND 25 WE WILL FIGURE IT OUT LATER. HE SAID I DON'T KNOW WHY HE DID THAT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 445 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHO DID HE SEEM IRRITATED AT? 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: 3 THE WITNESS: 4 THE COURT: 5 THE WITNESS: 6 THE COURT: 7 MS. SMALLETS: 8 OBJECTION. ME. SUSTAINED. AND I THINK BOTH. I SAID SUSTAINED. IF THE JUDGE SAYS "SUSTAINED", THAT MEANS YOU DON'T ANSWER THE QUESTION. 9 THE WITNESS: SORRY. 10 BY MS. SMALLETS: 11 Q. 12 ON YOUR OWN? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 15 A. GRAYSON HILDERBRAND APPROACHED ME. 16 Q. WHAT DID HE SAY TO YOU? 17 A. HE SAID WHAT'S GOING ON, ARE YOU QUALIFIED OR ARE YOU NOT. 18 Q. WHAT WAS YOUR RESPONSE? 19 A. I SAID I'M STILL TRYING TO FIGURE IT OUT. 20 WHO TO ASK. 21 Q. WHAT DID HE SAY? 22 A. AND HE ASKED ME TO SHOW HIM THE PAPER THAT WAS WHITED OUT, 23 AND HE SAID, I DON'T KNOW WHY HE DID THIS, GO TAKE IT BACK TO 24 THE SAME GUYS, HAVE THEM SIGN IT. 25 Q. WHEN YOU CAME BACK TO WORK, WERE YOU STILL WORKING SHIFTS I DON'T KNOW I EXPLAINED TO HIM WHAT HAPPENED. YOU'RE QUALIFIED. WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 446 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. I WENT TO CHRIS SALAS AND ASKED HIM TO RE-SIGN. 2 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 3 Q. 4 YOUR CLASS ABOUT WHO SIGNED OFF ON THEIR PARALLEL TRAINING 5 CHECKLIST? 6 A. YES. 7 Q. DID THEY TELL YOU WHO HAD? DID YOU EVER TALK TO ANY OF THE OTHER THREE TRAINEES IN 8 MR. LAFAYETTE: 9 THE COURT: OBJECTION, LEADING AND HEARSAY. SUSTAINED. BEFORE SHE SAID SHE SAW 10 THINGS. 11 BY MS. SMALLETS: 12 Q. DID YOU SEE THEIR PARALLEL TRAINING CHECKLIST? 13 A. I DID NOT SEE -- WELL, AT THIS POINT IN TIME I HAD NOT 14 SEEN THEIR PARALLEL CHECKLISTS BUT WE HAD DID A FEW OF THE 15 TRAINING, THE THREE OF US TOGETHER, AND THE SAME MAN OR 16 EMPLOYEE SIGNED IT OFF. 17 DIDN'T SEE IT -- IT COMPLETED BUT I KNEW THE SAME SIGNATURES 18 WERE ON THEIRS. 19 Q. 20 MAY 9TH. 21 A. YES. 22 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHEN THAT WAS DURING THE COURSE OF YOUR 23 TRAINING? 24 A. 25 PARALLEL TRAINING WITH CHRIS SALAS. SO I GUESS AT THAT TIME I SAW IT, I LET'S GO BACK TO EXHIBIT 83 AGAIN. THERE IS AN ENTRY ON DO YOU SEE THAT? I'M PRETTY SURE -- I THINK IT WAS MY FIRST DAY IN MY SO THAT MEANS WE WERE IN DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 447 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 THE CLASSROOM TRAINING WITH JEFF. 2 OUTSIDE TRAINING WITH OUR ONE-ON-ONE TRAINER. 3 FIRST DAY WITH MY -- DOING THIS. 4 Q. WHO WROTE THAT ENTRY? 5 A. IAN CHAMBERLAIN. 6 Q. DO YOU KNOW WHAT HIS JOB WAS? 7 A. HE WAS THE SUPERVISOR ON THAT PARTICULAR SHIFT. 8 Q. DO YOU RECALL THE SITUATION THAT LED TO THIS PD LOG ENTRY? 9 A. YES. 10 Q. TELL US HOW THAT BEGAN. 11 A. SO WHILE TRAINING WITH CHRIS SALAS, AND I BELIEVE AT THE 12 MOMENT WE WERE ALSO WITH ASHTON, MY GOGGLES BROKE IN THE BACK, 13 THE BAND THAT HOLDS THEM ON. 14 GOGGLES BROKE, WHERE DO I GET A NEW PAIR. 15 WERE BACK IN THE OFFICE. 16 GET THE GOGGLES. 17 Q. AND DID -- WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 18 A. CHRIS, MY TRAINER, HE TOOK ME OUT TO A SHED. 19 WALKING EN ROUTE TO GET EXTRA SUPPLIES. 20 Q. 21 GOGGLES? 22 A. 23 GOGGLES ON OUR HARD HAT, BUT THERE ARE CERTAIN AREAS OF THE 24 REFINERY OUR GOGGLES ARE REQUIRED TO BE WORN. 25 Q. NOW WE ARE DOING THE THIS WAS MY SO I ASKED THEM WHERE DO - MY AT THIS TIME WE ARE CHRIS SAID I'LL SHOW YOU WHERE TO WE WERE WERE YOU IN AN AREA IN WHICH YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE SO, IN ALL AREAS OF THE REFINERY, WE ARE -- WE MUST HAVE AND WHICH ONE OF THOSE AREAS WERE YOU IN? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 448 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 THE TOP OF OUR HARD HAT. 3 Q. DID YOU HAVE A RADIO WITH YOU AT THAT TIME? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. WHY NOT? 6 A. PRIOR TO THIS TRAINING -- WE WERE TRAINING WITH JEFF 7 FISCHER. 8 EQUIPMENT IS DOWN. 9 THAN USUAL, SO THERE WASN'T ENOUGH RADIOS WHEN WE WERE AT WE WERE JUST IN THE REFINERY. SO WE NEEDED THE GOGGLES ON THE PLANT WAS -- WAS IN SHUTDOWN. ALL OF THE AND THERE IS A LOT OF CONTRACTORS, MORE 10 TRAINING. 11 OUR TRAINER HAD A RADIO, THEN UNLESS THERE WAS RADIOS 12 AVAILABLE, THAT WAS OKAY. 13 KNEW I DIDN'T HAVE A RADIO BUT HE DID. 14 Q. 15 WITH CHRIS SALAS? 16 A. 17 US. 18 Q. WHAT DID MR. CHAMBERLAIN SAY? 19 A. AND HE SAID WHAT THE F ARE YOU DOING OUT HERE WITHOUT YOUR 20 F-ING GOGGLES? 21 Q. DID HE SAY ANYTHING ELSE? 22 A. NOT AT THAT POINT. 23 EN ROUTE. 24 SAID, WELL, LIKE, IF YOU WANT TO BE AN F-ING OPERATOR, I'M 25 GOING TO TREAT YOU LIKE A F-ING OPERATOR. SO, DURING THAT TIME WE WERE INSTRUCTED AS LONG AS CHRIS -- I WAS WITH MY TRAINER. HE WHAT HAPPENED NEXT WHEN YOU'RE WALKING TOWARD THE SHED IAN CHAMBERLAIN, WHO I HAD NEVER MET YET, HE CAME UP TO WHERE IS YOUR F-ING RADIO? I STARTED TO EXPLAIN WHY, THAT WE WERE BUT BEFORE I COULD EVEN FINISH MY BE SENTENCE, HE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 449 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 2 A. I THINK HE SCREWS WALKED AWAY AND ME AND CHRIS -- CHRIS 3 APOLOGIZE HAD TO ME HE SAID SORRY THAT WAS MY FAULT AND WE 4 WENT TO GET THE GOGGLES. 5 Q. 6 OTHER POINT DURING THAT DAY? 7 A. 8 OFFICE. 9 Q. DID YOU GO SPEAK TO HIM? 10 A. YEAH. 11 Q. WHAT DID YOU SAY? 12 A. I WANTED TO TELL HIM THAT I KNEW WE NEEDED GOGGLES WITH 13 YOU BUT I WAS GOING TO GET A PAIR. 14 Q. WHAT WAS HIS RESPONSE? 15 A. HE TOLD ME IT'S NOT ACCEPTABLE AND HE NEEDED TO DOCUMENT 16 IT. 17 Q. 18 RADIOS WITH THEM DURING THIS TIME PERIOD? 19 A. YES. 20 Q. AND DID YOU SEE THEM? 21 A. YES. 22 Q. WHICH OPERATORS DID YOU SEE WHO DIDN'T HAVE RADIOS? 23 A. JUST ME AND THE OTHER NEW HIRES IN TRAINING WHEN WE WERE 24 TRAINING WE OFTEN WENT OUT -- NOT ALONE WITHOUT RADIOS BUT 25 WITH A TRAINER. DID YOU TALK TO MR. CHAMBER LAND ABOUT THIS IN AT ANY LATER -- NOT THAT MUCH LONGER IN THE DAY HE WAS IN HIS WERE YOU AWARE OF ANY OTHER OPERATORS WHO DID NOT HAVE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 450 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 HAVE ANY INTERACTIONS WITH OTHER OPERATORS WHO WERE NOT 3 WEARING PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT? 4 A. I DID JUST ONCE FAIRLY SHORTLY AFTER THIS. 5 Q. CAN YOU DESCRIBE THAT FOR US? 6 A. SOMEBODY WALKED OUT WITHOUT THEIR EAR PROTECTION HE WAS 7 LIKE HEY MAN WHERE'S YOUR EAR PROTECTION. 8 AROUND GOT IT, AND THAT IS ALL I SAW HAPPEN. 9 Q. DID YOU EVER SEE -- DID YOU EVER WITNESS MR. CHAMBERLAIN AND THE GUY TURNED DID YOU EVER WITNESS ANY OTHER OPERATORS LEAVE THE OFFICE 10 AREA WITHOUT HAVING THE PROPER PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT ON THEM? 11 A. HERE AND THERE. 12 Q. AND WHAT EQUIPMENT DID YOU SEE PEOPLE MISSING? 13 A. USUALLY PEOPLE WOULD FORGET THEIR EAR PLUGS. 14 Q. AND DID YOU OBSERVE MANAGERS RESPONDING TO THAT SITUATION? 15 A. YES. 16 Q. WHAT DID THE MANAGERS DO? 17 A. JUST GIVE THEM A FRIENDLY REMINDER. 18 Q. NOW, I WOULD LIKE TO TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO THE TIME THAT 19 YOU REPORTED TO CAMERON CURRAN. 20 DO YOU RECALL WHEN HE BECAME YOUR SUPERVISOR? 21 A. I THINK IN THE BEGINNING OF JUNE. 22 Q. OKAY. 23 LIKE? 24 A. THEY WERE MOSTLY FINE. 25 Q. DID MR. CURRAN MAKE ANY COMMENTS THAT YOU FOUND OFFENSIVE? WHAT WERE YOUR INITIAL INTERACTIONS WITH MR. CURRAN DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 451 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 TO WORK THERE. 3 WHEN HE ASKED ME MORE THAN ONCE, I FOUND IT OFFENSIVE. 4 Q. 5 ONCE? 6 A. 7 I ALREADY ANSWERED SO I DIDN'T KNOW WHY HE KEPT ASKING ME WHY 8 I WANTED TO WORK THERE. 9 Q. DID HE SAY ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU FOUND OFFENSIVE? 10 A. ALSO WITH THE FIRST TIME HE ASKED ME IF I WAS SCARED TO 11 WORK THERE I WASN'T TOO OFFENDED BUT WHEN HE ASKED ME MULTIPLE 12 TYPES I FOUND IT OFFENSIVE. 13 Q. WHY WAS THAT? 14 A. JUST BECAUSE I DIDN'T THINK I EVER SHOWED ANY -- I DON'T 15 THINK I EVER DID ANYTHING THAT WOULD MAKE HIM THINK I WAS 16 SCARED, SO I DIDN'T UNDERSTAND WHY HE ASKED ME AGAIN AND AGAIN 17 IF I WAS SCARED. 18 Q. AND DID HE SAY ANYTHING ELSE THAT YOU FOUND OFFENSIVE? 19 A. IN MY WHOLE TIME WITH CAMERON? 20 Q. YES. 21 A. WHEN WE HAD THIS SPILL AT THE SULFURIC ACID TANK, HE TOLD 22 ME ARE YOU SURE -- LIKE, BASICALLY, HE WAS THINKING I WAS 23 SCARED ARE YOU SURE YOU WANT TO WORK HERE? 24 TANK JUST STARTS SPEWING AS I HAD YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE TO GO 25 CLOSE IT. HE JUST -- I HE KIND OF REPEATEDLY ASKED ME WHY I WANTED AT FIRST I DIDN'T REALLY FIND IT OFFENSIVE BUT WHY DID YOU FIND IT OFFENSIVE WHEN HE ASKED YOU MORE THAN I KIND OF JUST FELT LIKE I WAS STILL BEING INTERVIEWED AND BECAUSE IF THAT I DIDN'T FIND IT OFFENSIVE BUT IS.... DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 452 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. DID THAT -- 2 A. THAT WHOLE SITUATION WAS OFFENSIVE. 3 Q. WE WILL TALK ABOUT THAT IN A MOMENT. 4 QUESTIONS ABOUT YOUR FAMILY MEMBERS? 5 A. 6 A REFINERY AND IF THAT DIDN'T BOTHER HIM AND IT SEEMED STRANGE 7 TO HIM. 8 Q. 9 SENTENCE? DID HE ASK YOU ANY HE ASKED ME WHAT LIKE MY HUSBAND THOUGHT OF ME WORKING AT I AM SORRY. JUST SO I'M CLEAR. WHO GOES THE HIMS IN THAT SO CAMERON ASKED YOU -- 10 A. 11 REFINERY AND WHAT HE THOUGHT ABOUT ME WORKING NIGHTS, I THINK. 12 Q. HOW MANY TIMES DID HE ASK YOU THAT? 13 A. MAYBE TWICE. 14 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 19. 15 HE ASKED ME WHAT MY HUSBAND THOUGHT ABOUT ME WORKING AT A CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? 16 A. THIS IS MIGHT FOURTH 30-DAY REVIEW. 17 Q. WHO GAVE YOU THAT REVIEW? 18 A. CAMERON. 19 20 MS. SMALLETS: I BELIEVE THIS IS IN EVIDENCE, SO MAY WE SHOW IT. 21 THE COURT: 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 THE COURT: ANY OBJECTION? NO, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. 24 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 19 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 25 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 453 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BY MS. SMALLETS: 2 Q. 3 REVIEW? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT HE SAID TO YOU DURING THAT 6 CONVERSATION? 7 A. HE SAID -- I THINK HE SAID EVERYTHING WAS LOOKING GOOD. 8 Q. LET'S TAKE A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE SULFURIC ACID TANK. 9 DID YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH MR. CURRAN ABOUT THAT WERE THERE ANY ISSUES WITH THE SULFURIC ACID TANK DURING 10 THE TIME THAT YOU WERE REPORTING TO MR. CURRAN IN JUNE? 11 A. YES. 12 Q. WHAT WAS THE ISSUE? 13 A. THE ISSUES STARTED WITH THE SIGHT GLASS AND THE PRESSURE 14 GAUGE NOT MATCHING UP SO THEY WERE NOT WORKING. 15 Q. TELL US WHAT A SIGHT GLASS IS. 16 A. IT IS JUST SOMETHING YOU LOOK AT SO YOU CAN SEE THE LEVEL 17 OF THE TANK. 18 Q. WHAT IS A PRESSURE GAUGE? 19 A. AND THE PRESSURE GAUGE READS THE PRESSURE. 20 Q. AND DID YOU -- WHAT DID YOU NOTICE ABOUT THEM? 21 A. THEY WERE NOT -- USUALLY THEY RELY ON BOTH SO THAT THEY 22 SHOULD HAVE SIMILAR READINGS. 23 TANK, THEY KNOW FOR SURE THAT IT'S -- THEY CAN'T JUST RELY ON 24 ONE BECAUSE THAT ISN'T SAFE, SO THEY HAVE TWO. 25 READING THE SAME, SO WE KNEW THAT ONE OF THEM WASN'T WORKING. OR ISSUES? AND YOU -- THAT WAY WHEN THEY FILL THE THEY WEREN'T DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 454 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHAT DID YOU DO WHEN YOU NOTICED THIS? 2 A. I TOLD CAMERON. 3 WROTE IT IN MY SHIFT REPORT. 4 Q. 5 THESE ARE? 6 A. 7 WASN'T CALLED A PLEASURE GAUGE IT WAS A LONG TIME AGO. 8 DIFFERENT DEVICES. 9 Q. TELL US WHAT THIS IS. 10 A. THIS IS OUR SHIFT TURNAROUND WHERE WE TAKES ON ANY 11 INFORMATION TO THE ONCOMING -- THE ONCOMING OPERATOR ABOUT 12 WHAT IS GOING ON IN THE UNIT AND ANY CHANGES THAT HAVE BEEN 13 MADE IN THE UNIT. 14 Q. IS THIS ONE THAT YOU PREPARED ON JUNE 9TH? 15 A. YES. 16 Q. AND DID YOU REPORT ANYTHING ABOUT THE WITH SIGHT GLASS AND 17 LEVEL INDICATOR ON THE SULFURIC ADD SITUATED TANK? 18 A. I REPORTED THEY WEREN'T PROPERLY FUNCTIONING. 19 Q. DID YOU REPORT THAT ON ANY -- ON YOUR JUNE 18TH SHIFT 20 REPORT AS WELL? 21 A. YES. 22 Q. DID YOU REPORT THAT ON SEVERAL OTHER SHIFT REPORTS DURING 23 THE MONTH OF JUNE? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. OKAY. WE ACTUALLY TRIED TO UNPLUG IT AND I ALSO LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 85. SIGHT GLASS AND LEVEL INDICATOR. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT MAYBE THE LEVEL GATER AND I -- ALSO FILLED OUT A WORK TICKET. WHAT IS A WORK TICKET? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC TWO 455 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 PIECE OF EQUIPMENT THAT NEEDS TO BE FIXED. 3 Q. 4 WITH ANYONE OTHER THAN MR. CURRAN ABOUT THE SULFURIC ACID 5 TANK? 6 A. 7 SHIFT TURNAROUND, AND I -- MIKE CUTSHAW HELPED ME WRITE THE 8 WORK TICKET. 9 WAS MY FIRST WORK TICKET THAT I WROTE, SO HE SHOWED ME HOW TO JUST SOMETHING THAT YOU SEND TO EUROPE MANAGEMENT OF A DURING THIS TIME PERIOD DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATIONS JUST THE OTHER ON COMING OPERATORS IN HP-2 DURING THE YEAH. HE HELPED ME WRITE THE WORK TICKET. 10 DO THAT. 11 Q. 12 ACID TANK? 13 A. I TALKED TO MORE PEOPLE, IF YOU WANT. 14 Q. SURE. 15 A. I ALSO TALKED TO A TRUCK DRIVER. 16 COMES FROM OUTSIDE TO FILL THE TANK. 17 Q. WHAT DID HE TELL YOU -- WHAT DID HE SAY? 18 A. HE SAID HE WAS -- IT DURING THIS TIME PERIOD DID YOU HELP FILL THE SULFURIC 19 MR. LAFAYETTE: 20 THE COURT: 21 THE WITNESS: HE IS A CONTRACTOR HE OBJECTION -- OVERRULED. HE SAID HE REALLY UNCOMFORTABLE FILLING 22 IT THIS WAY, WITHOUT THE TWO GAUGES OF THE LEVEL. 23 ME THAT IT'S BEEN BROKEN, YOU KNOW, FOR SO LONG AND IT NEEDS 24 TO GET FIXED. 25 MR. LAFAYETTE: OBJECTION, HEARSAY. AND HE TOLD MOVE TO STRIKE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 456 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 THE COURT: 2 MS. SMALLETS: 3 FOR WHAT PURPOSE WAS THAT OFFERED? NOTICE TO THE PLAINTIFF AND HER KNOWLEDGE AS SHE IS MOVING FORWARD. 4 ALL RIGHT. THE COURT: THAT'S THE ONLY PURPOSE FOR 5 WHICH IT IS ALLOWED. 6 DON'T KNOW WE CAN'T TEST WHETHER HE ACTUALLY SAID THAT, BUT 7 CERTAINLY IN TERMS OF WHAT SHE IS NOTIFYING THE COMPANY ABOUT 8 HER OBSERVATIONS. 9 BY MS. SMALLETS: I DON'T HAVE A TRUCK DRIVER HERE, SO WE GO AHEAD. 10 Q. 11 GLASS WITH MR. CURRAN? 12 A. 13 THE SIGHT GLASS, HE TELLS ME THAT IT HAS HAPPENED BEFORE AND 14 POSSIBLY ME AND HIM CAN UNPLUG IT, AND THAT HE THINKS IT IS 15 THE SIGHT GLASS THAT IS NOT FUNCTIONING. 16 Q. DID YOU -- DID THE TWO OF YOU TRY TO FIX IT? 17 A. UH-HUH. 18 Q. DID YOU... WEAR ANY PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT WHEN YOU DID 19 THAT? 20 A. YES. 21 Q. CAN YOU DESCRIBE THAT PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT? 22 A. RUBBER SUIT. 23 Q. OKAY. 24 A. AND I ALSO DID BRING IT UP IN SAFETY MEETINGS ONCE OR 25 TWICE WHEN WE TALK ABOUT WHAT CHANGES ARE BEING -- HAPPENING I BELIEVE YOU SAID EARLIER YOU TRIED TO FIX THE SIGHT YES. SO AT SOME POINT IN TIME WHEN I TELL CAMERON ABOUT AND WE COULD NOT FIX IT. AND I WOULD LIKE TO -- DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 457 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 IN OUR UNIT. 2 AND ALL THE OPERATORS IN ALL THE DIFFERENT PLANTS. 3 Q. 4 AND IN THIS MEETING ALL THE MANAGERS ARE THERE LET'S TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO JULY 4TH. DID -- DID YOU -- DID ANYTHING HAPPEN WITH RESPECT TO THE 5 SULFURIC ACID TANK ON JULY 4TH? 6 A. ON JULY 4TH, YES. 7 Q. HOW DID YOU LEARN ABOUT THAT? 8 A. IT -- I FIRST LEARNED ABOUT IT -- I WAS SITTING AT MY DESK 9 AND I OVERHEARD A TRUCK DRIVER WHO CAME IN PERSON, AND HIM AND 10 CAMERON WERE HAVING A CONVERSATION, A DISAGREEMENT. 11 Q. 12 ABOUT THE SULFURIC ACID OR A DIFFERENT ONE? 13 A. DIFFERENT ONE. 14 Q. WHAT DO YOU RECALL THE TRUCK DRIVING TELLING MR. CURRAN? 15 A. OVERFILLED ON THE PREVIOUS SHIFT AND THAT HE NEEDED TO 16 REPORT IT AND THEY WERE -- THE LAST THING I HEARD THE TRUCK 17 DRIVER SAY IS WELL, JUST SO YOU KNOW, I'M REPORTING IT TO MY 18 COMPANY BECAUSE HE IS A CONTRACTOR, HE COMES IN FROM OUTSIDE. 19 Q. DID YOU HEAR WHAT MR. CURRAN SAID IN RESPONSE? 20 A. NO. 21 Q. OKAY. 22 A. I WENT OUT TO START MY ROUNDS BUT FIRST I WENT TO THE 23 SULFURIC ALWAYS SITUATED TANK TO SEE WHAT IT WAS THAT THEY 24 WERE TALKING ABOUT, WE OBSERVED THE AREA. 25 Q. WAS THAT THE SAME TRUCK DRIVER THAT YOU HAD TALKED TO WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? WHAT DID YOU SEE AT THE SULFURIC ACID TANK? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 458 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 BECAUSE THEY ARE ALREADY BEING ABSORBED WITH SOME MATERIAL. 3 BUT I SAW TWO WET SPOTS AND THEN I SAW SMALL DRIP AT THE SIGHT 4 GLASS. 5 Q. 6 WERE SAYING AT THAT TIME? 7 A. 8 GLASS WAS ALL THE WAY FULL AND THE GAUGE READS A HUNDRED AND 9 THERE WAS MORE SPACE AND IT WAS OVER. I SAW LIKE TWO WET SPOTS. THEY ARE NOT LIKE PUDDLES DID YOU LOOK AT WHAT THE LEVEL INDICATOR AND SIGHT GLASS OH, YES. THEY WERE BOTH OVER A HUNDRED -- WELL, THE SIGHT 10 Q. AND WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION WHEN YOU SAW THAT? 11 A. I WAS UPSET THAT THE PREVIOUS OPERATOR DIDN'T LET ME KNOW 12 AND THAT THERE WAS NO -- IT WAS NOT ROPED OFF. 13 WHAT WAS MY REACTION OR WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 14 Q. WHAT WAS YOUR REACTION? 15 A. THAT WAS MY REACTION. 16 HAPPENED AND THIS IS MY UNIT AND NO ONE INFORMED ME. 17 Q. WHAT YOU DO WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 18 A. I WENT BACK TO MY COMPUTER TO LOOK AT THE MSDS FOR 19 SULFURIC ACID AND LOOK AT THE PROCEDURE AND ALSO LET CAMERON 20 KNOW I NOTICED THE WET SPOTS. 21 Q. WHAT DID YOU TELL MR. CURRAN? 22 A. I TOLD HIM THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE'S STILL SOME WET SPOTS 23 OUT. 24 GO TAKE A LOOK AT IT. 25 Q. I WAS KIND OF ALARMED THAT THIS HAD THERE LOOKS LIKE THERE IS A SMALL LEAK. OKAY. DID YOU SAY HE SAID LET'S AND DID THE TWO OF YOU GO TAKE A LOOK AT IT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 459 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. YES. 2 Q. AND DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATIONS WITH MR. CURRAN WHILE 3 YOU WERE LOOKING AT IT? 4 A. 5 IT IS STILL IN THE DIKE AREA. 6 SAID WELL, I JUST READ THE MSDS AND THE CONTRACTORS ARE 7 NEARBY, AND I THINK IT MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA TO ROPE OFF THE 8 AREA JUST SO THAT THEY KNOW THERE IS SOMETHING HAZARDOUS. 9 THAT IS HAZARDOUS. AT THAT TIME HE TOLD ME WHAT ARE YOU SO CONCERNED ABOUT, IT IS NOT A BIG DEAL. AND I HE KEPT ASKING ME IF I WAS SCARED. I SAID 10 I WASN'T SCARED. 11 THEIR HEALTH; MAYBE NOT NOW, BUT IT CAN AFFECT THEM IN THE 12 FUTURE. 13 Q. WHAT'S A MSDS? 14 A. MATERIAL SAFETY DATA SHEET. 15 Q. WHAT INFORMATION DOES THAT CONTAIN? 16 A. IT TELLS YOU THE HAZARDS OF THE CHEMICAL. 17 Q. AND YOU SAID YOU LOOKED UP A PROCEDURE AS WELL? 18 PROCEDURE DID YOU LOOK UP? 19 A. 20 LOSS OF CONTAINMENT. 21 Q. 22 OF CONTAINMENT OF SULFURIC ACID IS? 23 A. 24 REPORT IT TO THE SAFETY -- HEAD OF SAFETY ON THE REFINERY. 25 THAT WAS THE FIRST STEP. I WANTED TO MAKE SURE EVERYONE IS PROTECTING WHAT I LOOKED UP THE PROCEDURE FOR HOW -- THE RESPONSE TO A AND DO YOU RECALL WHAT THE APPROPRIATE RESPONSE TO A LOSS THE MAIN THING I REMEMBER IS THAT WE WERE SUPPOSED TO AND I JUST WASN'T SURE WHY -- WHAT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 460 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 IT WOULD HURT TO REPORT IT. 2 Q. OKAY. 3 A. WELL, WE KEEP GOING BACK AND FORTH ABOUT IT. 4 WANTED TO TAPE OFF THE AREA JUST TO NOTIFY PEOPLE IN CASE -- 5 YOU NEVER KNOW IF SOMEBODY IS GOING TO -- THERE IS NOT 6 SUPPOSED TO BE OTHER PEOPLE JUST DOING THINGS IN YOUR UNIT, 7 BUT YOU DON'T KNOW. 8 HE SAID NO. 9 SAFETY. WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? SO I WANTED TO ROPE IT OFF. AND HE ALSO SAID NO TO CALLING THE HEAD OF SO I WENT BACK TO THE COMPUTER TO LOOK UP AGAIN WHAT 10 THE PROCEDURE WAS. 11 SHIFT REPORT. 12 Q. 13 WRITE IN YOUR SHIFT REPORT AT THAT TIME? 14 A. 15 ACID AREA. 16 LEARNED IT OVERFILLED ON THE PREVIOUS NIGHT. 17 Q. 18 LATER THAT DAY? 19 A. 20 FOR A RIDE? 21 SAID, YES. 22 SO I REALLY AND ALSO IN THAT TIME I WROTE IT IN MY DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATION -- I AM SORRY. WHAT DID YOU I WROTE THAT TODAY I NOTICED WET SPOTS IN THE SULFURIC THERE WAS A SMALL LEAK FROM THE SIGHT GLASS AND DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATIONS WITH MR. CURRAN THAT -- LATER THAT DAY CAMERON COMES UP TO ME AND SAYS, CAN WE GO THIS IS AFTER I WROTE IT ANY MY SHIFT REPORT. WE GO AND HE TAKES ME IN HIS TRUCK. I THE SULFURIC ACID 23 TANK IS ONE OF THE FARTHER THINGS FROM WHERE OUR OFFICE IS. 24 HE TAKES ME IN HIS TRUCK, DRIVES ME, PULLS UP TO WHERE THE 25 SULFURIC ACID TANK IS AND SAYS, LOOK, I SAW YOUR SHIFT REPORT. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 461 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 ARE YOU TRYING TO GET PEOPLE IN TROUBLE? 2 LIKE, YOU NEED TO TAKE IT OFF YOUR SHIFT REPORT. 3 GUYS SHOULD HAVE REPORTED IT BUT THEY DIDN'T, SO NOW WE CAN'T 4 REPORT IT, AND YOU'RE GOING TO GET PEOPLE IN TROUBLE IF YOU 5 REPORT IT. 6 Q. DID YOU SAY ANYTHING TO HIM IN RESPONSE? 7 A. I JUST EXPLAINED TO HIM THAT I DIDN'T REALLY WANT TO GET 8 ANYONE IN TROUBLE BUT I WASN'T COMFORTABLE LEAVING THE 9 SITUATION LIKE THAT. I SAID NO. HE'S THE OTHER I DIDN'T FEEL LIKE IT WAS SAFE. AND I 10 FELT EITHER THOSE GUYS MIGHT GET IN A LITTLE TROUBLE OR, YOU 11 KNOW, MAYBE WE CAN PROTECT SOMEBODY FROM SOMETHING THAT COULD 12 BE HAZARDOUS. 13 Q. 14 RESOLUTION REACHED DURING THAT CONVERSATION? 15 A. 16 HOW DID -- HOW DID THAT CONVERSATION -- WAS THERE A THAT WAS THE SAME CONVERSATION -- YEAH. THE RESOLUTION WAS HE SAID, WELL, YOU KNOW, HE -- HE KIND 17 OF CONVINCED ME TO TAKE IT OFF THE SHIFT REPORT. 18 WE'LL CLEAN IT UP TOGETHER. 19 WAY TO CLEAN THIS IS. 20 Q. AND WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 21 A. NEXT, HE DROVE ME OVER TO THIS AREA WHERE WE CAN GRAB 22 OYSTER SHELLS WHICH ARE LIKE THESE REALLY BIG BAGS. 23 AND HE SAID SO I'LL SHOW YOU HOW THE PROPER YOU KNOW, HE'S STILL FRUSTRATED BECAUSE I DIDN'T TELL HIM 24 THAT I WOULD TAKE IT OFF. 25 HE SAYS GO -- THERE'S THE SHELLS, GO GRAB THEM. BUT I WAS FEELING INTIMIDATED. AND I, AT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC AND 462 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 THIS POINT, DIDN'T KNOW WHAT THE SHELLS ARE OR, YOU KNOW. 2 WE GRAB THE SHELLS, LOAD THEM INTO THE TRUCK -- 3 Q. AND THEN WHAT HAPPENS NEXT? 4 A. NEXT, HE HEADS OVER THERE, LIKE HE IS GOING TO SHOW ME 5 WHAT TO DO. AND I WAS LIKE, DO WE NEED PROPER LIKE PROTECTIVE 6 EQUIPMENT? I JUST READ THE PAPERS, AND I KNEW THAT I NEEDED A 7 RUBBER SUIT, RUBBER GLOVES. 8 Q. WHAT DID HE SAY? 9 A. HE SAID YEAH. HE WAS ANNOYED. SO SO WE DROVE TO ANOTHER 10 AREA TO GO GET THE PROPER EQUIPMENT ACCORDING TO THE 11 PROCEDURES. 12 Q. THEN WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 13 A. THEN WHAT HAPPENED NEXT IS IT WAS THE 4TH OF JULY, SO THIS 14 AREA WHERE WE GET EXTRA EQUIPMENT WAS CLOSED, AND THEY DIDN'T 15 HAVE ALL THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT FOR ME. 16 Q. AND -- 17 A. SO I THINK IT WAS LIKE THEY DIDN'T HAVE THE RIGHT RUBBER 18 BOOT SIZE -- I CAN'T REMEMBER -- THE RIGHT SIZE GLOVES. 19 Q. WHAT DID MR. CURRAN SAY -- 20 A. HE SAID HE WOULD JUST DO IT. 21 DON'T HAVE A PROBLEM WITH ME DOING IT. 22 Q. DID YOU RESPOND TO HIM? 23 A. I TOLD HIM THAT ACTUALLY -- BECAUSE HE WAS GOING TO DO IT 24 WITHOUT ALL THE RIGHT PPE. 25 EVERYTHING THAT THE PROCEDURE SAYS, WHICH I THINK WAS AND THEN HE SAID, I BET YOU AND I SAID I WON'T DO IT WITHOUT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 463 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 EITHER -- I WAS MISSING THE GLOVES -- OR I CAN'T REMEMBER. 2 Q. 3 SO -- SORRY. DID -- SO CAMERON SAID HE WOULD DO IT. DID YOU RESPOND TO 4 HIM? 5 A. 6 DO IT, BUT HE'S THE SUPERVISOR, NOT ME. 7 OPINION I WOULDN'T LIKE HIM TO DO IT WITHOUT THE RIGHT PPE. 8 Q. THEN WHAT HAPPENS? 9 A. THEN WE ARE STILL IN THE TRUCK. YEAH. I TOLD HIM THAT I ACTUALLY PREFER THAT HE DOESN'T BUT IF HE'S ASKING MY HE -- BASICALLY, HE JUST 10 THREW DOWN THE OYSTER SHELLS. 11 IT. 12 Q. DID YOU MAKE ANY CHANGES TO YOUR SHIFT REPORT? 13 A. YES. 14 REALLY NEED TO TAKE IT OFF. 15 HE TOLD ME HE WASN'T REPORTING SO I THINK HE APPROACHED ME AGAIN, YOU KNOW, YOU SO INSTEAD OF TAKING IT ALL THE WAY OFF, I JUST WROTE THAT 16 IT WAS OVER A HUNDRED. 17 OVERFULL. 18 Q. 19 ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. SO THAT KIND OF, YOU KNOW, IT'S LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 86, WHICH WAS PREVIOUSLY 20 TAKE A LOOK AT THE FIRST PAGE OF THAT. 21 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 22 IS THAT -- CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? 23 A. THE SHIFT TURNOVER. 24 Q. WHAT -- IS THAT -- WHO PREPARED THAT SHIFT TURNOVER? 25 A. I DID. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 464 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHAT IS THE DATE? 2 A. JULY 4, 2016. 3 Q. DID YOU MAKE ANY NOTATIONS ON THIS DOCUMENT REGARDING THE 4 SULFURIC ACID TANK? 5 A. 6 READING OVER A HUNDRED. 7 Q. 8 IT. 9 SULFURIC ACID TANK, SIGHT GLASS AND HAND-LEVEL INDICATOR THAT'S UNDER SURVEILLANCE FINDS, JUST SO WE CAN ALL FIND DID YOU REPORT -- TAKE A LOOK AT THE REST OF EXHIBIT 86. 10 DID YOU REPORT ANY ISSUES WITH THE SULFURIC ACID TANK IN JULY, 11 THE REST OF JULY? 12 A. 13 TYPICALLY THEY DIDN'T WANT IT NEAR A HUNDRED. I JUST KEPT REPORTING IT WAS STILL OVER A HUNDRED BECAUSE 14 15 (PAUSE IN THE PROCEEDINGS.) Q. 16 DO YOU KNOW WHAT ALERT ESP MEANS? SORRY. JUST SO WE ARE CLEAR, WE ARE ON THE JULY 15TH ONE. 17 AND IT SAYS THAT THE ACID -- WHAT'S THE LEVEL OF THE ACID 18 TANK. 19 A. 20 ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY PERSONNEL, ALERT THEM, NOTIFY THEM? 21 IT'S BEEN A LONG TIME. 22 FOR. 23 Q. SO WE ARE ALL LOOKING AT THE SAME THING. I THINK, BUT I CAN'T REMEMBER FOR SURE ANYMORE -- IS IT BUT I DON'T KNOW FOR SURE WHAT IT STANDS OKAY. 24 SO, EVERYTHING YOU'VE BEEN JUST DESCRIBING REGARDING YOUR 25 INTERACTIONS WITH MR. CURRAN AND THE SULFURIC ACID SPILL, CAN DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 465 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 YOU TELL US WHEN THOSE TOOK PLACE? 2 A. JULY, BEGINNING OF JULY. 3 Q. WERE THEY ON -- OVER WHAT COURSE OF TIME? 4 A. THE ACID SPILL? 5 Q. YOUR CONVERSATIONS WITH CURRAN ABOUT IT. 6 A. MOSTLY ON THE 4TH OF JULY AND LEADING UP TO THE 4TH OF 7 JULY. 8 Q. 9 ACID SPILL DURING THE REMAINDER OF THE WEEK OF THE JULY 4TH? DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATIONS WITH MR. CURRAN ABOUT THE 10 A. I'M NOT SURE IF IT WAS THAT WEEK OR NOT. 11 Q. WHAT IS THE NEXT CONVERSATION YOU HAD WITH MR. CURRAN 12 ABOUT THE ACID SPILL? 13 A. 14 THE BAKER TANK. 15 Q. 16 SULFURIC ACID TANK DURING JULY 4TH OR THE NEXT COUPLE OF DAYS 17 AFTERWARD? 18 A. 19 LET THEM KNOW WHAT HAPPENED EVEN THOUGH IT WASN'T REALLY 20 DETAILED IN THE SHIFT REPORT. 21 WANT IT IN THE SHIFT REPORT BUT I EXPLAINED WHAT HAPPENED. 22 Q. YOU WERE HERE WHEN MR. CURRAN TESTIFIED, RIGHT? 23 A. RIGHT. 24 Q. DO YOU RECALL HIM SAYING THAT HE HEARD SOMETHING FROM YOU 25 ABOUT DEANNA MARTINEZ WITH RESPECT TO THIS SPILL? THE NEXT ONE I CAN REMEMBER IS WHEN I CAME TO HIM ABOUT DID YOU TALK TO ANYONE ELSE ABOUT THE SPILL IN THE YES. I TALKED TO THE ONCOMING OPERATORS. SO I DEFINITELY I TOLD THEM THAT THEY DIDN'T DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 466 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. YES. 2 Q. DID YOU TALK TO DEANNA MARTINEZ ABOUT THIS SPILL? 3 A. NO. 4 Q. DID YOU EVER CRY ABOUT THIS SPILL? 5 A. I NEVER CRIED AT WORK. 6 Q. DID YOU THINK THAT ANYTHING THAT HAPPENED ON JULY 4TH 7 VIOLATED ANY LAWS OR REGULATIONS? 8 MR. LAFAYETTE: 9 THE COURT: OVERRULED, TO THE EXTENT THERE WAS AN 10 OBJECTION ALMOST MADE. 11 IMPORTANT. 12 OBJECT -- THE WITNESS: HER OPINION ON THIS TOPIC IS I DID. 13 BY MS. SMALLETS: 14 Q. WHAT LAWS OR REGULATIONS DID YOU THINK WERE VIOLATED? 15 A. WELL, ONE, I KNEW FOR SURE THAT WE WERE NOT FOLLOWING THE 16 SHELL PROCEDURES. 17 COMPUTER AND I WAS JUST REALLY QUICKLY LOOKING UP WHO WE WERE 18 SUPPOSED TO CONTACT. 19 AND THEN I THOUGHT -- I WENT BACK TO THE I THOUGHT MAYBE WE WERE VIOLATING LIKE AN ENVIRONMENTAL 20 PROCEDURE BECAUSE THE SULFURIC ACID WAS THERE AND WE PUT 21 OYSTER SHELLS ON IT, BUT IT STILL KEPT GETTING WET, MEANING IT 22 WAS ABSORBING THE SHELLS AND IT WASN'T NEUTRALIZED. 23 THAT WAS ALL THAT THEY DID. 24 HAVE BEEN MORE. 25 AND THEN SO IT SEEMED LIKE THERE COULD AND THEN I KNEW FOR SURE THAT WE WERE VIOLATING OSHA LAWS DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 467 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BECAUSE I SAW OSHA WHEN WORKING WITH SULFURIC ACID THAT YOU 2 NEED FOR SURE RUBBER GLOVES. 3 WAS ASKING ME TO DO IT WITHOUT THE PROPER EQUIPMENT, AND HE 4 DID IT WITHOUT. 5 BY MS. SMALLETS: 6 Q. 7 PREVIOUSLY ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. 8 9 AND CAMERON WAS -- MY SUPERVISOR LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 121, WHICH WAS ALSO CAN YOU TELL THERE EXHIBIT 121 WHAT DAYS YOU WORKED AFTER JULY 4TH? 10 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 11 A. AFTER JULY 4TH. 12 Q. AND WHEN WAS THE NEXT TIME THAT YOU WORKED? 13 A. JULY 15TH, 16TH, 17TH, AND 18TH. 14 Q. AND WHY WERE YOU NOT AT WORK BETWEEN THE 7TH AND THE 15TH? 15 A. THAT WAS OUR LONG CHANGE. 16 HAVE SEVEN DAYS OFF EVERY MONTH. 17 Q. 18 JULY 15TH, YOUR FIRST DAY BACK AT WORK AFTER THE LONG CHANGE? 19 A. 20 STARTED WITH THE OIL MIST CLASSIFIER. 21 Q. 22 WITH MR. CURRAN ABOUT THE OIL MIST CLASSIFIER? 23 A. 24 SAFETY MEETING WHEN WE WERE HEADING OUT TO THE FIELD, CAMERON 25 IS LIKE, HEY, I WANT TO SHOW YOU SOMETHING. I WORKED THE 5TH, THE 6TH, AND THE 7TH. SO WE HAD THOSE DAYS OFF. WE DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATIONS WITH MR. CURRAN ON I'M NOT SURE EXACTLY WHAT CONVERSATION. I THINK IT DO YOU RECALL WHEN IN THIS SHIFT YOU HAD A CONVERSATION SO WHEN I GOT THERE WITHIN LIKE 10 OR 15 MINUTES AFTER THE AND HE TAKES ME DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 468 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 TO THIS OIL MIST CLASSIFIER THAT'S FULL. 2 SUPPOSED TO BE DRAINED OF -- 3 Q. LET ME ASK A FEW QUESTIONS -- 4 A. SORRY. 5 Q. SO WE MAKE THAT CLEAR. 6 AND THEY ARE SO TELL US, AS AN HP-2 OPERATOR, WHAT ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO 7 DO WITH THE OIL MIST RECLASSIFIER? 8 A. 9 KEEP EMPTYING IT, DRAINING IT. WE MONITOR IT AND MAKE SURE THAT IT'S NEVER FULL. SO JUST 10 Q. YOU SAID THAT MR. CURRAN TOOK YOU TO LOOK AT IT? 11 A. YEAH. 12 Q. AND WHAT DID YOU SEE WHEN YOU GOT THERE? 13 A. THAT IT WAS FULL. 14 Q. AND DID HE SAY ANYTHING WHEN HE SHOWED YOU IT? 15 A. HE JUST EXPLAINED THAT IT SHOULD BE DRAINED AND THE 16 IMPORTANCE OF WHY TO DRAIN IT. 17 Q. WHAT DID YOU SAY? 18 A. AND I SAID, OKAY. 19 THAT I WOULD BE GETTING TO IT, BUT I HAD JUST ARRIVED. 20 Q. 21 THIS CONVERSATION WITH MR. CURRAN? 22 A. 23 THOUGHT IT WAS JUST HIM TEACHING ME SOMETHING. 24 IT WAS STRANGE THAT HE WAS TELLING ME BECAUSE I HAD JUST 25 GOTTEN THERE AND THE PREVIOUS OPERATORS -- OR NIGHT OPERATORS LIKE -- KIND OF LIKE I ALREADY KNEW AND DID YOU -- DID YOU THINK THERE WAS ANYTHING UNUSUAL ABOUT I DID NOT -- I DIDN'T KNOW HE WAS WRITING IT DOWN. I BUT I THOUGHT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 469 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 SHOULD HAVE BEEN THE ONES WHO DRAINED IT BECAUSE IT TAKES LIKE 2 A LONG TIME TO GET FULL. 3 HAPPENS EVERY DAY THAT IT GETS FULL. 4 Q. 5 UNIT? 6 A. I THINK THAT SHIFT IT WAS JOSE. 7 Q. WHY DO YOU THINK THAT? 8 A. JUST BECAUSE I REMEMBER THAT INCIDENT BECAUSE I THOUGHT 9 WHY DIDN'T HE TELL JOSE. IT IS NOT JUST SOMETHING THAT DO YOU KNOW WHO THE PREVIOUS OPERATOR WAS IN THAT HP-2 WHY DO YOU THINK IT WAS JOSE? I DON'T REMEMBER FOR ANY OTHER 10 SPECIFIC REASON. 11 Q. 12 TRAINING -- REPORTING TO JEFF FISCHER, YOU, JOSE, MENA, AND 13 PATRICK. 14 FINISHED TRAINING UNDER JEFF FISCHER? 15 A. YOU SAID YESTERDAY THAT THERE WERE FOUR TRAINEES WERE ALL OF YOU WORKING THE SAME JOB ONCE YOU YES -- 16 MR. LAFAYETTE: 17 THE COURT: OBJECTION, LACK OF FOUNDATION. JUST LAY A LITTLE BIT OF FOUNDATION. 18 BY MS. SMALLETS: 19 Q. 20 WORKING? 21 A. 22 THE FOUR OF US WORKING IN HP-2 ROTATING SHIFTS. 23 Q. 24 CPI OUTLET? 25 A. DO YOU KNOW WHAT JOB THAT YOUR FELLOW TRAINEES WERE YES. WE ALL HAD HP-2 AND WE ROTATED. SO IT WAS JUST NOW AND AS PART OF YOUR ROUNDS THAT DAY, DID YOU INSPECT THE YES. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 470 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHAT IS THE CPI OUTLET, ROUGHLY? 2 A. IT'S KIND OF JUST WASTE FROM THE REFINERY, LIKE SLUDGE 3 WASTE THEY DON'T USE AND IT GOES INTO THESE STORAGE BINS IN 4 THE FLOOR. 5 Q. WHAT ARE YOU SUPPOSED TO BE INSPECTING THE OUTLET FOR? 6 A. JUST MAKING SURE THAT THEY ARE ALWAYS CLOSED. 7 Q. AND WHAT DID YOU OBSERVE WHEN YOU INSPECTED THE OUTLETS? 8 A. THAT THEY WERE CLOSED. 9 Q. WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 10 A. I TOOK MY SAMPLES, TOOK THOSE SAMPLES TO THE LAB. 11 Q. AND -- 12 A. AND THEN BEGAN MY ROUNDS READING -- OUR ROUNDS IS JUST 13 WALKING AROUND READING ALL THE LEVELS, TEMPERATURES AND 14 PRESSURES OF THE DIFFERENT EQUIPMENT. 15 Q. DID YOU RECORD ANY INFORMATION ABOUT THE CPI OUTLETS? 16 A. YES. 17 THE WORD THAT THEY CALL IT ANYMORE. 18 BUT I RECORDED THAT IT WAS CLOSED. AND THEN I -- 19 Q. 20 THAT IT WAS CLOSED? 21 A. TEN MINUTES. 22 Q. IS THAT -- HOW WERE YOU TRAINED TO DO THAT? 23 A. SO THE CPI IS FARTHER FROM THE REST OF THE UNIT. 24 TYPICALLY YOU RIDE YOUR BIKE OVER THERE -- OR RIDE A BIKE OR 25 SOME PEOPLE DRIVE. SO I RECORDED THAT THE STORAGE -- I'M NOT SURE WHAT IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME. HOW LONG AFTER YOU OBSERVED THE OUTLETS DID YOU RECORD SO AND YOU CAN TAKE YOUR SAMPLES OF THE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 471 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 LIQUID AND ALSO OBSERVE THE AREA AT THE SAME TIME. 2 LAB, RUN YOUR RESULTS, AND THEN START YOUR ROUNDS. 3 GO TO THE AND RATHER THAN GOING ALL THE WAY OUT TO THE CPI AGAIN, 4 YOU START YOUR ROUNDS AND DOCUMENT WHAT YOU SAW AT THE CPI AT 5 THAT TIME. 6 Q. 7 OUTLET THAT DAY? 8 A. YES. 9 Q. AND WHAT DID HE SAY TO YOU? 10 A. SO I'M IN THE MIDDLE OF MY ROUNDS AND HE COMES UP TO ME, 11 AND HE SAYS THAT HE NOTICED THAT I MARKED THE CPI WAS CLOSED 12 BUT HE WANTED TO SHOW ME THAT IT WAS OPEN. 13 THERE AND SHOWED ME THAT IT WAS OPEN. 14 Q. DID YOU SAY ANYTHING TO HIM ABOUT THAT? 15 A. I DIDN'T. 16 Q. WHY NOT? 17 A. AT THAT TIME I WAS KIND OF LIKE EMBARRASSED FOR HIM AND 18 LIKE SHOCKED BECAUSE I HAD JUST WENT THERE AND I SAW THAT THEY 19 WERE CLOSED. 20 WORKED THERE FOR A LONG TIME WHO I NEVER MET, WAS ON A 21 DIFFERENT TEAM, HE CAME TO ME AND TOLD ME TO WATCH OUT -- DID YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH MR. CURRAN ABOUT THE CPI AND SOMEONE EARLIER THAT DAY, AN OLDER MAN WHO 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 THE COURT: 24 THE WITNESS: 25 SO HE TOOK ME OVER OBJECTION, NARRATIVE AND HEARSAY. OVERRULED. FINISH YOUR STATEMENT. HE TOLD ME WHEN I WAS IN THE LAB TO WATCH OUT, THAT IF -- THEY WANT TO GET RID OF ME, THEY ARE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 472 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 GOING TO GET RID OF ME AND THEY ARE WATCHING ME LIKE A HAWK. 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: 3 THE COURT: 4 THE WITNESS: 5 THE COURT: OBJECTION, HEARSAY, MOVE TO STRIKE. OVERRULED. SO WHEN THIS -NOW I NEED A NEW QUESTION. 6 BY MS. SMALLETS: 7 Q. 8 YOU WERE TALKING TO CAMERON. 9 CAMERON -- WITH MR. CURRAN? SO YOU WERE TELLING US ABOUT WHAT YOU WERE THINKING WHEN SO WHAT HAPPENED NEXT WITH 10 A. RIGHT AFTER THAT HE TAKES ME OVER TO THE DRAEGER TUBES. 11 Q. OKAY. 12 THE COURT: I'LL REMIND THE JURY AGAIN. SO, WITH 13 RESPECT TO WHAT SHE JUST TESTIFIED, YOU CAN ONLY CONSIDER IT 14 FOR WHAT IT WAS HER STATE OF MIND, WHAT SHE WAS THINKING. 15 DON'T HAVE THE OTHER WITNESS HERE. 16 THAT OR NOT. 17 IN HER HEAD WHEN CAMERON TOOK HER TO THAT VALVE. 18 BY MS. SMALLETS: 19 Q. 20 TOLD YOU? SO ALL YOU CAN CONSIDER IT FOR IS WHAT SHE HAD THE COURT: OKAY? WELL, THAT QUESTION, AS FORMULATED, IS OBJECTIONABLE. 23 24 WE DON'T KNOW IF HE SAID DID YOU FINISH TELLING US EVERYTHING THAT THAT OPERATOR 21 22 I MS. SMALLETS: SORRY. I MAY HAVE CUT HER OFF. SORRY. 25 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC I AM 473 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BY MS. SMALLETS: 2 Q. 3 DIDN'T SAY -- DIDN'T TELL US? 4 THE COURT: WAS THERE ANYTHING ELSE THAT THE OPERATOR SAID THAT YOU THAT YOU WERE THINKING AT THE TIME THAT 5 SHE WENT, WOULD BE THE MORE APPROPRIATE QUESTION. 6 YOU CAN ANSWER. 7 THE WITNESS: THAT ONE HE JUST TOLD ME THAT THEY WOULD BE 8 SETTING TRAPS FOR ME AND THAT -- HE SAID I WORK WITH A LOT OF 9 A-HOLES. HE'S LIKE -- THEY TRIED DO THE SAME THING TO HIM. 10 AND HE GAVE ME SOME EXAMPLES OF WHAT THOSE TRAPS MIGHT BE. 11 BY MS. SMALLETS: 12 Q. 13 TUBES. 14 A. 15 DID YOU CHECK FOR H2S. 16 Q. WHAT IS H2S? 17 A. IT'S JUST SOMETHING -- IT'S HYDROGEN SULFIDE. 18 Q. IS IT -- 19 A. NO. 20 BEEN A LONG TIME. 21 SO YOU SAID THAT CAMERON TOOK YOU OVER TO THE DRAEGER WHAT DID HE SAY TO YOU? HE SAID, DID YOU TAKE THE DRAEGER TUBE TEST -- OR HE SAID IT'S NOT, IS IT? SORRY, GUYS. I'M NERVOUS. IT HAS IT'S BASICALLY THAT H2S IS NOT SUPPOSED TO BE IN THIS AREA 22 WHERE WE TEST FOR IT. 23 IT'S ZERO. 24 Q. HOW DO YOU TEST FOR IT? 25 A. YOU USE A DRAEGER TUBE AND A PUMP. SO WE TEST FOR IT EVERY DAY. USUALLY SOMETIMES IT DOES HAVE A READING. THERE'S A SMALL BOX DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 474 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 YOU CAN OPEN THAT ALLOWS WHATEVER GAS IS IN THE VESSEL INTO 2 THAT BOX. 3 Q. AND HAD YOU TEST -- HAD YOU TESTED FOR H2S THAT DAY? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. HOW HAD YOU DONE THAT? 6 A. WITH THE DRAEGER TUBE. 7 Q. WAS THERE ANYTHING UNUSUAL ABOUT THE DRAEGER TUBE THAT YOU 8 USED? 9 A. 10 YOU PULL THE TUBE AND IT TAKES A READING. YEAH. SO WHEN I ARRIVED THERE, USUALLY ALL THE GUYS -- BECAUSE 11 WE ARE FOUR ROTATING GUYS -- I MEAN WE ARE FOUR ROTATING HP-2 12 OPERATORS, AND USUALLY THE DRAEGER TUBES ARE RIGHT WHERE WE 13 PULL THE SAMPLE. 14 DRAEGER TUBES ANYWHERE. 15 Q. WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 16 A. I WENT TO A SHED THAT'S NOT TOO FAR AWAY, AND IN THAT 17 DRAWER THERE'S EXTRA DRAEGER TUBES. 18 SHOWED ME WHERE TO GET DRAEGER TUBES. 19 Q. DID YOU FIND A DRAEGER TUBE THERE? 20 A. I FOUND TWO. 21 Q. DID YOU USE ONE OF THE DRAEGER -- DID YOU USE ANY OF THOSE 22 DRAEGER TUBES TO PULL THE SAMPLE? 23 A. YES. 24 Q. WAS THERE ANYTHING UNUSUAL ABOUT THE DRAEGER TUBE YOU 25 USED? AND TODAY, WHEN I ARRIVED, THERE'S NO SO I THOUGHT THAT WAS WEIRD. THAT'S WHERE CHRIS SALAS DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 475 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 END BUT NOT THE END THAT YOU PULL THE SAMPLE ON. 3 HOOKS UP TO THE PUMP. 4 Q. AND DID YOU -- WHY DID YOU USE THAT DRAEGER TUBE? 5 A. I USED THAT DRAEGER TUBE, ONE, BECAUSE I HAD BEEN SHOWN 6 THAT IT'S OKAY BY CHRIS SALAS TO USE THAT, ONES THAT ARE 7 ALREADY OPENED. 8 STILL WANTED TO REPLACE -- THERE'S NO MORE FOR THE NEXT 9 PERSON. I -- IT WAS BROKEN. NOT BROKEN. IT WAS OPENED ON ONE THE END THAT AND ALSO BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT WAS OKAY, BUT I SINCE WE WERE ALREADY OUT IN THE FIELD, I WOULD TAKE 10 THE READING AND THEN CIRCLE BACK AROUND AND GET A NEW BOX. 11 Q. DID YOU GET A READING WHEN YOU TESTED THE SAMPLE THAT DAY? 12 A. YEAH. 13 ZERO, SO THAT DAY THERE WAS A READING. 14 Q. 15 ABOUT THE DRAEGER TUBE? 16 A. YES. 17 Q. WHAT DID YOU TELL HIM? 18 A. I TOLD HIM EXACTLY WHAT I JUST TOLD YOU GUYS THAT'S WHAT I 19 DID. 20 DID BECAUSE -- CAN I -- 21 Q. DID HE SAY WHY? 22 A. BECAUSE HE PUT THE DRAEGER TUBES WHERE THEY ACTUALLY GO, 23 WHICH IS ON A PIPE, NOT REALLY WHERE -- NEAR WHERE WE TEST, 24 THAT I NEVER, EVER NOTICED. 25 THAT I DIDN'T TAKE IT BECAUSE THE EXACT SAME NUMBER IS THERE WHICH IS... WHICH IS UNUSUAL. IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE SO DID YOU TELL MR. CURRAN ANY OF THIS WHEN HE ASKED YOU AND HE TOLD ME HE DIDN'T BELIEVE ME, THAT'S NOT WHAT I AND HE COUNTED THEM. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC AND HE SAID 476 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 AND THAT HE CLEANED UP THE AREA. 2 Q. 3 TEST? 4 A. 5 AND I DIDN'T KNOW TO LOOK THERE. 6 EVER GOT THE DRAEGER TUBES BEFORE. 7 Q. 8 DRAEGER TUBE THAT DAY? 9 A. 10 AND HAD YOU USED ONE OF THE DRAEGER TUBES ON THAT PIPE TO I TOLD HIM I NEVER EVER WAS AWARE AND I DIDN'T LOOK THERE, IT WASN'T NEAR WHERE I HAD AND DID YOU AND MR. CURRAN DISCUSS ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT THE I'M NOT SURE IF IT WAS THAT DAY THAT WE HAD A MEETING. WAS IT THAT DAY? YOU CAN LOOK. I HAVE THE CALENDAR. 11 Q. WE HAVE THE PDL OF A CALENDAR, IF THAT WOULD HELP. 12 A. NO, IT WASN'T THAT DAY. 13 Q. OKAY. 14 MR. CURRAN ABOUT A PUMP THAT NEEDED TO BE BUMPED? 15 A. 16 DAY. 17 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT MR. CURRAN SAID TO YOU? 18 A. HE SAID, DID YOU BUMP THE PUMP. 19 Q. AND WHAT DID YOU SAY? 20 A. I SAID, DO YOU MEAN DID I -- I WASN'T SURE WHAT HE MEANT 21 BY "BUMP THE PUMP". 22 MOTOR -- WHATEVER NUMBER IT WAS. 23 THAT I TURNED IT ON. 24 MUCH BECAUSE I DIDN'T KNOW WHAT HE MEANT WHEN HE SAID BUMP THE 25 PUMP. YES. DID YOU -- DID YOU HAVE ANY CONVERSATION WITH SAME DAY. I THINK IT WAS SAME DAY OR MAYBE THE NEXT VERY CLOSE TOGETHER. I SAID, DO YOU MEAN DID I TURN ON AND HE SAID HE DIDN'T THINK OR HE DIDN'T THINK I BUMPED THE PUMP DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 477 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 WHAT DID HE SAY NEXT? 3 A. NOTHING. 4 Q. OKAY. SO WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HIM -- WHAT DID HE SAY TO HIM? I'M SORRY. 5 AND DID YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH MS. -- MR. CURRAN 6 DURING THIS TIME PERIOD ABOUT THE FXG FLARE SAMPLE AND ALARM? 7 A. 8 SAID THAT THE FLARE SAMPLE WAS AN ALARM. 9 Q. CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT BEING AN ALARM MEANS? 10 A. IT MEANS THAT IT WASN'T PUT BACK PROPERLY. 11 ALERTS THE BOARD OPERATOR THAT SOMEONE NEEDS TO GO PUT IT BACK 12 PROPERLY. 13 Q. AND WHEN MR. CURRAN TOLD YOU THIS, DID HE DO ANYTHING? 14 A. WE JUST WALKED OUT THERE. 15 ALARM. 16 Q. 17 AN INSTANCE REGARDING A BAKER TANK. YEAH. I THINK THAT MIGHT HAVE BEEN A DAY LATER. HE JUST SO NOW IT HE SHOWED ME WHY IT WAS AN WE CORRECTED IT, AND THAT WAS IT. OKAY. IF YOU LOOK AT YOUR PD LOG, THERE IS A REFERENCE TO 18 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 19 IT IS ON THE SECOND PAGE. 20 SO I WOULD LIKE TO TALK ABOUT THAT NEXT. 21 CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT DID YOU DO WITH RESPECT TO THE BAKER 22 TANK THAT DAY? 23 A. 24 WE OPEN A VALVE THAT DRAINS THE TANK INTO A SEWER. 25 Q. SO, THE BAKER TANK WAS A TEMPORARY STORAGE. AND EVERY DAY AND HAD -- WHAT DID YOU DO THAT -- WHAT DID YOU DO THAT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 478 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 DAY? 2 A. THAT NIGHT -- IT WAS A NIGHT SHIFT. 3 Q. SORRY. 4 A. AND THAT NIGHT I WENT TO THE SAME VALVE THAT I OPENED 5 EVERY OTHER NIGHT. 6 GUESSING -- AND LIQUID CAME OUT. 7 TO IT. 8 Q. WAS THERE A HOSE PRESENT? 9 A. THERE WAS A HOSE. AND I OPENED IT AND IT WAS -- I'M THERE WAS NOTHING ATTACHED THE SAME HOES THAT THERE HAD ALWAYS 10 BEEN THAT LEADS TO THE SEWER. 11 KIND OF LIKE -- IF YOU WOULD SAY LIKE UNDER THIS TABLE IN A 12 DARK SPOT, SO YOU REACH UNDER, AND I OPENED IT AND LIQUID CAME 13 OUT. 14 Q. AND WAS THAT A MISTAKE YOU MADE? 15 A. YEAH. 16 Q. WHAT DID YOU DO NEXT? 17 A. I WENT TO CAMERON TO TELL HIM ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED. 18 Q. WHAT DID YOU TELL HIM? 19 A. I TOLD HIM THAT I OPENED THE VALVE THAT I USUALLY OPENED 20 AND TODAY IT WAS APPARENTLY NOT ATTACHED TO ANYTHING AND I 21 DIDN'T NOTICE. 22 Q. DID HE -- WHAT WAS HIS RESPONSE? 23 A. HE SAID NOT TO WORRY ABOUT IT. 24 WAS. 25 Q. BUT WHERE YOU TURN THE VALVE IS HE ASKED ME HOW BIG IT WHAT DID YOU TELL HIM ABOUT HOW BIG IT WAS? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 479 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 3 AND HE SAID HE WOULD COME LOOK AT IT. I TOLD HIM IT IS LIKE THIS BIG (INDICATING). Q. 4 I AM SORRY IF I CUT YOU OFF. HE SAID HE WOULD COME LOOK AT IT? 5 A. YES. 6 Q. DID YOU KNOW IF HE EVER DID GO LOOK AT IT? 7 A. NOT RIGHT AWAY. 8 Q. DO YOU KNOW -- DID HE SAY ANYTHING ELSE WHEN YOU TOLD HIM? 9 A. NO. 10 Q. OKAY. 11 SORRY. 12 HE JUST SAID NOT TO WORRY ABOUT IT. AND DID YOU TALK TO ANYONE ELSE ABOUT THE -- I'M WHAT KIND OF LIQUID WAS IN THE BAKER TANK THAT DAY? 13 A. I DON'T REMEMBER. 14 Q. OKAY. 15 DID YOU TALK TO ANYONE ELSE THAT DAY ABOUT THE BAKER TANK 16 AND THE SPILL? 17 A. 18 TOLD CAMERON, ANOTHER SUPERVISOR, DONNIE GOFF, CAME UP TO ME, 19 AND HE SAID, HEY, I NOTICED THE... YOU KNOW, THE HOSE ON THE 20 BAKER TANK WAS OFF AND THERE'S A LITTLE LIQUID. 21 AHEAD AND TIGHTENED UP THAT VALVE. 22 RIGHT AFTER WHEN I CAME BACK TO MY OFFICE, RIGHT AFTER I AND HE SAID -- AND I TOLD HIM WHAT HAPPENED. SO I WENT I SAID I -- 23 HE SAID, I WASN'T SURE IF IT WAS LEAKING OR WHAT. 24 I OPENED IT. 25 HAPPENS ALL THE TIME AND DON'T TELL CAMERON, THIS IS BETWEEN I SAID, NO, AND HE SAID, WELL, DON'T WORRY ABOUT IT, IT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 480 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 ME AND YOU. 2 Q. WHAT DID DONNIE SAY TO THAT? 3 A. I DON'T REMEMBER EXACTLY WHAT HE SAID BUT, BASICALLY, TOLD 4 ME I SHOULDN'T HAVE TOLD CAMERON. 5 Q. DID YOU TALK TO ANYONE ELSE THAT DAY ABOUT THE BAKER TANK? 6 A. SHORTLY AFTER THAT, I THINK SOMEONE JUST OVERHEARD, AND 7 DEANNA CAME UP TO ME AND SAID THAT THOSE THINGS HAPPEN ALL THE 8 TIME BUT THAT I SHOULDN'T TELL MY SUPERVISOR. 9 HAVE TOLD CAMERON. AND THEN I SAID I ALREADY TOLD CAMERON. ANYTHING? I SHOULDN'T 10 Q. DID YOU TALK -- 11 A. THE RIGHT -- THE TRAINING, WE WERE SUPPOSED TO TELL IF, 12 YOU KNOW, SOMETHING GETS OUT OF THE PIPES. 13 Q. DID YOU TALK TO PATRICK NEUMAN ABOUT IT? 14 A. YEAH. 15 TOLD HIM WHAT HAPPENED. 16 Q. WHAT DID MR. NEUMAN SAY? 17 A. HE WAS LIKE, OH, MY GOD, DON'T WORRY, I OPENED -- PATRICK WAS THE NEXT PERSON COMING ON SHIFT, SO I 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 THE COURT: 20 THE WITNESS: OBJECTION, HEARSAY AND RELEVANCY. OVERRULED. HE SAID I OPENED THIS VALVE AND 21 ACTUALLY OIL SPRAYED OUT ALL OVER ME AND I HAD TO CHANGE MY 22 REDS. 23 24 25 HE HAD TO CHANGE HIS CLOTHES. MR. LAFAYETTE: OBJECTION, HEARSAY. MOVE TO STRIKE THE RESPONSE. THE COURT: RESPONSE? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 481 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 MS. SMALLETS: IT GOES TO HER BELIEF THAT THE 2 DIFFERENTIAL TREATMENT THAT SHE'S EXPERIENCING WHICH SHE THEN 3 REPORTS LATER. 4 THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. 5 WE DON'T HAVE MR. NEUMAN HERE. 6 SO WE DON'T KNOW. 7 LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, AGAIN, I DON'T KNOW IF HE IS COMING, YOU'VE HEARD DIFFERENT WITNESSES SAY DIFFERENT THINGS, 8 RIGHT? 9 CAN'T DECIDE WHO TO BELIEVE IF THEY'RE NOT HERE. 10 11 YOU ARE GOING TO HAVE TO DECIDE WHO YOU BELIEVE. YOU I WILL ALLOW IT IN FOR HER STATE OF MIND BUT THAT'S IT. OKAY? GO AHEAD. 12 MS. SMALLETS: SURE. 13 BY MS. SMALLETS: 14 Q. 15 MR. CURRAN DURING THAT TIME PERIOD ABOUT YOUR WORK SCHEDULE? 16 A. DURING JULY? 17 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT THE PD LOG. 18 THIRD PAGE, IT SAYS DEF 166 AT THE BOTTOM. 19 A. YES, I DID ON THAT. 20 Q. DO YOU RECALL -- DO YOU KNOW WHAT THIS IS REFERRING TO? 21 A. YES. 22 Q. CAN YOU -- DID YOU TALK TO MR. CURRAN ABOUT IT? 23 A. YES. 24 Q. AND HOW DID THAT COME UP IN CONVERSATION? 25 A. HE ASKED ME, LIKE, HOW WAS THIS LAST SHIFT, AND I SAID DID YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION DURING THAT TIME PERIOD WITH ON PAGE -- THERE'S A IT LOOKS LIKE THE SAME DATE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 482 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 I -- YOU KNOW, THAT I DIDN'T REALLY KNOW WHAT HE WAS TALKING 2 ABOUT. 3 REMEMBER WHAT DAY, BUT YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO WORK ON THIS DAY, 4 AND I SAID -- 5 Q. WHAT WAS YOUR RESPONSE? 6 A. I DIDN'T KNOW THAT I WAS SUPPOSED TO WORK THAT DAY. 7 Q. DID HE SAY WHY HE THOUGHT YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO WORK THAT 8 DAY? 9 A. HE SAID YOU WERE SUPPOSED TO WORK ON... I DON'T THE PREVIOUS PAGES THAT JEFF WHITED OUT AND I WAS SUPPOSED 10 TO MAKE UP TIME THAT I HAD ARRANGED WITH ERIC PEREZ, CAMERON 11 THOUGHT THIS WAS THAT TIME. 12 Q. 13 WERE SUPPOSED TO MAKE UP? 14 A. 15 THIS POINT, SINCE THEY CANCELED MY SWAP, THERE WAS NO ONE TO 16 REPLACE BECAUSE THEY ARRANGED THAT, SINCE IT WAS CANCELED. 17 DID YOU HAVE A DIFFERENT UNDERSTANDING AS TO WHAT TIME YOU YEAH. SO, SINCE I WAS TECHNICALLY SWAPPING WITH MYSELF AT SO ERIC PEREZ SAID I CAN MAKE UP THE TIME, YOU KNOW, JUST 18 MAKE IT UP WHENEVER. 19 TRAINING? 20 SAID TO JUST ATTEND SOME FIRE TRAININGS AND STAY AFTERWARDS 21 WHATEVER -- HOWEVER MANY HOURS. 22 Q. AND DID YOU -- 23 A. AND I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT DATES THOSE WERE. 24 Q. DID YOU ULTIMATELY MAKE UP ALL THE TIME? 25 A. YES. I ASKED HIM, CAN I MAKE IT UP AT FIRE CAN I ATTEND A FEW EXTRA FIRE TRAININGS? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC AND HE 483 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 MR. CURRAN SAID YOU SHOULD HAVE? 3 A. NO. 4 Q. DID YOU TALK TO MR. CURRAN AND TELL HIM YOUR PERSPECTIVE 5 ON THIS? 6 A. YES. 7 Q. WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HIM? 8 A. I TOLD HIM THAT I'M SORRY HE'S UPSET BUT I DIDN'T 9 UNDERSTAND THAT I WAS SUPPOSED TO WORK THAT DAY. AND DID YOU -- DID YOU MAKE IT UP, ANY OF IT, THE DATES AND HE SAID 10 THAT I AGREED TO IT. 11 HIS SCHEDULE. 12 Q. DID YOU -- WHAT DID YOU SAY NEXT? 13 A. I THINK I JUST ASKED HIM -- WELL, THAT WAS LIKE -- I ASKED 14 HIM THAT WAS A FEW DAYS AGO. 15 WASN'T HERE IF I WAS SCHEDULED TO WORK. 16 Q. 17 WEREN'T -- 18 A. 19 NEVER MADE AWARE THAT I WAS ON THE SCHEDULE. 20 Q. WHAT DOES BEING ON THE SCHEDULE MEAN? 21 A. IT MEANS THAT YOU ARE SCHEDULED TO WORK WITH A CERTAIN 22 TEAM ON A CERTAIN DAY, SO YOUR SUPERVISOR CAN SEE WHO IS ON -- 23 WHO IS WORKING FOR THEM THAT DAY. 24 25 AND I ASKED HIM, LIKE, I NEVER SAW IT ON WHY DIDN'T ANYONE NOTICE I WHY DID YOU -- DID YOU EXPECT PEOPLE TO NOTICE YOU? YEAH. IF I WAS -- HE SAID I WAS ON THE SCHEDULE AND I WAS SO I JUST ASKED HIM, CAN YOU SHOW ME THE SCHEDULE OR WHY NOBODY CALLED ME IF I WAS SUPPOSED TO BE HERE. BECAUSE IT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 484 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 KIND OF JUST CAME UP IN A CASUAL CONVERSATION. 2 HE SAID, HEY, YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO BE HERE THIS DAY AND 3 SOMEBODY NOTIFIED ME THAT YOU WEREN'T. 4 Q. DID YOU TALK ABOUT SCHEDULE PRO DURING THAT CONVERSATION? 5 A. I ASKED HIM ABOUT THE SCHEDULE AND HE SAID THERE'S 6 SCHEDULE PRO. 7 NO, I HADN'T BEEN SHOWN IT. 8 9 DO YOU KNOW HOW TO USE SCHEDULE PRO? HAVEN'T BEEN ASSIGNED A LOG-IN INFORMATION; THAT THEY COULDN'T LOG ME IN. 11 GETTING ME SET UP FOR SCHEDULE PRO. 12 Q. DID HE DO THAT? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. WHEN DID THAT HAPPEN? 15 A. MAYBE A FEW DAYS LATER. 17 SO HE SAID I'LL WORK ON GETTING ME A PASSWORD AND THE COURT: YOU'VE GOT ONE MINUTE. MS. SMALLETS: 19 THE COURT: 21 22 23 24 25 IS THIS A GOOD TRANSITION? 18 20 I SAID, HE TRIES -- HE SHOWS ME HOW AND THEN REALIZES THAT I 10 16 IT'S NOT LIKE TAKE OUR FIRST BREAK. YES, IT IS A GOOD TRANSITION. ALL RIGHT. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WE WILL WE WILL BE BACK IN -- IN 15 MINUTES. (PROCEEDINGS HELD OUTSIDE THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) THE COURT: MS. NEWTON. ALL RIGHT. YOU MAY STEP DOWN, 15 MINUTES. (RECESS TAKEN AT 10:00 A.M.; RESUMED AT 10:17 A.M.) THE CLERK: EVERYONE BE SEATED. COURT IS IN SESSION. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 485 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 2 ALL RIGHT. THE COURT: MS. NEWTON COME ON BACK. LET'S CALL THE JURORS. 3 (PROCEEDINGS HELD IN THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) 4 OKAY. 5 EVERYBODY READY? WE ARE BACK ON THE RECORD. THE RECORD WILL REFLECT THAT THE JURY IS BACK WITH US. 6 YOU MAY PROCEED. 7 BY MS. SMALLETS: 8 Q. 9 OF SHIFT TIME? ONCE YOU WERE ON, WORKING ON THE SHIFT, WHAT WAS THE START 10 A. AT 6:00 A.M. 11 Q. DID YOU ARRIVE AT WORK AFTER 6:00 A.M. ON JULY 22ND? 12 A. YES. 13 Q. WHAT HAPPENED THAT MADE YOU LATE THAT DAY? 14 A. I THINK I HAD A DEAD BATTERY, SO I ARRANGED WITH PATRICK 15 PRETTY EARLY, LIKE 5:00, MAYBE LIKE -- MAYBE ACTUALLY LATER 16 THAN 5:00, BUT I JUST ASKED HIM IF HE COULD STAY, I WOULD BE A 17 FEW MINUTES LATE. 18 LATER. 19 Q. WHAT WAS PATRICK'S RESPONSE? 20 A. YEAH, NO PROBLEM. 21 Q. AND WHY DID YOU THINK THAT THIS WAS THE PROPER THING TO DO 22 WHEN YOU KNEW YOU WERE GOING TO BE LATE? AND I WOULD STAY FOR HIM A FEW MINUTES 23 MR. LAFAYETTE: 24 THE COURT: 25 THE WITNESS: OBJECTION, LEADING. OVERRULED. IT IS SOMETHING THAT ALL THE OPERATORS DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 486 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 DID. 2 BASEBALL GAMES, THEY WOULD SAY MY KID HAS A GAME TODAY, CAN I 3 COME IN AT 4:00 AND YOU GET OFF AT 4:00. 4 HOURS. 5 Q. 6 PRACTICE? 7 A. 8 BENEFITS OF THIS JOB. 9 YOU HAVE ROOM TO MAKE THOSE SMALL ARRANGEMENTS WITH OTHER LIKE, IF THEY HAD -- THEIR DAUGHTERS OR THEIR SONS HAD SO THEY DID IT BY EVEN -- SO I KNEW THAT THIS WASN'T A BIG DEAL. HAD YOU HEARD ANY SUPERVISOR TALK TO YOU ABOUT THAT YES. THE SUPERVISORS TALKED TO US ABOUT IT AS ONE OF THE THE SCHEDULE IS NOT VERY FLEXIBLE BUT 10 OPERATORS. 11 Q. 12 GET A MANAGER'S PERMISSION TO DO THAT? 13 A. NO. 14 Q. NOW, LET'S TALK ABOUT -- I WOULD LIKE TO TURN YOUR 15 ATTENTION TO -- I'M SORRY. 16 A. 17 SITUATION WITHOUT MANAGER'S APPROVAL. 18 Q. 19 MEETING THAT TOOK PLACE ON JULY 22ND THAT YOU HAD WITH CAMERON 20 AND GUY AND NICK BACKENS -- I'M SORRY. 21 ROZAR AND NICK BACKENS? 22 A. YES. 23 Q. DO YOU RECALL THAT MEETING? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. DO YOU -- DO YOU KNOW WHAT THE PURPOSE OF THE MEETING WAS? PRIOR TO JULY 22ND, HAD ANYONE TOLD YOU IF YOU NEEDED TO AND I HAD STAYED FOR OTHER OPERATORS BEFORE, THE SAME I WOULD LIKE TO TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO -- TALK ABOUT A CAMERON CURRAN AND GUY DO YOU RECALL THAT MEETING? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 487 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 AND THE VALVE THAT I OPENED. 3 Q. WHAT IS A ZERO TO SIXTY MEETING? 4 A. GUY ROZAR IS THE SAFETY MANAGER, AND THE ZERO TO SIXTY 5 MEETINGS ARE WHEN SOMEONE IS ALMOST HURT OR REPORTED A MISTAKE 6 THAT THEY MADE, SO THEY CAN DOCUMENT ALL THE FACTS AND 7 HOPEFULLY FIND WAYS THAT THIS COULD NOT HAPPEN AGAIN TO 8 SOMEBODY ELSE. 9 Q. DO YOU RECALL HOW THAT MEETING STARTED? 10 A. I REMEMBER IT WAS LIKE IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT. 11 WITH -- CAMERON TOLD ME WE WOULD HAVE A ZERO TO SIXTY WITH GUY 12 AND ONE OF THE OTHER GUYS FROM THE OPCEN SOUTH. 13 UNION STEWARD, SO HE APPROACHED ME. 14 HE SAID HE WOULD LIKE TO ATTEND THE MEETING WITH ME AND TAKE 15 NOTES FOR ME. 16 FROM HERE ON OUT THAT HE SHOULD BE THERE WITH ME OR SOME OTHER 17 UNION REPRESENTATIVE. 18 Q. AND WHAT HAPPENED FIRST AT THAT MEETING? 19 A. WE WENT OVER -- I TOLD THEM EXACTLY WHAT HAPPENED, ABOUT 20 THE MISTAKE THAT I MADE. 21 Q. AND DID GUY ROZAR SAY ANYTHING AT THE MEETING? 22 A. GUY TOLD ME THAT -- HE ASKED ME IF THE PREVIOUS OPERATOR 23 HAD INFORMED ME OF THE CHANGE ON THE SHIFT TURNOVER, THAT IF 24 IT HAD BEEN HOOKED UP TO THE OTHER SIDE, IF ANYONE LET ME KNOW 25 THAT OR IF IT WAS IN THE SHIFT REPORT. THE PURPOSE OF THE MEETING WAS REGARDING THE BAKER TANK IT WAS ZERO TO SIXTY MEETING. IT WAS HE WAS A HE HEARD WHAT HAPPENED. AND HE ALSO TOLD ME ANY MEETING THAT I HAVE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 488 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHAT DID YOU TELL HIM? 2 A. I SAID NO. 3 Q. DID GUY SAY ANYTHING ELSE AT THE MEETING? 4 A. HE SAID THAT'S ONE THING, EVERY CHANGE SHOULD BE 5 COMMUNICATED. 6 SECOND THING HE SAID IS THAT IT SHOULD HAVE HAD A SAFETY PLUG, 7 SO THAT NO VALVE IS JUST OPEN TO ANYTHING. 8 IT IS UNHOOKED TO SOMETHING ELSE, THERE IS A SAFETY PLUG SO 9 THAT, IF SOMEONE DOES MAKE THAT MISTAKE, IT'S A SAFETY THAT IS WHEN WE CAN AVOID THESE MISTAKES. THE THERE'S A -- ONCE 10 MECHANISM TO PROTECT THEM FROM WHATEVER LIQUID IS INSIDE. 11 Q. DID MR. ROZAR SAY ANYTHING ELSE DURING THE MEETING? 12 A. NOT THAT I CAN REMEMBER RIGHT NOW. 13 Q. DID MR. ROZAR SAY ANYTHING ABOUT -- ANYTHING THAT YOU 14 SHOULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY? 15 A. 16 AND, HE SAID I SHOULD PAY CLOSER ATTENTION AND BE MORE 17 ATTENTIVE, AND I SAID I WOULD DO THAT. 18 Q. 19 MEETING? 20 A. YES. 21 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT HE SAID? 22 A. I THINK HE SAID THE SAME THING AS GUY. 23 RECOMMENDED, YOU KNOW, USING -- ALWAYS USING A FLASHLIGHT. 24 Q. 25 THAN THE VALVE THAT YOU OPENED ON THE BAKER TANK? I MEAN, I DEFINITELY SHOULD HAVE PAID CLOSER ATTENTION DID YOU -- DID MR. CURRAN SAY ANYTHING DURING THIS I THINK HE DID YOU TALK ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE IN THIS MEETING OTHER DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 489 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 GO OVER ALL THESE PREVIOUS INCIDENTS THAT HE HAD WRITTEN DOWN, 3 THAT I WAS UNAWARE THAT HE HAD WRITTEN DOWN. 4 Q. 5 TALKING ABOUT? 6 A. IN THE POSITIVE DISCIPLINE FILE. 7 Q. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT THAT MR. CURRAN HAD WRITTEN INCIDENTS 8 IN YOUR POSITIVE DISCIPLINE FILE? 9 A. AT THIS MEETING. 10 Q. WHAT DID HE SAY? 11 A. HE JUST WENT OVER THEM ALL. 12 THEM ALL TO SAY THAT I HAD BEEN MAKING MISTAKES AND THAT HE 13 THOUGHT I SHOULD PAY CLOSER ATTENTION. 14 STEWARD -- 15 Q. DID HE HAVE A RESPONSE? 16 A. HE SAID WHY HAVE YOU BEEN WRITING -- HE ASKED ME IF I KNEW 17 ABOUT THESE COACHINGS. 18 CIARA THAT YOU'VE BEEN WRITING ALL THESE COACHINGS. 19 CAMERON SAID NO, THE PURPOSE OF THE COACHING IS TO LET THEM 20 KNOW THAT YOU ARE WRITING IT IN THERE SO THEY CAN MAKE -- OH, YES. WE DID. SO AT THIS TIME, CAMERON ALSO STARTS TO AND WHEN YOU SAY WRITTEN DOWN, WHERE? 21 MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 THE COURT: 23 THE WITNESS: NO. WHERE ARE YOU KIND OF -- HE WAS GOING OVER AND THEN THE UNION HE ASKED CAMERON, DID YOU NOTIFY AND OBJECTION, HEARSAY. OVERRULED. SO THEY CAN MAKE IMPROVEMENTS OR FIX 24 THEIR BEHAVIORS. 25 FOR A FEW DAYS NOW, BUT HE HAD NEVER NOTIFIED ME BUT HE WAS AND CAMERON SAID THAT HE HAD BEEN WRITING IT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 490 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 NOTIFYING ME NOW. 2 BY MS. SMALLETS: 3 Q. DID CAMERON SAY ANYTHING ELSE AFTER THAT? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. DID YOU -- DID YOU SAY ANYTHING ABOUT ONCE CAMERON WENT 6 THROUGH THE INCIDENTS IN THE PD LOG? 7 A. 8 TO SIXTY TO THE LONG LIST THAT HE CREATED ON ME -- WELL, PRIOR 9 TO THAT HE KEPT -- I SAID, YOU KNOW, I FEEL A LITTLE WORRIED WELL, ONCE THE SHIFT OF THE MEETING CHANGED FROM THE ZERO 10 ABOUT MY JOB. 11 I THOUGHT THIS WAS A ZERO TO SIXTY MEETING. 12 IS NOT DISCIPLINE. 13 DISCIPLINE. 14 Q. 15 PARTICULAR INCIDENTS THAT WERE RAISED IN THE PD LOG? 16 A. 17 WRITE -- WHO THEY DOCUMENT, THAT I FEEL LIKE THEY ARE PICKING 18 AND CHOOSING WHO THEY WRITE IN THE PD FILE. 19 Q. 20 THAT WAY? 21 A. 22 RECENT WAS I SAID TO CAMERON THAT THEY JUST, YOU KNOW, HAD THE 23 OVERFILL OF SULFURIC ACID AND YOU WENT OUT OF YOUR WAY TO MAKE 24 SURE IT WASN'T DOCUMENTED SO THAT I DON'T GET ANYONE IN 25 TROUBLE, BUT YOU'RE DOCUMENTING EVERY TINY THING ON ME AND IT LIKE I FEEL LIKE YOU'RE MAKING A TRAIL ON ME. AND HE SAID THIS HE KEPT REPEATING TO ME IT IS NOT I'M JUST -- WE ARE JUST GOING OVER THESE DETAILS. DID YOU DURING THAT MEETING DID YOU SAY ANYTHING ABOUT THE YEAH. I JUST SAID THAT THEY PICK AND CHOOSE WHO THEY DID YOU OFFER ANY SPECIFIC EXAMPLES AS TO WHY YOU FELT I DID. THE MOST SPECIFIC -- BECAUSE IT WAS THE MOST DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 491 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 MAKES ME FEEL LIKE -- I'M JUST REALLY WORRIED ABOUT MY JOB. 2 Q. DID YOU -- 3 A. BECAUSE IT LOOKS BAD ON PAPER. 4 Q. HOW DID THAT MEETING END? 5 A. THE MEETING ENDED. 6 DISCIPLINE. 7 TOOK NOTES FOR ME AND HANDED THEM -- NICK WAS THE UNION GUY. 8 AND HE SAID THESE ARE YOUR NOTES, I THINK THIS IS EVERYTHING 9 THAT WAS SAID. CAMERON REASSURED ME THAT IT WASN'T GUY SAID, YOU KNOW, NOT TO WORRY. NICK BACKENS 10 Q. 11 HAD WITH CAMERON -- MR. CURRAN DURING THE NEXT WEEK OR SO? 12 A. NO. 13 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 40. DID YOU HAVE ANY -- DO YOU RECALL ANY CONVERSATIONS YOU 14 MS. SMALLETS: 15 THIS WAS PREVIOUSLY ADMITTED. (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 16 BY MS. SMALLETS: 17 Q. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THIS IS? 18 A. THIS IS THE FIFTH REVIEW GIVEN TO ME. 19 CAMERON. 20 Q. 21 REVIEW? 22 A. YES, WE DID. 23 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT HE SAID TO YOU ABOUT THE REVIEW DURING 24 THAT MEETING? 25 A. THIS TIME BY AND DID YOU HAVE A MEETING WITH MR. CURRAN TO DISCUSS THIS I JUST REMEMBER IT BEING MOSTLY POSITIVE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 492 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 ACCURACY, AND THOROUGHNESS. 3 4 TAKE A LOOK AT THE -- THE BLOCK UNDER WORK SPEED, OH, NO. I AM SORRY. THAT'S NOT THE PART I WANTED TO ASK YOU ABOUT. 5 ON THE SECOND PAGE, TAKE A LOOK AT THE BOX UNDER -- RIGHT 6 NEXT TO JOB KNOWLEDGE AND SKILLS. 7 REFERENCE TO TIME SPENT -- SOME TIME SPENT OUTSIDE TRACING 8 PIPES IN THE UNIT AND REVIEWING SIMULATING PROCEDURES WOULD BE 9 BENEFICIAL TO LEARNING THE EQUIPMENT IN THE UNIT? YOU SEE THERE IS A 10 A. YES. 11 Q. DID YOU DISCUSS THAT WITH MR. CURRAN AT THAT MEETING? 12 A. YES. 13 Q. WHAT DO YOU RECALL MR. CURRAN SAYING TO YOU ABOUT THAT? 14 A. HE SAID THAT HE WANTED TO SEE ME OUTSIDE TRACING PIPE MORE 15 OFTEN. 16 Q. DID YOU SAY ANYTHING TO HIM IN RESPONSE? 17 A. I ASKED -- I ASKED HIM IF HE SAID THE SAME THING TO BILL. 18 BILL WAS -- 19 Q. LET'S TAKE A STEP BACK. 20 A. BILL WAS THE OTHER NEW HIRE ON OUR TEAM. 21 TOGETHER. 22 Q. 23 MR. -- IS BILL, BILL WESSELMAN? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. WERE YOU AND MR. WESSELMAN WORKING ON THE SAME SHIFT? WHO IS BILL? WE HIRED IN WE ARE BOTH UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF CAMERON. DID YOU HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO OBSERVE -- WERE YOU AND DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 493 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. WE WERE WORKING ON THE SAME SHIFT, YES. 2 Q. DID YOU HAVE AN OPPORTUNITY TO OBSERVE HOW MUCH TIME HE 3 SPENT AT HIS DESK VERSUS OUT IN THE UNIT? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. AND DID -- SO WHAT DID YOU SAY TO MR. CURRAN ABOUT 6 MR. WESSELMAN? 7 A. 8 FOLLOW BILL AT ALL AS MUCH AS YOU FOLLOW ME IN THE UNITS, AND, 9 YOU KNOW, KIND OF MICROMANAGING. OUR DESKS WERE RIGHT NEXT TO EACH OTHER. I -- ACTUALLY I JUST ASKED HIM -- I ASKED HIM DO YOU I JUST ASKED HIM, DO YOU 10 FOLLOW BILL. 11 I'LL START. 12 Q. SORRY. 13 A. THEN I ASKED BILL, BECAUSE I KNOW WE SPEND A LOT OF TIME 14 TOGETHER, OUR DESKS ARE APART -- BECAUSE WE GOT OUR REVIEWS ON 15 THE SAME DAY, WE HIRED IN TOGETHER. 16 ANYTHING TO YOU ABOUT BEING IN HERE TOO MUCH, HE SAID NO. AND HE SAID, ACTUALLY I DON'T BUT I SHOULD AND AND THEN I -WAS THERE SOMETHING ELSE YOU SAID? 17 MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 MS. SMALLETS: 19 I SAID, DOES CAMERON SAY OBJECTION, HEARSAY. IT GOES TO HER NOTICE AND BELIEF ABOUT HOW SHE IS BEING TREATED. 20 THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. ONLY ALLOWED FOR THAT 21 PURPOSE. 22 BY MS. SMALLETS: 23 Q. AT SOME POINT IN TIME, DID YOU MEET CHRISTINE LAYNE? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. DO YOU KNOW WHO, BASED ON YOUR UNDERSTANDING AT THE TIME, DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 494 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 WAS CHRISTINE LAYNE? 2 A. 3 ON-SITE. 4 Q. 5 GOING TO MEET WITH CHRISTINE? 6 A. 7 CHRISTINE. 8 Q. HOW DID YOU FEEL WHEN YOU LEARNED THAT? 9 A. I WAS KIND OF LOOKING FORWARD TO IT BECAUSE I THOUGHT, YOU MY UNDERSTANDING, SHE WAS THE, LIKE, TOP OF HR THAT WAS AND HOW DID YOU -- DO YOU RECALL HOW YOU LEARNED YOU WERE I THINK ERIC PEREZ TOLD ME THAT I WOULD MEET WITH 10 KNOW, I'VE BEEN TALKING TO ERIC ABOUT THESE ISSUES BUT NOW I'M 11 TALKING TO SOMEONE ABOVE ERIC. 12 Q. DID YOU DO ANYTHING TO PREPARE FOR THE MEETING? 13 A. SO -- I LOOKED BACK -- IN OUR TRAINING. 14 GAVE US ALL OF OUR TRAINING MATERIAL. 15 AT THAT MATERIAL. 16 JUST MAKE SURE TO USE THE RIGHT LANGUAGE FOR WHAT IT WAS I WAS 17 TRYING TO EXPRESS TO ERIC. 18 Q. HR CAME IN AND SO I JUST LOOKED BACK SO I CAN MAKE SURE -- CAN I -- SO I COULD LET'S TAKE A LOOK IN YOUR BINDER AT EXHIBIT 101. 19 MR. LAFAYETTE: 20 THE COURT: I COULDN'T HEAR THE EXHIBIT NUMBER. 101. 21 BY MS. SMALLETS: 22 Q. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THIS IS? 23 A. IT'S JUST HIGHLIGHTED PIECES OF THE HANDBOOK THAT SHELL 24 GAVE US. 25 Q. ARE THE HIGHLIGHTS YOURS? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 495 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. YES. 2 Q. WHEN DID YOU MAKE THOSE? 3 A. BEFORE THE MEETING. 4 5 MS. SMALLETS: EXHIBIT 101 INTO EVIDENCE. 6 MR. LAFAYETTE: 7 THE COURT: 8 9 YOUR HONOR, WE WOULD LIKE TO OFFER NO OBJECTION, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 101 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) BY MS. SMALLETS: 10 Q. 11 YOU HIGHLIGHTED? AND WHY DID YOU HIGHLIGHT THE PORTIONS OF EXHIBIT 101 THAT 12 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 13 A. 14 I FELT WAS THE WAY I FELT. 15 Q. 16 THE SECOND PAGE OF THE DOCUMENT, THAT FIRST HIGHLIGHT. 17 YOU SEE WHAT THAT SAYS? 18 A. 19 BUSINESS-RELATED REASONS. 20 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT THE NEXT PAGE? 21 A. AND IT SAYS INCONSISTENCY. 22 Q. DID YOU LOOK AT ANY OTHER -- SORRY. 23 EXHIBIT 102. 24 A. 102? 25 Q. YES. I JUST FELT THOSE WERE THINGS THAT I ASSOCIATED WITH, THAT LET'S SEE. IT IS NOT A GREAT COPY. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT CAN IT SAYS, TREAT PEOPLE FAIRLY AND WITH VALID, LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 496 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. OKAY. 2 Q. ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THIS DOCUMENT? 3 A. YES. 4 Q. WHAT IS IT? 5 A. IT'S THE SULFURIC ACID -- 6 Q. 102? 7 A. 102? 8 DID I HAVE THE WRONG NUMBER IN THE BINDER? MS. SMALLETS: 9 YOUR HONOR, MAY I APPROACH? (EXHIBIT HANDED TO WITNESS.) 10 BY MS. SMALLETS: 11 Q. 12 HAVE NOW JUST GIVEN YOU THE DOCUMENT MARKED AS EXHIBIT 102. 13 ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THAT DOCUMENT? 14 A. YES. 15 Q. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? 16 A. SHELL'S POLICY. 17 Q. DID YOU RECEIVE THAT DOCUMENT AT ANY POINT IN TIME? 18 A. YES. 19 20 I AM SORRY. YOU HAD THE WRONG DOCUMENT IN YOUR BINDER. I SHELL'S POLICY AND COMMITMENT. IN OUR NEW HIRE TRAINING. MS. SMALLETS: YOUR HONOR, WE WOULD LIKE TO OFFER 102 INTO EVIDENCE. 21 MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 THE COURT: NO OBJECTION. ADMITTED. 23 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 102 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 24 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 25 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 497 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BY MS. SMALLETS: 2 Q. DID YOU HIGHLIGHT ANY PORTIONS OF THAT DOCUMENT? 3 A. WORK ENVIRONMENT FREE OF DISCRIMINATION. 4 Q. MAYBE WE CAN GET IT UP ON THE SCREEN AND THAT MAY HELP. 5 IT IS EASIER TO SEE THERE? 6 A. AND INTIMIDATION. 7 Q. DID YOU HIGHLIGHT ANY OTHER PORTIONS? 8 A. MAKING DEROGATORY COMMENTS, USING SLURS, FOSTERING 9 NEGATIVE STEREOTYPES. 10 Q. WHY DID YOU HIGHLIGHT THAT PORTION OF THAT DOCUMENT? 11 A. I JUST FELT LIKE I WAS TRYING TO ASK ERIC -- OR TELL HIM 12 THAT I WAS BEING TREATED UNFAIRLY AND MAYBE THEY DIDN'T 13 UNDERSTAND. 14 AND SHOW THEM EXAMPLES OF WHAT'S HAPPENING AND THESE ARE THE 15 THINGS, THAT IT WOULD HELP THEM TO UNDERSTAND THAT I FELT I 16 WAS BEING TREATED DIFFERENTLY. 17 Q. 18 AUGUST 2ND? 19 A. CHRISTINE, LAYNE, ERIC PEREZ AND RAY JONES. 20 Q. DID NICK BACKENS ATTEND? 21 A. AND NICK BACKENS ATTENDED THE BEGINNING. 22 ASKED NICK BACKENS TO LEAVE. 23 Q. DID YOU WANT TO RECORD THAT MEETING? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. WHY? OKAY. SO I THOUGHT IF I CAN SHOW THEM THEIR OWN POLICY DO YOU RECALL WHO ATTENDED THE MEETING ON CHRISTINE LAYNE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 498 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 I JUST WANTED TO RECORD THAT... WHAT I WAS SAYING, WHAT I WAS 3 TRYING TO SAY I WAS BEING TREATED DIFFERENTLY AND SEE WHAT 4 THEY WERE GOING -- TO GIVE ME SOME ADVICE ON HOW THEY THOUGHT 5 I COULD I'M IMPROVE. 6 Q. DID YOU -- 7 A. JUST KIND OF NEW WAY OF TAKING NOTES, I GUESS. 8 Q. DID YOU END UP RECORDING THAT MEETING? 9 A. NO. 10 Q. WHY NOT? 11 A. CHRISTINE LAYNE SAW ME TAKING MY PHONE OUT OF MY PURSE, 12 ASKED ME IF I WAS RECORDING. 13 NOT OKAY. 14 Q. 15 IN THAT MEETING? 16 A. DO I RECALL IN ORDER? 17 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT TOPICS WERE DISCUSSED IN THAT MEETING? 18 A. WHAT WAS THE DATE OF THE MEETING? 19 Q. THE AUGUST 2ND MEETING WITH CHRISTINE. 20 A. I THINK THE FIRST TOPIC THAT WAS DISCUSSED WAS THE SHIFT 21 SWAP WITH PATRICK NEUMAN. 22 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT ANYONE SAID ABOUT THAT? 23 A. NO -- OKAY. 24 FIRST THING WE TALKED ABOUT WAS. 25 I THINK NICK KIND OF RECOMMENDED IT, AND I JUST WANTED -- I SAID YES, AND SHE SAID THAT'S SO I TURNED IT OFF. DO YOU RECALL WHAT WAS THE FIRST TOPIC THAT WAS DISCUSSED I DON'T. MEMORY REFRESHED. I REMEMBER NOW WHAT THE IT WAS THE ATTENDANCE AND THE GATE LOGS. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 499 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 GATE LOGS? 3 A. OKAY. WHAT DID YOU TALK ABOUT WITH THE ATTENDANCE AND THE IS THIS MY FIRST MEETING WITH CHRISTINE OR SECOND? 4 MR. LAFAYETTE: 5 BY MS. SMALLETS: 6 Q. 7 YOU MEET WITH CHRISTINE? 8 A. TWICE. 9 Q. OKAY. OBJECTION. DID YOU MEET WITH CHRISTINE BEFORE -- HOW MANY TIMES DID AND THEN THIRD TIME WHEN I WAS FIRED. WAS THIS -- WAS THIS THE FIRST OR SECOND? LET'S 10 TALK ABOUT YOUR FIRST MEETING WITH CHRISTINE. 11 A. OKAY. 12 Q. OKAY. 13 A. -- AND NICK BACKENS. 14 Q. TELL US WHAT HAPPENED AT THAT MEETING. 15 A. I KNOW AT THE END, WE TALKED ABOUT MY CONCERNS, AND IN THE 16 BEGINNING, THEY TALKED ABOUT THEIR CONCERNS. 17 I DON'T REMEMBER ANYMORE WHAT IT WAS AT THIS MOMENT WHAT THEY 18 WERE TALKING TO ME ABOUT. 19 Q. OKAY. 20 A. IS THERE SOMETHING I CAN -- 21 Q. THAT'S OKAY. 22 DID YOU RAISE IN THAT MEETING? 23 A. 24 TOPIC OF THE ATTENDANCE. 25 WHERE THEY HAD THE GATE LOGS OR THEY TOLD ME THEY HAD THE GATE FIRST MEETING WITH CHRISTINE, RAY JONES -- I JUST CAN'T -- WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER ABOUT -- WHAT CONCERNS THAT I WASN'T BEING TREATED FAIRLY AND I KNOW THERE WAS A I THINK THIS MIGHT BE THE MEETING DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 500 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 LOGS, OR IT COULD HAVE BEEN THE SECOND MEETING. 2 Q. DID YOU TALK TO RAY JONES IN PRIVATE DURING THIS MEETING? 3 A. YES. 4 Q. DO YOU RECALL HOW YOU ENDED UP TALKING TO RAY JONES IN 5 PRIVATE? 6 A. 7 I THINK I'M BEING TREATED UNFAIRLY, THAT MY PD FILE IS WAY 8 MORE DETAILED THAN ANYONE ELSE'S, THAT THEY ARE PICKING AND 9 CHOOSING WHAT THEY ARE REPORTING. SO, AT THE END OF THE MEETING I TOLD THEM, YOU KNOW, THAT I TOLD THEM THAT I DIDN'T 10 THINK I WAS LATE. 11 STARTED TO. 12 WITH THE NAME JEFF FISCHER. 13 FROM THE START, FROM THE MOMENT I GOT HERE, JEFF FISCHER SAID 14 THIS, JEFF FISCHER SAID THAT. 15 Q. 16 SAID TO YOU? 17 A. YES. 18 Q. WHAT EXAMPLES DID YOU GIVE THEM? 19 A. I TRIED TO START FROM THE BEGINNING. 20 DID I PISS OFF TO HAVE THESE ASSHOLES COMING? 21 GO ON THAT TEAM BECAUSE YOU'RE A GIRL. 22 IT IN OPCEN. 23 THE GATE AND THE STORIES OF THE GIRL WHO WAS WALKED TO THE 24 GATE IN TEARS. 25 Q. I JUST TOLD THEM EVERYTHING. WELL, I AND THEN I WENT ON TO GO ON TO VERY SPECIFICS I SAID, YOU KNOW, AND JUST RIGHT DID YOU TELL THEM ANY EXAMPLES OF WHAT JEFF FISCHER HAD I STARTED WITH: WHO THEN YOU CAN'T THAT WOMEN DON'T MAKE THEN THE CONSTANT THREAT OF ME BEING WALKED TO AND DID YOU -- DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 501 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 STARTED, AND THEN CHRISTINE LAYNE SAID STOP, STOP RIGHT THERE. 3 SHE SAID I WANT YOU TO THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU'RE DOING. 4 MAKING SOME VERY SERIOUS ACCUSATIONS. 5 Q. 6 THINK WHAT YOU WERE PLANNING ON SAYING. 7 OF THOSE THINGS YOU SAID BEFORE CHRISTINE STOPPED YOU? 8 A. 9 PROBABLY STARTED WITH, YOU KNOW, THE ASSHOLES TO COME TO OPCEN BUT I DIDN'T GET THAT FAR. BUT THOSE ARE THE THINGS I SO LET ME TAKE A STEP BACK FOR A SECOND. YOU ARE YOU JUST SAID I DO YOU RECALL WHICH I KNOW I STARTED, LIKE -- TRYING TO START IN ORDER AND 10 AND I COULDN'T GO ON A TEAM BECAUSE I WAS A GIRL. 11 Q. CHRISTINE SAID STOP RIGHT THERE? 12 A. UH-HUH. 13 Q. WHAT ELSE DID SHE SAY? 14 A. SHE SAID THINK ABOUT WHAT YOU ARE SAYING BECAUSE YOU ARE 15 MAKING SOME VERY SERIOUS ACCUSATIONS. 16 Q. AND WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 17 A. I WENT OUTSIDE WITH RAY JONES. 18 THEY ALSO -- ERIC HAD ALREADY PREVIOUSLY TOLD ME THAT ALL 19 THESE THINGS I HAD ALREADY MENTIONED TO ERIC. 20 IT'S JUST HEARSAY UNLESS I GET THE GUYS, JOSE AND MENA AND 21 BILL -- NOT BILL. 22 MY TRAINING WITH JEFF -- UNLESS I GET THEM TO SAY THAT THEY 23 ARE COMFORTABLE ADMITTING WHAT I SAID HAD WHAT HAPPENED. 24 Q. 25 PLACE? AND I EXPLAINED -- OH, HE SAID THAT JOSE, MENA, AND PATRICK, THE THREE GUYS IN DO YOU RECALL WHEN THE CONVERSATION WITH ERIC PEREZ TOOK DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 502 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 MEETING. 3 HE SAID, WELL, DID -- YOU KNOW, DID YOU ASK JOSE IF HE IS 4 COMFORTABLE SAYING THAT IS THE TRUTH? 5 NO. BEFORE THE MEETING. MAYBE A MONTH BEFORE THE AND ON ANOTHER OCCASION WHEN I BROUGHT IT UP AGAIN, DID YOU ASK HIM? SO WE WENT OUT -- 6 Q. 7 SAID YOU WENT OUTSIDE? 8 A. WITH RAY JONES. 9 Q. WHAT DID YOU AND RAY JONES DISCUSS? 10 A. I TOLD HIM THAT THE OTHER THREE GUYS IN THE CLASS, THEY'VE 11 BEEN REALLY HELPFUL TO ME AND I DON'T FEEL LIKE IT'S RIGHT 12 THAT I SHOULD HAVE TO ASK THEM, TO PUT THEM IN THAT POSITION 13 TO TALK ABOUT, BASICALLY, THEIR BOSS IN A NEGATIVE WAY WHEN WE 14 ARE STILL ON PROBATION. 15 ASKING THEM DO THAT. 16 Q. AND DO YOU RECALL ANYTHING THAT MR. JONES SAID TO YOU? 17 A. HE SAID... HE KIND OF SAID, LIKE, I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND 18 WHAT YOU MEAN. 19 THEM. SO IN -- LET'S GO BACK TO THE AUGUST 2ND MEETING. MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 MS. SMALLETS: 23 24 25 AND I JUST DON'T FEEL COMFORTABLE YOU SHOULDN'T... YOU SHOULDN'T HAVE TO ASK 20 22 YOU OBJECTION, HEARSAY. AGAIN, IT GOES TO HER NOTICE AND HER CONDUCT AND WHAT SHE DOES NEXT AND WHY. THE COURT: SO, ONLY FOR THAT PURPOSE. LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, MR. JONES ISN'T HERE TO TELL US. MAY BE HERE BUT HE IS NOT HERE YET. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC HE 503 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BY MS. SMALLETS: 2 Q. 3 MEETING? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT HAPPENS ONCE YOU GO BACK IN? 6 A. I THINK THEY JUST TELL ME, YOU KNOW, IF I -- TO THINK 7 ABOUT IT, TO TALK TO THOSE PEOPLE. 8 Q. OKAY. 9 A. TO TALK TO MY COLLEAGUES AND FIND OUT IF THEY ARE AT SOME POINT DO YOU AND MR. JONES GO BACK INTO THE 10 COMFORTABLE. 11 Q. DO YOU RECALL HOW -- HOW THE MEETING ENDED? 12 A. NO. 13 Q. OKAY. 14 AND TALK ABOUT WHAT HAPPENED ON AUGUST 29TH. 15 I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE FORWARD A LITTLE BIT IN TIME DO YOU RECALL -- AND THAT IS THE DAY THAT -- IS THAT THE 16 DAY THE STICKER WAS BROUGHT INTO THE WORKPLACE? 17 A. YES. 18 Q. OKAY. 19 WALKED IN THAT MORNING? 20 A. 21 JUST REAL QUICK BECAUSE THERE WAS A LOT OF PEOPLE FOR THIS 22 SAFETY MEETING. 23 Q. THEN WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 24 A. SORRY. 25 AFTER HE LEFT, I WENT TO MY DESK, SAW THE STICKER. LET'S TALK ABOUT THAT DAY. WHAT HAPPENED WHEN YOU I WALKED IN THAT MORNING, HAD A SHIFT SWAP WITH ASHTON. SO WE ATTENDED THE SAFETY MEETING. GAVE MY SHIFT SWAP WITH ASHTON. ASHTON LEFT. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC THERE WAS 504 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A LOT OF PEOPLE. 2 ANYONE ELSE'S DESK. 3 LOOKING AT ME. 4 WENT TO THE LADIES' ROOM. 5 Q. WHAT DID YOU DO IN THE BATHROOM? 6 A. JUST LIKE WAITED UNTIL I WASN'T LIKE RED, OR I WAS KIND OF 7 LIKE SHAKING BECAUSE I FELT LIKE EVERYONE WAS LOOKING AT ME. 8 SO I WENT TO THE RESTROOM, CAME OUT OF THE RESTROOM. 9 BILL. SO I LOOKED AROUND TO SEE IF IT WAS ON IT WASN'T. I FELT LIKE EVERYONE WAS I GOT KIND OF, LIKE, RED AND EMBARRASSED, SO I I SAW HE IS THE FIRST PERSON I SAW AND I WAS, LIKE -- 10 Q. HOLD ON. 11 A. OKAY. 12 Q. DID YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH BILL? 13 A. JUST A QUICK ONE. 14 Q. WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HIM? 15 A. DID YOU BRING IN A STICKER? 16 Q. THEN WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 17 A. THEN IT WAS TIME FOR THE SAFETY MEETING. 18 FAST. 19 THERE. 20 Q. WHAT IS THE SAFETY MEETING? 21 A. IT'S A MEETING WE HAVE EVERY MORNING AND JUST HAVE A 22 SAFETY TOPIC OF THE DAY. 23 Q. 24 STICKER? 25 A. HOLD ON. LET ME ASK SOME QUESTIONS. AND HE SAID NO. WE WENT INTO THE SAFETY MEETING. IT WAS ALL VERY ALL THE MANAGERS ARE AFTER THE MEETING, DID YOU TALK TO ANYONE ELSE ABOUT THE YES. SO AFTER THE MEETING, ERIC PEREZ HAD ATTENDED THE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 505 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 MEETING. 2 Q. 3 YOU? 4 A. 5 I TALK TO YOU FOR A MINUTE? 6 Q. DID YOU TALK TO HIM THERE OR SOMEWHERE ELSE? 7 A. I TALKED TO HIM THERE. 8 AND THEN HE WAS, LIKE, WAIT, LET'S -- AND WE WENT INTO THIS 9 OFFICE. HE HAPPENED TO BE WALKING BY. DID YOU SAY SOMETHING TO HIM OR DID HE SAY SOMETHING TO HE CASUALLY SAID, HOW IS IT GOING. I SAID, ACTUALLY, CAN I JUST SAID I FOUND THIS STICKER JUST ME AND HIM. 10 Q. OKAY. 11 A. I SAID I FOUND THIS ON MY DESK. 12 SAID -- HE SAID THAT'S NOT OKAY, THAT HE WOULD INVESTIGATE IT. 13 Q. 14 THAT DAY? 15 A. 16 WAS ASHTON. 17 NO. 18 Q. 19 MR. PEREZ THAT DAY? 20 A. 21 ABOUT MY COLLEAGUES, THE GUYS ON MY TEAM WEREN'T VERY HELPFUL 22 WHEN I HAD QUESTIONS. 23 GET -- I DIDN'T FEEL I WAS GETTING THE HELP THAT I NEEDED OR 24 THE TRAINING. 25 Q. OKAY. AND DID -- WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HIM? AND HE TOOK IT AND DID YOU TALK ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE WITH ERIC PEREZ HE ASKED ME WHO WAS THE OPERATOR BEFORE ME AND I SAID IT HE SAID DO YOU THINK ASHTON LEFT THAT AND I SAID DID YOU TALK -- DID YOU TALK ABOUT ANYTHING ELSE WITH I JUST -- I ASKED HIM -- I JUST TOLD HIM A LITTLE BIT SO I DIDN'T KNOW, YOU KNOW, HOW TO YOU WERE HERE WHEN MR. PEREZ TESTIFIED? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 506 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. YES. 2 Q. DID YOU HEAR HIM SAY THAT HE SAID THAT HE NEEDED 3 ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FROM YOU TO INVESTIGATE? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. DID THAT CONVERSATION HAPPEN ON AUGUST 29TH? 6 A. YES. 7 Q. DID HE ASK YOU THAT? 8 A. HE -- HE -- ON A FEW DIFFERENT OCCASIONS HE ASKED ME -- 9 WELL, I WOULD BRING IT UP AND HE WOULD SAY, DID YOU TALK TO 10 JOSE. 11 Q. WHAT DID YOU SAY? 12 A. I JUST TOLD HIM, AGAIN, I WASN'T -- THAT I WASN'T 13 COMFORTABLE ASKING THEM TO DO THAT. 14 Q. 15 REGARDING THE STICKER? 16 A. 17 LET RICHARD METCALF, MY NEW SUPERVISOR, KNOW ABOUT THIS 18 STICKER. 19 Q. DID YOU END UP TALKING TO RICHARD ABOUT THE STICKER? 20 A. SO, LATER THAT DAY, RICHARD ASKED IF WE COULD TALK IN HIS 21 OFFICE. 22 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHAT HE SAID TO YOU? 23 A. HE SAID, ARE YOU -- I NEED TO KNOW, ARE YOU EASILY -- NO. 24 HE SAID, DO YOU FIND THIS OFFENSIVE? 25 ARE YOU EASILY OFFENDED? DID YOU TALK TO PATRICK? OKAY. OH. ARE THEY COMFORTABLE? DID YOU TALK TO ANY OTHER SUPERVISOR THAT DAY SO ERIC PEREZ MENTIONED TO ME, HE SAID I'M GOING TO I SAID YEAH. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC HE SAID, 507 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHAT DID YOU SAY? 2 A. I SAID NO, NOT REALLY. 3 SAID, ARE YOU -- AND I SAID NO, NOT REALLY. 4 NEED TO KNOW BECAUSE I'M GOING TO HAVE TO TALK TO THESE GUYS 5 ABOUT CHANGING THE WAY THEY TALK. 6 THIS TEAM FOR SO LONG AND, IF THEY NEED TO CHANGE THE WAY THEY 7 TALK, I'M GOING TO HAVE TO LET THEM KNOW. 8 Q. WHAT DID YOU SAY IN RESPONSE? 9 A. NO, YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT. I JUST -- JUST WANT TO -- OH, HE 10 GO HOME, GET ALONG WITH EVERYONE. 11 Q. 12 SAID? 13 A. 14 SAID -- HE SAID BECAUSE I THEY HAVE BEEN WORKING ON I JUST WANT TO DO ANY JOB, DO YOU RECALL ANYTHING ELSE THAT EITHER YOU OR RICHARD I DIDN'T SAY NO, YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO THAT, BUT I JUST 15 COURT REPORTER: I'M SORRY. 16 A. 17 MY JOB AND GO HOME AND NOT BE, LIKE, SINGLED OUT. 18 Q. 19 MEETING? 20 A. NO. 21 Q. OKAY. 22 ABOUT WHAT A SAFETY MEETING WAS. 23 MEETINGS IN WHICH THE TOPIC OF CONVERSATION MADE YOU 24 UNCOMFORTABLE? 25 A. I JUST SAID I'M NOT EASILY OFFENDED. I JUST WANTED TO DO DO YOU RECALL ANYTHING ELSE THAT WAS SAID DURING THAT OR THAT CONVERSATION WITH RICHARD? DO YOU RECALL ANY SAFETY MEETINGS -- WE JUST TALKED DO YOU RECALL ANY SAFETY JUST ONE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 508 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 CAME INTO THE WORKPLACE? 3 A. IT WAS SHORTLY AFTER. 4 Q. OKAY. 5 DAY WAS. 6 A. 7 COULD GO WRONG IN THE REFINERY. 8 WORK. 9 AND LIKE -- I THINK THE TOPIC WAS, LIKE TO TRAIN YOUR WIVES SO DO YOU RECALL WHETHER THAT WAS BEFORE OR AFTER THE STICKER TELL US WHAT THE TOPIC OF THE SAFETY MEETING THAT WELL, USUALLY THE SAFETY TOPICS WERE ABOUT THINGS THAT THEY ARE SPECIFIC TO WHERE WE BUT THIS CONVERSATION WAS MORE ABOUT LIKE THEIR WIVES 10 THEY DON'T PANIC BECAUSE THEY DON'T KNOW HOW TO REACT IN THE 11 CASE OF AN EMERGENCY. 12 WAS JUST -- IT KIND OF LED TO BEING OFFENSIVE BECAUSE IT WAS 13 JUST A LOT OF CATEGORIZING THAT WOMEN WERE NOT ABLE TO REACT 14 UNDER PRESSURE. 15 Q. DID YOU SAY ANYTHING DURING THE MEETING? 16 A. NO. 17 Q. WHY NOT? 18 A. I DIDN'T -- DIDN'T REALLY WANT TO. 19 FEEL LIKE I REALLY NEEDED TO. 20 Q. 21 SUPERVISORS ABOUT THE STICKER? 22 A. NOT THAT I CAN REMEMBER. 23 Q. DID YOU EVER HAVE ANY EMAIL EXCHANGES WITH ANY SHELL 24 SUPERVISORS ABOUT THE STICKER? 25 A. IT WASN'T NECESSARILY OFFENSIVE BUT IT I JUST... I DIDN'T DID YOU EVER HAVE ANY OTHER CONVERSATIONS WITH ANY SHELL YEAH. I FOLLOWED UP WITH ERIC PEREZ. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 509 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 51, WHICH WAS PREVIOUSLY 3 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 4 DID YOU -- IS THIS AN EMAIL YOU SENT TO MR. PEREZ? 5 A. YES. 6 Q. AND DO YOU RECALL WHY YOU SENT THIS EMAIL? 7 A. BECAUSE I HAD PREVIOUSLY SENT HIM IN AN EMAIL PRIOR TO 8 THAT AND -- WITH LESS DETAIL AND HE DIDN'T RESPOND. 9 THOUGHT I SHOULD SEND HIM THIS EMAIL TO SEE IF HE HAS DONE ANY SO I 10 INVESTIGATING OR KNOWS WHO LEFT THE STICKER, IF HE WAS GOING 11 TO ADDRESS MY CONCERNS AT ALL. 12 Q. 13 THIS EMAIL? 14 A. 15 THAT HE WOULD INVESTIGATE IT AND IT WAS NOT TOLERATED. 16 Q. 17 PREVIOUSLY ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. 18 EMAIL STRING? 19 A. OKAY. DID -- DO YOU RECALL IF YOU RECEIVED A RESPONSE TO I THINK I DID RECEIVE ONE TO THE SECOND EMAIL. OKAY. HE TOLD ME LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 50, WHICH WAS DO YOU RECOGNIZE THIS YES. 20 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 21 Q. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THIS IS? 22 A. EMAIL TO ERIC PEREZ. 23 Q. WHY DID YOU SEND THIS EMAIL? 24 A. FOLLOWING UP ON OUR PREVIOUS MEETING. 25 Q. OKAY. DID YOU EVER RECEIVE A PERFORMANCE REVIEW FROM DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 510 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 RICHARD METCALF? 2 A. YES. 3 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 61, WHICH HAS NOT BEEN 4 ADMITTED. 5 A. 51? 6 Q. 61. 7 A. I DON'T HAVE 61. 8 CAN YOU TELL US WHAT EXHIBIT 61 IS? IT GOES 51. PD LOG? (COUNSEL HANDS WITNESS EXHIBIT. 9 MS. SMALLETS: 10 THE WITNESS: SORRY ABOUT THAT. THAT'S OKAY. 11 BY MS. SMALLETS: 12 Q. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT EXHIBIT 61 IS? 13 A. 61 IS ANOTHER 30-DAY PROGRESS REPORT. 14 THE COURT: 15 THE WITNESS: 16 BY MS. SMALLETS: 17 Q. 18 YOU? 19 A. 20 21 THIS IS I THINK -- I COULDN'T HEAR THAT. 240-DAY PROGRESS REPORT. IS THAT A PROGRESS REPORT THAT RICHARD METCALF GAVE TO YES. MS. SMALLETS: YOUR HONOR, WE WOULD LIKE TO ADMIT EXHIBIT 61 INTO EVIDENCE. 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 THE COURT: ANY OBJECTION? NO OBJECTION. ADMITTED. 24 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 61 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 25 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 511 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BY MS. SMALLETS: 2 Q. 3 PROGRESS REVIEW -- OR WHEN HE GAVE IT TO YOU? 4 A. YEAH. 5 Q. WHAT DID HE SAY TO YOU? 6 A. HE WAS REALLY POSITIVE. 7 WITH A BLANK SLATE, AND THAT HE THOUGHT I WAS RIGHT WHERE I 8 SHOULD BE, THAT I WAS A GOOD OPERATOR, AND I WALKED AWAY FROM 9 THAT MEETING FEELING REALLY GOOD. DID YOU HAVE A CONVERSATION WITH MR. METCALF ABOUT THIS HE TOLD ME THAT HE CAME IN HERE HE TOLD ME I SHOULD 10 PROBABLY START TRAINING ON MY SECOND JOB. 11 Q. 12 TRAINING ON YOUR SECOND JOB? 13 A. 14 THAT WITH THE WAY I HAD BEEN TRAINED AND DOCUMENTED IN HP-2, 15 THAT I WANTED TO BE REALLY, REALLY CONFIDENT ON HP-2 BEFORE I 16 MOVED FORWARD. 17 Q. 18 JOB? 19 A. 20 OR TWO, I SHOWED UP EARLY TO WORK WITH JOHN HESS JUST SO HE 21 CAN SHOW ME WHAT THE NEXT JOB IS, THE NEXT UNIT. 22 Q. 23 DURING THAT MEETING? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. OKAY. DID YOU SAY ANYTHING TO HIM IN RESPONSE TO THAT? ABOUT I TOLD HIM THAT I WANTED TO BUT THAT I WAS NERVOUS TO DO AT ANY POINT IN TIME, DID YOU START TRAINING ON YOUR NEXT THE NEXT DAY I SHOWED UP -- THE NEXT DAY OR THE NEXT DAY DID YOU GO THROUGH THE WRITTEN REVIEW WITH MR. METCALF DO YOU RECALL ANYTHING HE SAID TO YOU ABOUT ANY OF DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 512 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 THE SPECIFICS IN THIS REVIEW? 2 A. 3 CONCERN ABOUT A QUESTION HE ASKED ME BUT THEN HE REALIZED 4 THAT -- HE THOUGHT I DIDN'T KNOW BUT HE -- HE REALIZED THAT HE 5 WAS WRONG. 6 Q. CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THAT? 7 A. WE WERE OUT IN THE UPSET. 8 ABNORMALLY IN THE UNIT. AND IT WAS LIKE ONE OF OUR FIRST 9 TIMES WORKING TOGETHER. AND HE IS THE SUPERVISOR, THE NEW 10 NO. I KNOW HE -- ONE THING HE MENTIONED WAS HE HAD A THAT IT WAS JUST A CONFIDENCE ISSUE. WHAT HAPPENED? SO SOMETHING WAS RUNNING SUPERVISOR IN REPLACE OF CAMERON. 11 AND SOMETHING WAS HAPPENING, AND HE WAS -- HE SAID, WHAT'S 12 IN THAT PIPE. 13 WAS IN THE PIPE. 14 OF ME SAYING, YES, I'M SURE, I PULLED OUT MY NOTES THAT I HAD 15 AND THEN SAID YES, I'M SURE. 16 17 IT IS PART OF THE UPSET. AND I TOLD HIM WHAT AND THEN HE SAID, ARE YOU SURE. AND INSTEAD LATER WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT IT, HE ASKED ME, YOU KNOW, WHY DID I HAVE TO LOOK AT MY NOTES, WHY DIDN'T I JUST SAID YES. 18 I TOLD HIM BECAUSE WE WERE IN THE UPSET SITUATION AND HE 19 ASKED ME ARE YOU SURE, I THOUGHT HE DIDN'T KNOW THE ANSWER AND 20 HE WANTED ME TO BE SURE. 21 SO I HAD THE NOTE. I ANSWERED IT CORRECTLY. AND I JUST 22 DOUBLE-CHECKED TO BE SURE BECAUSE I THOUGHT IT WAS -- I DIDN'T 23 KNOW IT WAS A TEST QUESTION. 24 IN-THE-MOMENT ARE YOU SURE, AND SO I DOUBLE-CHECKED. 25 Q. I THOUGHT IT WAS A REAL OKAY. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 513 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 DID YOU -- DO YOU RECALL REVIEWING WHAT RICH -- WHAT 2 MR. METCALF'S RECOMMENDATION WAS WITH RESPECT TO YOUR 3 CONTINUED EMPLOYMENT AT SHELL? 4 A. 5 THAT I WAS A REALLY GOOD OPERATOR AND HE THOUGHT I SHOULD 6 CONTINUE. 7 THAT GAVE ME A CHANCE. 8 Q. 9 THOUGHT YOU HAD MADE A MISTAKE WITH RELATING TO A HOT WORK YEAH. I REMEMBER HIM AT THE END OF THE MEETING SAYING AND I FELT REALLY GOOD THAT I HAD A NEW SUPERVISOR DURING YOUR EMPLOYMENT, DID ANYONE EVER TELL YOU THAT THEY 10 PERMIT IN -- 11 A. NO. 12 Q. WHAT IS A HOT WORK PERMIT? 13 A. A HOT WORK PERMIT IS A PERMIT THAT WE DON'T HAVE AUTHORITY 14 TO WRITE, THAT THEY HAVE -- YOU HAVE SPECIAL TRAINING BEFORE 15 YOU CAN WRITE A HOT WORK PERMIT. 16 Q. DID YOU EVER ATTEMPT TO -- 17 A. JUST BECAUSE -- 18 Q. GO AHEAD. 19 A. JUST BECAUSE THEY REQUIRE -- THAT HOT WORK IS BEING DONE 20 NEXT TO FLAMMABLE GASES, SO EVERYTHING HAS TO BE ISOLATED. 21 NEED MORE TRAINING BEFORE WE CAN WRITE THE PERMITS. 22 Q. DO YOU KNOW WHAT HOT MEANS? 23 A. LIKE HEATED. 24 Q. OKAY. 25 PERMIT? I'M SORRY. DO YOU -- WERE YOU ALLOWED TO ISSUE A HOT WORK DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC WE 514 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. NO. 2 Q. DO YOU KNOW IF ANY OF THE NEW HIRES WERE ALLOWED TO ISSUE 3 A HOT WORK PERMIT? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. DID YOU EVER ISSUE ONE? 6 A. NO. 7 Q. DID YOU EVER ATTEMPT TO ISSUE ONE? 8 A. NO. 9 Q. DID YOU HAVE ANY INTERACTIONS WITH MIKE CUTSHAW REGARDING 10 A PERMIT? 11 A. 12 OTHER PEOPLE TO SIGN OFF ON THEM. 13 ARE NOT QUALIFIED TO WRITE, WE HAVE TO GRAB SOMEONE WHO'S 14 QUALIFIED, AND SAY LIKE, LOW ENERGY PERMITS. 15 SOMEONE WHO IS QUALIFIED. 16 SO IT IS POSSIBLE THAT I HAD MIKE CUTSHAW SIGN OFF ON PERMITS 17 THAT I WASN'T ALLOWED TO WRITE. 18 Q. 19 ARE THE CATEGORIES OF PERMITS THAT YOU WERE -- WHAT ONES WERE 20 YOU ALLOWED TO WRITE AND WHAT WEREN'T YOU ALLOWED TO WRITE? 21 A. 22 WRITE SAFETY PERMITS. 23 Q. AND -- 24 A. SAFETY PERMITS, THEY ARE NOT RELATED TO ANY KIND OF HOT 25 WORK OR ANY HIGH ENERGY. NO. I MEAN, WE RAN A LOT OF PERMITS AND SOMETIMES WE NEED SO IF THEY ARE PERMITS WE WE NEED TO GRAB WE CAN ONLY WRITE SAFETY PERMITS. LET ME MAKE SURE I UNDERSTAND THIS. CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT IT HAS BEEN A LONG TIME BUT I THINK WE ARE ONLY ALLOWED TO DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 515 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 NEEDED SOMEONE ELSE'S SIGNATURE ON? 3 A. I THINK IT IS JUST THOSE TWO. 4 Q. OKAY. 5 A. THAT I REMEMBER. 6 Q. DID YOU EVER TALK TO MIKE CUTSHAW ABOUT A HOT WORK PERMIT? 7 A. NOT THAT I SPECIFICALLY -- NOT SPECIFICALLY THAT I 8 REMEMBER. 9 Q. OKAY. WAS THERE ANOTHER CATEGORY OF PERMITS THAT YOU OKAY. DID YOU HAVE ANY INTERACTIONS WITH MR. CUTSHAW THAT 10 STAND OUT IN YOUR MIND? 11 A. 12 UPSET BUT NOT IN MY UNIT. 13 MIKE'S UNIT. 14 Q. HOLD ON A SECOND. 15 A. IT IS WHEN OPERATIONS RUN ABNORMALLY. 16 Q. AND SO MIKE'S ANOTHER OPERATOR AT THAT TIME? 17 A. YES. 18 Q. YOU GO TO ASSIST HIM? ONE INCIDENT THAT STANDS OUT IN MY MIND IS THAT ANOTHER SO I WENT TO ASSIST. IT WAS IN TELL US WHAT AN UPSET IS. 19 MR. LAFAYETTE: 20 THE COURT: OBJECTION, LEADING. SUSTAINED. 21 BY MS. SMALLETS: 22 Q. YOU SO TELL US WHAT HAPPENED. 23 A. I WENT OUT TO HELP MIKE IN HIS UNIT. 24 Q. AND -- 25 A. GET A LITTLE EXPERIENCE OF ANOTHER UNIT. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 516 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. WHAT DID YOU DO TO HELP HIM? 2 A. HE WAS WORKING ON SOMETHING HIGH AND HIS -- THE EQUIPMENT 3 WAS DOWN LOW BUT ONLY ONE OF US COULD BE UP THERE. 4 THE QUALIFIED OPERATOR ON THAT UNIT, SO HE'S DOING ALL THE 5 WORK. 6 I WAS HANDING -- YOU KNOW, WE WERE EXCHANGING THINGS VERY FAST 7 BECAUSE HE WAS WORKING FAST. 8 Q. DID HE SAY ANYTHING TO YOU? 9 A. AND HE STARTED TO SAY -- HE SAID, YOU'RE REALLY GOOD OP -- AND HE'S BUT I WAS TRYING TO ANTICIPATE WHAT HE NEEDED NEXT, SO 10 HE STARTED TO SAY OPERATOR. 11 DENTAL ASSISTANT. 12 THAT, NOTHING REALLY. 13 Q. 14 FOUND OUT YOU WERE BEING TERMINATED. 15 A. OKAY. 16 Q. HOW DID THAT DAY START? 17 HOW DID YOU FIRST LEARN YOU WERE GOING TO BE TERMINATED? 18 A. 19 UNIT. 20 DOOR, WHICH IS SOMETHING UNUSUAL. 21 Q. WHEN YOU GOT THERE -- 22 A. SO WHEN I WALKED TO THE DOOR -- 23 Q. WHEN YOU GOT THERE, WHAT IS THERE SOMEONE THERE? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. AND WHAT DID YOU AND ERIC DO NEXT? AND I SAID YOU ARE A REALLY GOOD THAT STICKS OUT IN MY MIND. BUT OTHER THAN LET'S TURN YOUR ATTENTION TO THE MEETING IN WHICH YOU HOW DID YOU FIRST LEARN YOU -- I DIDN'T -- THE DAY STARTED OUT NORMAL. I WAS WORKING MY I GOT A CALL ON THE RADIO TO COME TO THE EAST SIDE WHEN I WALKED TO THE DOOR, ERIC PEREZ WAS THERE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 517 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 THEN, SO I WENT IN HIS CAR AND HE -- WE WENT, DROVE DOWN TO 3 THE SHELL BUILDING. 4 Q. DID YOU -- WHAT IS THE SHELL BUILDING? 5 A. IT IS THE BUILDING WHERE ALL THE OFFICE PEOPLE WORK. 6 LITTLE BIT FARTHER THAN WHERE WE WORK. 7 Q. DID YOU TALK ABOUT ANYTHING WITH ERIC IN THE CAR? 8 A. I ASKED HIM IS EVERYTHING OKAY, DID I DO SOMETHING WRONG? 9 Q. WHAT DID -- 10 A. HE SAID NO, NO. 11 Q. OKAY. 12 NEXT? 13 A. 14 THEN WE WALK IN -- THEN WE MEET RAY JONES. 15 CHRISTINE'S OFFICE. 16 Q. WAS ANYONE ELSE THERE? 17 A. SHE'S SITTING THERE WITH MIKE BECK NEXT TO HER. 18 Q. WHO IS MIKE BECK? 19 A. ANOTHER MANAGER -- HIGHER UP MANAGER, WHO IS NOT REALLY IN 20 THE FIELD. 21 Q. 22 YOU HAD INTERACTIONS WITH MIKE BECK? 23 A. 24 WELL, MAYBE LESS THAN TEN TIMES. 25 SAFETY MEETINGS. HE SAID COME WITH ME, WE ARE GOING TO GO FOR A RIDE. AND A WHEN YOU GET TO THE SHELL BUILDING, WHAT DO YOU DO WE WALK IN, WE GO UPSTAIRS. I'M JUST FOLLOWING ERIC AND THEN WE WALK INTO MORE LIKE IN AN OFFICE. PRIOR TO THAT TIME THAT YOU -- PRIOR TO THAT MEETING, HAD JUST IN PASSING, HELLO, HERE OR THERE. MAYBE LESS THAN -- HE WOULD BE AT A LOT OF NOTHING MORE THAN A HELLO. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 518 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. AND WHAT WERE YOU TOLD DURING THAT MEETING? 2 A. SO WHEN WE WALKED IN, I ALREADY SAW ON HER DESK THERE WAS, 3 LIKE, AN EMPLOYMENT HANDBOOK. 4 LET'S SEE. 5 SO I ALREADY KNEW. SO THEN THEY SAID, OKAY, HAVE A SEAT. AND THEN AND SHE SAID 6 THIS -- YOU'RE BEING TERMINATED FROM SHELL, THIS -- YOU CAN 7 SIGN HERE. 8 MIKE BECK BECAUSE HE'S THE ONLY ONE IN THAT ROOM THAT I SAW 9 THE MOST IN MY WORKPLACE AND I SAID WHY? THIS IS AN UNEMPLOYMENT BOOK. AND THEN I LOOK TO WHY AM I BEING 10 FIRED? 11 Q. AND WHAT DID HE SAY? 12 A. HE STARTED TO EXPLAIN TO ME, WELL, THERE WAS THIS ONE 13 SITUATION WHERE I HEARD THERE WAS AN UPSET AND EVERYONE WENT 14 OUT THERE AND YOU DIDN'T. 15 HIM AND SHE SAID, STOP. 16 DON'T NEED TO TELL YOU WHY. 17 TO FILE -- YOU NEED TO TALK WITH THE UNION AND FILE A 18 GRIEVANCE. 19 Q. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT IN THAT MEETING? 20 A. I THINK ME AND RAY JONES STEPPED OUTSIDE. 21 Q. WHAT DID YOU TALK ABOUT? 22 A. NOTHING. 23 MENTIONED, LIKE, THIS IS UNFAIR AND HE SAID WE'LL TALK ABOUT 24 THIS LATER. 25 KNOW, HOW YOU FEEL. AND THEN CHRISTINE LAYNE STOPPED THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO DISCUSS. WE IF YOU WANT TO KNOW WHY, YOU NEED JUST -- JUST COLLECTED MYSELF, AND I PROBABLY WE'LL HAVE A MEETING AND YOU CAN TELL ME, YOU AND HE GAVE ME HIS PHONE NUMBER AND TOLD DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 519 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 ME TO CALL HIM. 2 Q. WHAT HAPPENED NEXT? 3 A. SO THEN I HAD TO GET BACK IN THE CAR WITH ERIC. 4 BACK TO HP-2 WHERE THERE WAS SECURITY. 5 WAS SECURITY WAITING FOR ME. 6 SORRY. 7 SO THEN I -- THE COURT: SORRY. THEN GO SO THEN THERE AND I HAD TO GET ALL MY THINGS. DO WE HAVE A TISSUE? 8 A. 9 SECURITY WHILE EVERYONE IS LIKE STARING AND I CAN'T TALK TO SO, BASICALLY, I JUST HAD TO GO GET ALL MY THINGS FROM 10 ANYONE. 11 ESCORT ME ALL THE WAY OUT, ALL THE WAY OUT TO MY CAR, ALL THE 12 WAY UNTIL I DRIVE ALL THE WAY OUT THE GATES. 13 EXCUSE ME. 14 AND THAT WAS -- AND THEN ERIC -- ERIC PEREZ HAD TO ALL RIGHT. I AM SORRY. NEXT QUESTION. 15 Q. ARE YOU OKAY? 16 A. YEAH. 17 Q. WHEN MIKE BECK SAID TO YOU THAT THERE WAS AN INCIDENT WITH 18 THE UNITS AND YOU WERE TOLD THAT YOU DIDN'T GO OUT, DO YOU 19 HAVE ANY IDEA WHAT HE IS TALKING ABOUT? 20 A. 21 THERE WAS ONE INCIDENT IN THE BEGINNING -- 22 Q. SURE. 23 A. MENA KIND OF MENTIONED IT EARLIER. 24 FISCHER AND AN ALARM SOUNDED. 25 UNUSUAL FOR THE ALARM TO SOUND. I DIDN'T AT THE TIME AND I TRIED TO THINK ABOUT IT. AND CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THAT INCIDENT? I WAS OUT WITH JEFF SO JEFF FISCHER -- IT IS SO JEFF FISCHER, HE SAID GO DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 520 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BACK IN THE UNIT. 2 THIS IS STILL WHILE WE WERE IN TRAINING. AND HE SAID GO BACK IN THE UNIT WHEN YOU HEAR THAT ALARM. 3 SO I GO BACK IN THE UNIT AND HE STAYED OUT. 4 DIFFERENT UNIT THAN THE ONE WE ARE BEING TRAINED ON. 5 SITTING THERE AND THEN I REALIZE, LIKE, SOME TIME PASSES AND I 6 REALLY DON'T KNOW WHAT IS GOING ON. 7 OTHER GUYS NEVER CAME BACK IN, THAT I'M SITTING IN THERE 8 ALONE. 9 IT WASN'T A SO I'M BUT I REALIZE THAT THE SO THEN EVENTUALLY I GO, LIKE, KIND OF PEAK MY HEAD OUT 10 AND I SEE THAT MENA, PATRICK AND JOSE ARE OUT WITH JEFF 11 FISCHER. 12 REALLY WORKING, BUT OBSERVING. 13 VALVE. 14 THEY ARE WORKING WITH ALL THE OTHER GUYS. NOT MAYBE ONE OF THEM TURNED A AND SO I WALK OVER THERE AND, REALLY, WE WEREN'T DOING 15 MUCH. 16 FOR A LONG TIME BUT I -- THAT IS WHERE I THOUGHT I WAS 17 SUPPOSED TO BE. 18 WHEN THE ALARM STARTED AND HE SENT ME BACK. 19 HEAR THAT ALARM, GO BACK, IT IS NOT SAFE TO BE OUT HERE. 20 WE WERE BE JUST OBSERVING. THAT IS WHERE JEFF SENT ME. I WAS OUTSIDE HE SAID WHEN YOU AND THAT IS THE ONLY ONE THAT I COULD TRY TO THINK OF WHAT 21 HE COULD BE REFERRING TO. 22 STORY, SO I DON'T KNOW. 23 Q. 24 MOMENT. 25 BUT I WAS IN THE CLASSROOM BUT HE DIDN'T GET TO FINISH HIS LET'S DO A LITTLE BIT OF -- SOME HOUSEKEEPING FOR A AFTER YOU WERE FIRED, DID YOU RETAIN A LAWYER? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 521 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. YES. 2 Q. AND WITH THE ASSISTANCE OF YOUR ATTORNEY, DID YOU FILE A 3 COMPLAINT WITH THE DFEH? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 143. 6 THAT THE COMPLAINT THAT YOU FILED? 7 A. YES. 8 9 MS. SMALLETS: THE COURT: 11 MR. LAFAYETTE: ANY OBJECTION? MS. SMALLETS: 14 THE COURT: 15 MR. LAFAYETTE: 16 MS. SMALLETS: 19 MS. SMALLETS: SO WHAT IS THE DATE? MAY 24, 2017. IF THERE IS A STIPULATION THAT THE 17. LET ME MAKE SURE I SAID THE DATE RIGHT. 21 THE COURT: 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 MS. SMALLETS: 25 THAT'S FINE. COMPLAINT WAS FILED ON MAY 24TH, 20 -MR. LAFAYETTE: 24 OH. OKAY. 18 20 I DON'T KNOW IF WE NEED THE DOCUMENT. JUST THE DATE, YOUR HONOR. 13 17 WE MOVE THAT 143 BE ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. 10 12 DO YOU RECOGNIZE -- IS IS THERE A STIPULATION? YES. THEN WE DON'T NEED TO ADMIT THIS. THAT'S FINE. THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. STIPULATION IS ACCEPTED. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 522 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 2 MS. SMALLETS: I'M SORRY. TO SUE NOTICE WAS SERVED -- 3 THE COURT: 4 MS. SMALLETS: 5 SUE NOTICE WAS SERVED ON SHELL. CANNOT HEAR. 6 THE COURT: 7 MR. LAFAYETTE: 8 STIPULATION THAT THE RIGHT AND A STIPULATION THAT THE RIGHT TO IS THERE A STIPULATION? I WILL STIPULATE TO THE DATE OF THE RIGHT TO SUE LETTER. 9 MS. SMALLETS: OKAY. ALL RIGHT. 10 THE COURT: 11 MS. SMALLETS: IT IS THE SAME DATE. 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: SAME DATE, MAY 24. 13 THE COURT: AND THAT DATE IS? STIPULATION IS ACCEPTED. 14 BY MS. SMALLETS: 15 Q. 16 EXHIBIT 150A. 17 EXHIBITS ARE RIGHT IN YOUR BINDER. 18 A. THIS IS A PAY STUB? 19 Q. YES. 20 A. PAY STUB FROM SHELL. 21 ALL RIGHT. LET'S TAKE A QUICK LOOK IN YOUR BINDER AT AND I'M HOPING THAT YOUR BINDER -- THAT THESE PAY STUB. CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THIS IS? MS. SMALLETS: YOUR HONOR, WE WOULD LIKE TO ADMIT 22 EXHIBIT 150A INTO EVIDENCE. 23 IT IS A SUBSET OF 150. 24 THE COURT: 25 MR. LAFAYETTE: WE PROVIDED 150A THIS MORNING. ANY OBJECTION TO 150A? NO, YOUR HONOR. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 523 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 ADMITTED. THE COURT: 2 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 150A RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 3 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 4 BY MS. SMALLETS: 5 Q. TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 160. 6 MR. LAFAYETTE: 7 MS. SMALLETS: 8 THE COURT: 9 THE WITNESS: 50 -- I COULDN'T HEAR. 60. 160. SHELL BENEFITS. 10 BY MS. SMALLETS: 11 Q. YES. 12 A. GUIDES TO BENEFITS AT SHELL. 13 14 CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? MS. SMALLETS: WE MOVE EXHIBIT 160 BE ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. 15 THE COURT: 16 MR. LAFAYETTE: 17 THE COURT: ANY OBJECTION? NO, YOUR HONOR. 160 IS ADMITTED. 18 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 160 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 19 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 20 BY MS. SMALLETS: 21 Q. 22 RECEIVED ABOUT YOUR BENEFITS AT SHELL? 23 A. 24 25 LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 164. IS THIS INFORMATION YOU YES. MS. SMALLETS: WE MOVE THAT EXHIBIT 164 BE ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 524 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 THE COURT: 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: 3 THE COURT: 4 ANY OBJECTION? NO OBJECTION. NO, YOUR HONOR. IT'S ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 164 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 5 BY MS. SMALLETS: 6 Q. 7 ADDITIONAL BENEFIT INFORMATION YOU RECEIVED FROM SHELL? 8 A. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT 194. YES. 9 10 IS THIS PORTIONS OF SOME MS. SMALLETS: WE MOVE THAT 194A BE ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. 11 THE COURT: 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: 13 THE COURT: 14 ANY OBJECTION? NO OBJECTION. ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 194A RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 15 BY MS. SMALLETS: 16 Q. 17 ANY INFORMATION FROM THE COMPANY ABOUT WHAT YOUR -- WHAT YOUR 18 PAY WOULD BE IN THE FUTURE? 19 A. 20 LIKE, SIX YEARS. 21 Q. GO AHEAD. 22 A. -- YOU QUALIFY ON A JOB, YOU GET A RAISE. 23 Q. OKAY. 24 177A? 25 A. DID -- DURING YOUR EMPLOYMENT AT SHELL, DID YOU RECEIVE YES. THERE'S A UNION AGREED PAY -- PAY AGREEMENT FOR, EVERY TIME -- LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 177A. DO YOU HAVE ARTICLES OF AGREEMENT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 525 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. TAKE A LOOK AT THE SECOND PAGE. 2 A. OKAY. 3 Q. IS THAT THE PAY CHART YOU WERE REFERENCING? 4 A. YES. 5 MS. SMALLETS: 6 MR. LAFAYETTE: 7 THE COURT: WE HAVE 177. TO KEEP THE PAGES DOWN. 10 THIS ONE. 11 OR JUST THE PAGE. I THINK THIS WAS AN ATTEMPT WE'LL TALK ABOUT -- YOU CAN SHOW IT, WE CAN TALK ABOUT WHETHER THE WHOLE THING COMES IN 12 MS. SMALLETS: 13 THE COURT: 14 I OBJECT TO NOT HAVING THE ENTIRE AGREEMENT. 8 9 WE MOVE 177A. OKAY. YES. HAS 177A BEEN ADMITTED? AND I'LL RESERVE ON THE ENTIRETY OF THE DOCUMENT. 15 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 177A RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 16 BY MS. SMALLETS: 17 Q. 18 YOU WOULD WORK OVERTIME -- DID YOU WORK ANY OVERTIME WHILE YOU 19 WERE AT SHELL? 20 A. 21 TURNAROUNDS AND WITH FIRE TRAINING. 22 Q. DID YOU WORK ANY OVERTIME WHILE YOU WERE THERE? 23 A. YES. 24 Q. LET'S -- I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT YOUR JOB 25 SEARCH. AND DID YOU -- DID YOU HAVE AN UNDERSTANDING ABOUT WHETHER YES. THERE IS A LOT OF OVERTIME AVAILABLE DURING WHAT TYPES OF JOBS DID YOU START LOOKING FOR? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 526 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. 2 DIFFERENT. 3 WATER TREATMENT, MANUFACTURING JOBS, SAFETY JOBS, LIKE SAFETY 4 SUPERVISOR JOBS. 5 Q. DID YOU FIND ANY JOBS TO APPLY FOR? 6 A. YES. 7 Q. CAN YOU TELL US, DID YOU APPLY FOR ANY MANUFACTURING JOBS? 8 A. FOR EXAMPLE, THERE'S LIKE THE BUDWEISER FACTORY AND 9 ACTUALLY THEIR PROCESS IS, LIKE, SIMILAR TO REFINERY BUT, I STARTED LOOKING FOR SIMILAR JOBS. SIMILAR BUT A LITTLE I STARTED LOOKING FOR WASTE WATER PLANTS, WASTE 10 LIKE, MUCH SMALLER. 11 REFINERY OPERATOR. 12 APPLIED THERE. 13 Q. DID YOU GET THAT JOB? 14 A. NO. 15 Q. CAN YOU RECALL OTHER PROCESS OPERATOR TYPE JOBS YOU 16 APPLIED FOR? 17 A. 18 REFINERIES, BUT THEY ARE PROCESS OPERATOR, SIMILAR KIND OF 19 POSITION. 20 Q. DID YOU GET THAT JOB? 21 A. NO. 22 Q. YOU SAID YOU APPLIED FOR SOME POSITIONS THAT RELATED TO 23 SAFETY? 24 A. 25 SHELL. THE CITY. YEAH. BUT THE JOB IS VERY MUCH THE SAME AS A THEY ARE ALSO PROCESS OPERATORS. SOME CITY WATER TREATMENT PLANTS. SO I THEY ARE NOT JUST TRYING TO WORK WITH THE EXPERIENCE I GOT AT RESEARCHED JOBS RELATING TO SAFETY AND APPLIED FOR DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 527 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 THOSE, AT DIFFERENT SAFETY SUPERVISOR JOBS ON, LIKE, 2 CONSTRUCTION SITES. 3 Q. DID YOU GET ANY INTERVIEWS? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. DID YOU GET AN INTERVIEW FOR THE POSITION AT BUDWEISER? 6 A. NO. 7 Q. WHAT ABOUT THE WATER TREATMENT PLANT POSITION, DID YOU GET 8 AN INTERVIEW THERE? 9 A. NO. 10 Q. DID YOU APPLY FOR ANY POSITIONS AT REFINERIES? 11 A. NO. 12 Q. WHY NOT? 13 A. CHEVRON WAS HIRING, LIKE, WITHIN A MONTH THAT I WAS LET GO 14 AND I JUST WASN'T FEELING READY TO REENTER THAT ENVIRONMENT, 15 BUT NOW I AM. 16 Q. DID YOU -- WHERE DID YOU LOOK TO FIND JOBS TO APPLY FOR? 17 A. I LOOKED ONLINE, MONSTER, INDEED, DIRECTLY AT THE WEBSITES 18 THAT I KNEW OF. 19 ONLINE SEARCHES. 20 TIME? 21 Q. THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE TIME. 22 A. EVENTUALLY, WHEN I REALIZED, I GUESS, I DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH 23 EXPERIENCE FOR THOSE JOBS I WAS APPLYING, I STARTED APPLYING 24 AGAIN FOR DENTAL ASSISTING JOBS, AND I DROPPED A LOT OF 25 RÉSUMÉS OFF IN PERSON BECAUSE THEY ARE SMALLER BUSINESSES. NO. NOT IN PERSON. BUT THEY HAVEN'T HIRED SINCE. CONOCO, PHILLIPS, TESORO, VALERO. MOSTLY IN THE BEGINNING OR THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 528 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. DID YOU ULTIMATELY GET A POSITION AS A DENTAL ASSISTANT? 2 A. YEAH. 3 Q. DO YOU RECALL WHEN YOU STARTED THAT JOB? 4 A. NOVEMBER OF 2017. 5 Q. WHY DIDN'T YOU START LOOKING FOR DENTAL ASSISTANT 6 POSITIONS RIGHT AWAY? 7 A. 8 WOULD BE TAKING A BIG STEP BACK, SO I WAS HOPING TO FIND 9 SOMETHING ELSE. IN BENECIA. JUST BECAUSE I HAD ALREADY DONE THAT AND I KNOW THAT I 10 Q. 11 EARNED YOU MONEY BEFORE YOU GOT THE JOB AT CARQUINEZ DENTAL 12 GROUP? 13 A. I DID SOME, LIKE, SIDE WORK JOBS. 14 Q. WHAT KIND OF WORK? 15 A. LIKE PRODUCT DEMONSTRATING IN STORES. 16 Q. DID YOU APPLY FOR -- DO YOU RECALL ANY OTHER JOBS AT 17 MANUFACTURING COMPANIES THAT YOU APPLIED FOR? 18 A. 19 MANUFACTURING JOBS. 20 STICKS OUT. 21 Q. OKAY. 22 A. NO. 23 Q. WHY NOT? 24 A. JUST -- IT NEVER CROSSED MY MIND. 25 AND HE DIDN'T REALLY HAVE -- HE WASN'T JOB PLACEMENT PERSON. DID YOU DO ANYTHING FOR WORK -- DID YOU DO ANYTHING THAT THERE ALSO THE IT WAS LIKE A CHOCOLATE -- JUST DIFFERENT LOTS OF DIFFERENT JOBS. NOTHING THAT DID YOU ASK MIKE JOYCE FOR HELP IN YOUR JOB SEARCH? HE WAS OUR INSTRUCTOR DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 529 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 HE JUST PREPARED US FOR INTERVIEWS. 2 Q. 3 THAT IS? 4 A. RÉSUMÉ. 5 Q. IS THAT A RÉSUMÉ THAT YOU PREPARED AFTER YOUR TERMINATION 6 FROM SHELL? 7 A. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 147. YEAH. 8 9 CAN YOU TELL US WHAT MS. SMALLETS: WE MOVE THAT 147 BE ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. 10 THE COURT: 11 MR. LAFAYETTE: 12 THE COURT: 13 ANY OBJECTION? NO, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 147 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 14 BY MS. SMALLETS: 15 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 148. 16 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 17 CAN YOU TELL US WHAT THAT IS? 18 A. JUST THE EMAIL INQUIRING ABOUT A DENTAL ASSISTANT JOB. 19 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT -- THERE IS MULTIPLE DOCUMENTS HERE. 20 A. ALL THE SAME THING, EMAILS. 21 Q. ARE THOSE EMAILS THAT YOU SENT AS PART OF YOUR JOB SEARCH? 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 THE COURT: 24 THE WITNESS: OBJECTION, LEADING. SUSTAINED. YES. 25 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 530 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 BY MS. SMALLETS: 2 Q. 3 ANOTHER QUESTION. 4 A. SORRY. CAN YOU TELL ME WHAT THESE EMAILS ARE? THEY ARE EMAILS FOR SOME OF THE JOB SEARCHES. 5 6 THE OBJECTION WAS SUSTAINED SO I HAVE TO ASK MS. SMALLETS: WE ASK EXHIBIT 148 BE ADMITTED INTO EVIDENCE. 7 THE COURT: 8 MR. LAFAYETTE: 9 THE COURT: 10 ANY OBJECTION? NO, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 148 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 11 BY MS. SMALLETS: 12 Q. ARE THOSE ALL THE EMAILS YOU SENT DURING YOUR JOB SEARCH? 13 A. NO. 14 Q. OKAY. 15 A. I SENT OUT OTHER EMAILS BUT I APPLIED FOR A LOT OF OTHER 16 JOBS WITHOUT AN EMAIL. 17 LIST. 18 Q. 19 EMAIL, HOW DID YOU APPLY FOR OTHER JOBS WITHOUT EMAILS? 20 A. 21 WEBSITE. 22 Q. DO YOU RECALL HOW YOU APPLIED FOR THE BUDWEISER POSITION? 23 A. ONLINE. 24 Q. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 149. 25 DID YOU SEND OTHER EMAILS? THESE ARE ONES I FOUND ON CRAIG'S AND WHEN YOU SAID YOU APPLIED FOR OTHER JOBS WITHOUT AN DIRECTLY ON WEBSITES. LIKE, DIRECTLY ON THE COMPANY'S INDEED AND MONSTER. IN PERSON. ON THE DIRECT WEBSITE. DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT IS? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 531 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. IT'S A LIST OF PLACES I HAVE APPLIED. 2 THE COURT: 3 MS. SMALLETS: 4 I COULDN'T HEAR YOU. PLACES SHE APPLIED. WE WOULD ASK TO OFFER EXHIBIT 149 INTO EVIDENCE. 5 THE COURT: 6 MR. LAFAYETTE: 7 THE COURT: DO YOU HAVE AN OBJECTION? NO, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. 8 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 149 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 9 (DISPLAYED ON SCREEN.) 10 BY MS. SMALLETS: 11 Q. 12 RECEIVED FROM CARQUINEZ DENTAL GROUP? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. WE WOULD MOVE EXHIBIT 152 INTO EVIDENCE? OKAY. LET'S TAKE A LOOK AT EXHIBIT 152. 15 THE COURT: 16 MR. LAFAYETTE: 17 THE COURT: 18 19 20 IS THAT A W2 YOU ANY OBJECTION? NO, YOUR HONOR. ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 152 RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) MS. SMALLETS: WE WOULD LIKE TO OFFER 151, 153, 154, 155, AND 162 INTO EVIDENCE. 21 COURT REPORTER: 22 MS. SMALLETS: REPEAT THE NUMBERS, PLEASE? 151, 153, 154, 155, AND 162. AND IF I 23 CAN LAY THE FOUNDATION BUT I WAS WONDERING IF THERE WOULD BE A 24 STIPULATION? 25 THE COURT: WHAT ARE THEY? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 532 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 MS. SMALLETS: THEY ARE 1099 OR PAY STUBS FROM THE 2 PRODUCT JOBS SHE REFERENCED. 3 THE COURT: 4 MR. LAFAYETTE: 5 MS. SMALLETS: 6 THE COURT: 7 MR. LAFAYETTE: 8 THE COURT: 9 ANY OBJECTION? 152 -NO. 151 -- 153, 154, 155, AND 162. NO OBJECTION, YOUR HONOR. THEY ARE ALL ADMITTED. (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBITS 151, 153, 154, 155, AND 162 RECEIVED 10 IN EVIDENCE) 11 BY MS. SMALLETS: 12 Q. 13 CONTINUE LOOKING FOR OTHER JOBS? 14 A. YES. 15 Q. WHAT KIND OF JOBS WERE YOU LOOKING FOR -- WERE YOU LOOKING 16 FOR? 17 A. 18 ADVANCEMENTS. 19 Q. 20 JOB? 21 A. I TOOK A JOB AT ALASKA AIRLINES. 22 Q. WHEN DID YOU APPLY FOR THAT JOB? 23 A. I DON'T REMEMBER. 24 THEM. 25 Q. ONCE YOU GOT THE JOB AT CARQUINEZ DENTAL GROUP, DID YOU EVERYTHING -- ANYTHING THAT ALLOWED TO MAKE MORE I WAS LOOKING FOR A LOT OF DIFFERENT JOBS. DID YOU ULTIMATELY APPLY -- DID YOU ULTIMATELY GET ANOTHER A LONG TIME BEFORE I HEARD BACK FROM WHEN DID YOU START THERE? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 533 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 A. IN JUNE. 2 Q. OF? 3 A. OF THIS YEAR. 4 Q. WHAT DO YOU DO FOR THEM? 5 A. CUSTOMER SERVICE. 6 Q. AND HOW MUCH DO YOU RECALL -- DO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH YOU 7 EARN AN HOUR? 8 A. 9 START. SO I TOOK A PAY CUT, SO I ONLY MADE 14.50 AN HOUR TO 10 Q. WHY DID YOU TAKE THAT JOB EVEN THOUGH IT WAS A PAY CUT? 11 A. BECAUSE I WAS WORKING AT THE DENTAL OFFICE AT THE SAME PAY 12 I WAS WORKING AT THE DENTAL OFFICE LIKE TEN YEARS AGO, SO I 13 ASKED FOR A RAISE AND REALIZED THAT PROBABLY WON'T EVER MAKE 14 THAT MUCH MORE AT THE DENTAL OFFICE. 15 BIGGER COMPANY, THERE WOULD BE MORE PATHWAYS TO WORK MY WAY 16 UP. WHERE THE DENTAL OFFICE I COULDN'T GO MUCH FURTHER. 17 Q. HOW DO THE BENEFITS AT ALASKA COMPARE WITH THE DENTAL 18 OFFICE? 19 A. THEY'RE MUCH BETTER. 20 Q. DO YOU WORK ANY OVERTIME FOR ALASKA AIRLINES? 21 A. NO. 22 Q. HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE -- 23 A. I DON'T AT THE MOMENT BECAUSE MY PREGNANCY, WAS KIND OF 24 HARD TO PICK UP MORE HOURS. 25 LIKE ABOUT THE POSITION. I THOUGHT WITH THE THAT WAS ANOTHER DECIDING FACTOR. BUT YOU CAN WHEN YOU WANT TO, YES. BUT THAT'S ONE THING THAT I DID DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 534 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 Q. 2 DAY FROM YOUR HOUSE? 3 A. 4 WHAT TIME I'M STARTING. DID YOU -- HOW LONG DOES IT TAKE YOU TO GET TO WORK EVERY LIKE TWO HOURS, HOUR AND A HALF SOMETIMES. 5 DEPENDS ON YOUR HONOR, WE WOULD LIKE TO ADMIT MS. SMALLETS: 6 EXHIBIT 156 AND 157, WHICH ARE ALASKA AIRLINE PAY STUBS AND 7 158A, WHICH IS AN EXCERPT FROM THE ALASKA AIRLINES BENEFITS, 8 INTO EVIDENCE. 9 STIPULATION THAT WOULD BE OBVIOUSLY BE FASTER. I CAN LAY A FOUNDATION OR -- OR IF THERE IS A 10 THE COURT: 11 MR. LAFAYETTE: 12 THE COURT: 13 ANY OBJECTIONS? NO, YOUR HONOR. EACH OF THOSE ARE ADMITTED, 156, 157, 158A. 14 (PLAINTIFF'S EXHIBIT 156, 157, 158A RECEIVED IN EVIDENCE) 15 BY MS. SMALLETS: 16 Q. 17 MATERNITY LEAVE SOON? 18 A. YES. 19 Q. IS YOUR PLAN TO RETURN TO WORK -- 20 A. YES. 21 Q. -- ONCE YOU FINISH YOUR MATERNITY LEAVE? 22 A. YES. 23 Q. DO YOU HAVE PLANS FOR YOUR CHILDCARE? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. WHAT ARE THOSE PLANS? SO WE KNOW YOU'RE PREGNANT. ARE YOU ABOUT TO START DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 535 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 MR. LAFAYETTE: 2 THE COURT: 3 MS. SMALLETS: 4 THE COURT: 5 MS. SMALLETS: RELEVANCY, YOUR HONOR. IS IT RELEVANT TO DAMAGES? YES. HOW? IF THERE'S A CONCERN THAT SHE WOULD 6 NOT RETURN TO WORK AND/OR BE ABLE TO ARRANGE CHILDCARE, WE ARE 7 TALKING ABOUT WHAT HER PLANS ARE NOW AND ALSO HOW WORK AT THE 8 REFINERY WOULD HAVE FIT INTO THOSE PLANS. 9 10 THE COURT: LATITUDE. 11 GO AHEAD. ALL RIGHT. I'LL GIVE YOU A LITTLE BIT OF OVERRULED. THE WITNESS: MY PLAN IS TO GO BACK TO WORK AS SOON 12 AS I CAN AND, DURING THAT TIME WHEN I'M AT WORK, EITHER MY 13 HUSBAND OR MY MOTHER CAN HELP WITH THE BABY. 14 BY MS. SMALLETS: 15 Q. 16 YOU HAVE GONE BACK TO WORK AFTER HAVING A BABY? 17 A. I THINK SO, YES. 18 Q. AND WHAT WOULD -- HOW WOULD THAT HAVE AFFECTED YOUR 19 CHILDCARE ARRANGEMENTS? 20 A. I DON'T KNOW THAT IT WOULD. 21 Q. WOULD WORKING SHIFT WORK AT THE REFINERY HAVE ANY IMPACT 22 ON YOUR ABILITY TO ARRANGE FOR CHILDCARE? 23 A. 24 A LOT MORE TIME OFF IN A ROW BUT WE WORK 12 HOURS. 25 KNOW. AND IF YOU HAD STILL BEEN WORKING FOR THE REFINERY, WOULD I DON'T KNOW. WELL -- WELL, WE HAVE SEVEN DAYS OFF. WE WORK -- WE HAVE I DON'T I DIDN'T THINK ABOUT IT BECAUSE I'M NOT THERE ANYMORE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 536 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 I GUESS IT WOULD HAVE BEEN EASIER WHEN I WORKED NIGHTS. 2 I DON'T KNOW. 3 Q. 4 I HAVEN'T THOUGHT ABOUT IT. YEAH, SORRY. IT'S OKAY. ALL RIGHT. LET'S TALK ABOUT HOW THIS HAS -- THIS HAS 5 IMPACTED YOU EMOTIONALLY. 6 TO YOU AT SHELL MADE YOU FEEL? 7 A. 8 FELT EMBARRASSED THAT I NO LONGER WORKED THERE. 9 Q. HAS IT IMPACTED YOU PHYSICALLY? 10 A. YEAH. 11 GET A LOT OF ANXIETY, TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHAT HAPPENED OR 12 THINGS LIKE THAT. 13 Q. CAN YOU TELL US HOW WHAT HAPPENED I PRETTY MUCH -- YOU KNOW, I JUST FELT REALLY DEFEATED. I WAS ANGRY. FOR A LONG TIME I WAS PRETTY DEPRESSED ABOUT IT. DID YOU HAVE ANY PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS? 14 MR. LAFAYETTE: 15 THE COURT: 16 THE WITNESS: OBJECTION, LEADING. OVERRULED. LIKE STOMACHACHES AND, LIKE, I WOULD 17 JUST WAKE UP AND MY HANDS WERE HURT. 18 CLENCHING MY HANDS AT NIGHT. 19 BY MS. SMALLETS: 20 Q. ANYTHING ELSE? 21 A. NO. 22 Q. DID IT AFFECT ANY OF YOUR DAILY ACTIVITIES? 23 A. YEAH, IT DID. 24 Q. HOW SO? 25 A. THEY JUST -- FOR A WHILE, NOT ANYMORE. I I WOULD NOTICE I WAS BUT FOR A WHILE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 537 NEWTON - DIRECT / SMALLETS 1 THEY JUST WEREN'T AS ENJOYABLE, AND I DIDN'T REALLY WANT TO 2 SEE ANYONE BECAUSE I DIDN'T WANT THEM TO ASK HOW WORK WAS. 3 I KIND OF, LIKE, AVOIDED SOCIAL THINGS FOR A WHILE. 4 WANT TO TELL PEOPLE I DIDN'T WORK THERE ANYMORE. 5 Q. ANY OTHER -- HOW DID THIS MAKE YOU FEEL ABOUT YOUR CAREER? 6 A. I FELT LIKE -- I FELT LIKE I WORKED HARD FOR IT, THAT 7 CAREER AND ALSO I FELT I GOT REALLY LUCKY BECAUSE A LOT OF 8 PEOPLE APPLY FOR THAT JOB. 9 OPPORTUNITY FOR ME WAS TAKEN AWAY. SO I DIDN'T SO I FEEL LIKE ONCE IN A LIFETIME 10 Q. DID YOU HAVE ANY WORRIES ABOUT THE FUTURE? 11 A. YEAH. 12 THAT THAT JOB WOULD HAVE ALLOWED FOR A DIFFERENT LIKE LIFE. 13 AND I -- THEN I WAS JUST AFRAID THAT MAYBE I WAS GOING TO HAVE 14 A HARD TIME CAN FINDING ANOTHER JOB LIKE THAT. 15 Q. 16 AFFECTED YOU FINANCIALLY? 17 A. NO, NOT SPECIFIC. 18 Q. IS THERE ANYTHING THAT YOU LOST THE ABILITY TO DO 19 FINANCIALLY? I JUST THOUGHT WITHOUT A COLLEGE DEGREE, THAT -- IS THERE ANY SPECIFIC WAYS IN WHICH THAT LOSS OF INCOME 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 THE COURT: 22 BY MS. SMALLETS: 23 Q. 24 YOUR TERMINATION? 25 A. OBJECTION, LEADING AND CUMULATIVE. SUSTAINED. WERE YOU PROVIDING FINANCIAL SUPPORT TO ANYONE PRIOR TO I WAS HELPING MY FAMILY AND HELPING MY MOM. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 538 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. WERE YOU ABLE TO KEEP DOING THAT? 2 A. NO. 3 Q. AND DID YOU -- HAD YOU ARRANGED TO PURCHASE A HOME PRIOR 4 TO YOUR TERMINATION? 5 A. 6 HOUSE. 7 Q. AND WHEN WERE YOU GOING TO BUY THAT HOUSE? 8 A. WELL, WE WERE JUST IN THE PROCESS. 9 WERE PRE-APPROVED AND NOW WE WERE WAITING, AND IT WAS AROUND WE WERE -- WE PREQUALIFIED. WE WERE GOING TO BUY MY DAD'S SO THERE'S LIKE -- WE 10 THE SAME TIME -- IN THAT TIME FRAME BEFORE ANYTHING COULD MOVE 11 FORWARD, I LOST THE JOB AT SHELL. 12 Q. WERE YOU ABLE TO BUY THAT HOUSE? 13 A. NO. NOTHING FURTHER. 14 MS. SMALLETS: 15 THE COURT: 16 MR. LAFAYETTE: 17 CROSS. YES, YOUR HONOR. CROSS-EXAMINATION 18 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 Q. GOOD MORNING, MA'AM. 20 A. GOOD MORNING. 21 Q. SO AT THE REFINERY WHEN YOU STARTED THERE, YOU INITIALLY 22 STARTED WITH AN APPROXIMATELY ALMOST TWO-MONTH COURSE WITH ALL 23 22 OF YOUR PROBATIONARY COWORKERS? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. AND THEN AFTER THAT YOU TRANSITIONED INTO OPCEN? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 539 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. CORRECT. 2 Q. AND FOR APPROXIMATELY THE FIRST APPROXIMATE TWO MONTHS YOU 3 WERE IN OPCEN, YOU WERE IN A TRAINING COURSE? 4 A. CORRECT. 5 Q. AND SOMETIME AROUND MAY 9, YOU TRANSITIONED FROM THERE TO 6 GOING ON SHIFT. 7 A. 8 WHICH WAS IN THE UNIT WITH CHRIS SALAS. 9 Q. WOULD THAT BE RIGHT? I THINK MAY 9 WE TRANSFERRED TO OUR PARALLEL TRAINING, ONCE THEN YOU COMPLETED THE PARALLEL TRAINING, YOU WERE 10 ASSIGNED TO A SHIFT? 11 A. YES. 12 Q. AND YOU WERE ASSIGNED INITIALLY WITH YOUR SHIFT TEAM LEAD, 13 THAT IS CAMERON CURRAN? 14 A. YES. 15 Q. YOU WERE WITH CAMERON CURRAN UNTIL APPROXIMATELY AUGUST 1, 16 2016? 17 A. YES. 18 Q. AND THEN FROM THAT POINT ON, YOUR SHIFT TEAM LEAD WAS 19 MR. METCALF? 20 A. YES. 21 Q. OKAY. 22 WITH MR. -- IN THE TWO-MONTH PERIOD, MARCH, APRIL, WHILE YOU 23 WERE IN THE CLASS, WAS THAT A CLASS THAT YOUR TRAINER WAS 24 MR. FISCHER? 25 A. THERE WAS A MOMENT -- SO IN THE CLASS THAT YOU HAD YES. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 540 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. 2 MR. JOSE -- 3 A. NAVARRO. 4 Q. NAVARRO? 5 A. JOSE NAVARRO, ODEMENA EKELEMU AND PATRICK NEUMAN. 6 Q. AND WHEN YOU WERE IN THAT CLASS, WAS THERE A CLASSROOM? 7 A. YEAH, IT WAS A SMALL ROOM THAT WE SAT AROUND A TABLE. 8 Q. SO IT WAS A SMALL CONFERENCE ROOM? 9 A. YEAH. 10 Q. DID IT HAVE A WHITE BOARD? 11 A. YES. 12 Q. OKAY. 13 AND WHEN YOU WERE IN THAT CLASS, WAS IT JUST YOU AND ERIC -- NO. YOU TELL ME WHO WAS IN YOUR CLASS. AND SO WAS THIS ROOM CLOSED OFF TO EVERYBODY ELSE OR WAS 14 IT OPEN TO ANYBODY WHO WANTED TO COME IN THERE? 15 A. IT WAS OPENED TO ANYONE WHO WANTED TO COME IN. 16 Q. OKAY. 17 A. I MEAN, IF SOMEBODY WANTED TO COME IN, THEY COULD OPEN THE 18 DOOR AND COME IN. 19 Q. 20 OTHER PEOPLE? 21 A. I DON'T KNOW. 22 Q. OKAY. 23 A. YES. 24 Q. SO WHEN YOU WENT ON SHIFT, YOU WERE STILL IN THE SAME 25 BUILDING? WHEN YOU GUYS WERE ARE NOT -- NOT THERE, WAS IT USED BY POSSIBLY. AND SO IS IT IN OPCEN ITSELF, THIS ROOM? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 541 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. YES. 2 Q. OKAY. 3 THAT BUILDING? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. HOW FAR AWAY IS MR. ERIC PEREZ? 6 A. I NEVER WENT TO HIS OFFICE. 7 OFFICE WAS. 8 Q. WAS MR. BECK IN THAT BUILDING? 9 A. NO. AND THAT BUILDING, IS MR. ERIC PEREZ' OFFICE IN I NEVER REALLY KNEW WHERE HIS THEY COME TO THE BUILDING BUT THEIR OFFICE IS NOT IN 10 THE BUILDING. 11 Q. 12 OPCEN NORTH, RIGHT? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. WERE ANY OF YOUR -- THE THREE OTHER PEOPLE WHO WERE IN THE 15 TRAINING COURSE ON OPCEN NORTH AT THE SAME SHIFT THAT YOU HAD? 16 A. NOT TYPICALLY, NO. 17 Q. ALL RIGHT. 18 OPCEN NORTH, RIGHT? 19 A. NO. 20 Q. OKAY. 21 SOUTH? 22 A. YES. 23 Q. WHO WAS IN YOUR CLASS OPCEN SOUTH TEAM FOUR? 24 A. I THINK THEY GOT THEIR SHIFT LATER. 25 JOSH AND BILL, AND THEN BILL. ALL RIGHT. AND SO WHEN YOU WENT ON SHIFT, YOU WERE ON SO THEY WERE NOT ASSIGNED TO YOUR TEAM FOUR WAS THERE SOMEBODY IN YOUR CLASS ON TEAM FOUR OPCEN SO FOR A WHILE IT WAS DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 542 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. THEY WERE ON OPCEN SOUTH? 2 A. YES. 3 Q. SAME TEAM AS YOU? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. SO THERE IS A MOMENT WHEN YOU START TALKING ABOUT THE ACID 6 INCIDENT, RIGHT? 7 A. RIGHT. 8 Q. NOW, YOU WERE NOT PRESENT WHEN WHATEVER HAPPENED HAPPENED, 9 WERE YOU? 10 A. NO. 11 Q. IT HAPPENED BEFORE YOUR SHIFT, DIDN'T IT? 12 A. I BELIEVE IT HAPPENED THE DAY BEFORE MY SHIFT. 13 Q. NOW, YOU SAID AT SOME POINT, YOU CAME OUT AFTER YOU HAD 14 HEARD A PHONE CALL, RIGHT? 15 A. 16 PERSON. 17 Q. 18 HAVING WITH SOMEONE ELSE. 19 A. YES. 20 Q. DID YOU DO ANYTHING TO MAKE SURE THAT WHATEVER YOU SAW 21 WHEN YOU WENT OUTSIDE WAS ACTUALLY SULFURIC ACID AND NOT 22 WATER? 23 A. 24 SIGHT GLASS. 25 FROM. I HAD NEVER HEARD THE PHONE CALL. IT WAS SOMEONE IN YOU OVERHEARD A CONVERSATION THAT MR. CAMERON CURRAN WAS IN PERSON. WELL, I MADE THE OBSERVATION THAT IT WAS DRIPPING FROM THE I DIDN'T SEE ANYWHERE THAT WATER COULD COME THEN I RETURNED TO THE OFFICE AND ASKED CAMERON. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 543 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE 2 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT, YOUR HONOR, PAGE 288, LINES 3 12 THROUGH 14. 4 THE COURT: 5 MR. LAFAYETTE: 6 QUESTION: 7 YOU SAW -- 8 THE COURT: 9 MR. LAFAYETTE: 10 11 GO AHEAD. (READING) DID YOU DO ANYTHING TO MAKE SURE THAT WHAT THAT'S NOT WHAT IT SAYS. 288, 12 THROUGH 14? RIGHT. THE COURT: TRY AGAIN. YOU USED THE WRONG WORD. READ CAREFULLY. 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: 13 "QUESTION: 14 WHAT YOU SAW WAS SULFURIC ACID AND NOT WATER? 15 "ANSWER: 16 THE WITNESS: (READING) DID YOU DO ANYTHING TO MAKE CERTAIN THAT NO, JUST VISUALLY LOOKED WITH MY EYES." THAT IS WHAT I OBSERVED. 17 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 Q. 19 FEW -- A LITTLE FEW DROPS, CORRECT? 20 A. ARE YOU READING OR ASKING ME? 21 Q. ASKING YOU. 22 A. YOU'RE ASKING ME IS IT CORRECT THAT WHAT I SAW WAS JUST A 23 LITTLE FEW DROPS? 24 Q. YES. 25 A. NO. IT IS ALSO ACCURATE WHAT YOU SAW OUT THERE WAS JUST A DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 544 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT, PAGE 290, AT LINE, FOUR THROUGH SEVEN. 3 MS. SMALLETS: 4 NEED TO START WITH PAGE 289 -- 5 6 COURT REPORTER: YOUR HONOR, TO BE COMPLETE, I THINK WE I'M SORRY, COUNSEL. CAN YOU SPEAK UP? 7 MS. SMALLETS: 8 COURT REPORTER: 9 THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. 10 THE CLERK: YOU CAN JUST BEND IT OVER, BEND IT DOWN. 11 THE COURT: YOU CAN DO IT ON REDIRECT. 12 YOU KNOW WHAT? NEVERMIND. I CAN'T HEAR YOU. I'M READING. GO AHEAD. 13 MR. LAFAYETTE: 14 "HOW THICK -- HOW THICK WAS THE STANDING LIQUID? 15 "ANSWER: 16 WHERE IT WAS COMING FROM." (READING) JUST A LITTLE. FEW DROPS THAT I COULD SEE 17 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 Q. 19 BE ACCURATE CAMERON CURRAN WAS ALREADY AWARE OF THE LEAK? 20 A. 21 WAS AWARE. 22 Q. 23 AWARE OF THIS INCIDENT? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. WAS IT ALSO YOUR UNDERSTANDING THAT THE SHIFT THAT HAD NOW, AT THE TIME YOU WENT OUT THERE TO LOOK AT THIS, WOULD IT WOULD BE ACCURATE FROM WHAT I HEARD THAT I ASSUMED HE AND WOULD IT BE ACCURATE THAT THE TRUCK DRIVER WAS ALREADY DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 545 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 WORKED THERE BEFORE YOUR SHIFT, THAT THEY WERE AWARE OF THIS 2 INCIDENT? 3 A. AT THAT TIME I WASN'T SURE IF THEY WERE AWARE. 4 MR. LAFAYETTE: YOUR HONOR, I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM 5 THE WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT PAGE 291, LINE 2 THROUGH 6 6. 7 THE COURT: 8 MR. LAFAYETTE: 9 "QUESTION: GO HEED. (READING) OKAY. AND DO YOU KNOW IF THE TEAM THAT 10 HAD THE SHIFT BEFORE YOU WAS AWARE OF IT? 11 "ANSWER: 12 "QUESTION: 13 "ANSWER: 14 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 15 Q. NOW, YOUR DEPOSITION WAS TAKEN IN THIS CASE, RIGHT? 16 A. RIGHT. 17 Q. AND WHEN YOUR DEPOSITION WAS TAKEN, YOU WERE TOLD THAT THE 18 TESTIMONY THAT YOU GIVE IN THE DEPOSITION WOULD BEAR THE SAME 19 TRUTH AND VERACITY AS IF YOU ACTUALLY TESTIFIED IN A COURT OF 20 LAW, RIGHT? 21 A. CORRECT. 22 Q. YOU WERE TOLD THAT YOU WOULD GET AN OPPORTUNITY TO REVIEW 23 THE TRANSCRIPT, WEREN'T YOU? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. YOU WERE TOLD THAT IF YOU HAD CHANGES AND CORRECTIONS, YOU I BELIEVE THEY WERE. OKAY. YOU BELIEVE THEY WERE AWARE OF IT? YES." DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 546 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 SHOULD LET SOMEONE KNOW, RIGHT? 2 A. CORRECT. 3 Q. AND YOU DIDN'T, RIGHT? 4 ABOUT. 5 A. NO. 6 THE COURT: 7 SECOND BREAK. 8 15 MINUTES. 9 12 ALL RIGHT. LET'S GO AHEAD AND TAKE OUR LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WE'LL STAND IN RECESS FOR (PROCEEDINGS HELD OUTSIDE THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) 10 11 ON THESE SUBJECTS I'M TALKING THE COURT: THE JURY IS GONE. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. THE RECORD WILL REFLECT THAT YOU MAY STEP DOWN, MS. NEWTON. YOU WILL BE RECEIVING AN EMAIL WITH THE DRAFT OF 13 THE JURY INSTRUCTIONS. 14 WITH CACI 2512, WHICH IS NOT THE MOST WELL-WORDED INSTRUCTION 15 I'VE SEEN. 16 I'VE LOOKED AT IN TERMS OF TRYING TO FIGURE OUT HOW TO 17 INSTRUCT THE JURY. 18 CITY OF SANTA MONICA, CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT CASE, 56 CAL 19 FOURTH 203. 20 21 23 AND THERE IS ANOTHER INSTRUCTION, BAJI 12.26 THAT AND ALSO YOU SHOULD LOOK AT HARRIS VERSUS IT IS 2013 CASE. MS. SMALLETS: NUMBER AGAIN? 22 WE ARE STRUGGLING WITH HOW TO DEAL YOUR HONOR, CAN YOU TELL ME THE BAJI I'M SORRY. THE COURT: BAJI 12.26. SO I HAVE INCLUDED THAT AT THE END. I THINK IT'S PROBABLY 24 MOST APPROPRIATELY DONE IN DAMAGES BUT I HAVEN'T FIGURED IT 25 OUT YET. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 547 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 THAT SAID, I WANT TO GIVE IT TO YOU WITH ENOUGH TIME FOR 2 YOU TO TAKE A LOOK AT IT. 3 GET TWO SETS. 4 HAVE MY SET AND I KEEP NOT WANTING TO ALWAYS REVISE THEM. YOU WILL SEE IN THERE -- YOU WILL ONE IS WHAT I CALL STANDARD INSTRUCTIONS AND I 5 SO YOU'LL HAVE A DOCUMENT THAT ARE THE STANDARD 6 INSTRUCTIONS AND THEN YOU WILL HAVE A SEPARATE DOCUMENT 7 SUBSTANTIVE THAT GO AT THE END OF THE STANDARD OR IN BETWEEN 8 BECAUSE THE STANDARD HAVE BEGINNING AND END. 9 YOU WILL SEE A STOP. I'M STILL TRYING TO DECIDE WHETHER 10 IT MAKES SENSE GIVEN THE BURDEN SHIFTING THAT HAPPENS WITH THE 11 DEFENDANT, WHETHER OR NOT I'M GOING TO SEGREGATE THINGS AGAIN 12 TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR THE JURY WITH BURDEN SHIFTING, 13 ESPECIALLY WITH THE ONE I JUST MENTIONED. 14 ANYWAY, WE HAVE A LOT TO TALK ABOUT. I JUST WANT TO LET 15 YOU KNOW THAT THESE ARE STILL A WORK IN PROGRESS AS FAR AS I'M 16 CONCERNED, BUT I NEED TO GET THEM TO YOU SO WE CAN HAVE A 17 DISCUSSION PLAN ON IT TOMORROW AFTERNOON. 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 THE COURT: 20 21 22 ALL RIGHT. 15 MINUTES. (RECESS TAKEN AT 11:50 A.M.; RESUMED AT 12:03 P.M.) THE CLERK: REMAIN SEATED. COURT IS IN SESSION. COME TO ORDER. 23 THE COURT: 24 MS. NUGENT: 25 THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT. LET'S CALL THE JURY IN. JUST ONE HOUSEKEEPING ISSUE. WE HAVE AGREED THAT BRIANNA NEWTON WILL BE CALLED IN AT 1:00 O'CLOCK DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 548 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 AND WE WILL TAKE HER OUT OF ORDER, IF MR. LAFAYETTE IS STILL 2 GOING WITH MS. CIARA NEWTON. 3 MR. LAFAYETTE: I'M FINE WITH THAT, YOUR HONOR. 4 SHE'S OUT THERE. 5 WE FINISH WITH HER, WE WILL START BACK UP WITH THE PLAINTIFF. 6 7 THE COURT: ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. LET'S CALL THEM IN. 8 (PROCEEDINGS HELD IN THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) 9 10 AND RATHER THAN HAVE HER COME BACK AGAIN, IF THE COURT: OKAY. WE'RE BACK ON THE RECORD. THE RECORD WILL REFLECT THE JURY IS BACK. 11 MR. LAFAYETTE, YOU MAY PROCEED. 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. 13 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 14 Q. 15 RIGHT? 16 A. RIGHT. 17 Q. THAT SIGHT GLASS ON THE ACID TANK IS ONE OF TWO DIFFERENT 18 MECHANISMS THAT CAN DETERMINE THE VOLUME OF FLUID INSIDE THE 19 TANK, RIGHT? 20 A. RIGHT. 21 Q. THE OTHER ONE IS A GAUGE, RIGHT? 22 A. RIGHT. 23 Q. WHERE IS THE GAUGE? 24 A. THE GAUGE IS BELOW THE TANK. 25 Q. WHAT DO YOU MEAN "BELOW THE TANK"? SO YOU ALSO SPOKE ABOUT THE SIGHT GLASS ON THE ACID TANK, DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 549 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. 2 BELOW IT. 3 Q. AND IN FRONT OF THE TANK, THERE'S ALSO A SHOWER, RIGHT? 4 A. NO, NOT RIGHT IN FRONT OF IT. 5 SOMEWHERE NEARBY. 6 Q. THERE'S A SHOWER RIGHT THERE AT THE TANK, ISN'T THERE? 7 A. NOT THAT I REMEMBER. 8 Q. WE WILL COME BACK TO IT. 9 IT'S NOT ACTUALLY ON THE TANK. IT'S RIGHT IN FRONT OF IT. THERE SHOULD BE A SHOWER THERE SHOULD BE ONE SHOWER CLOSE BY. SO NOW, WITH REGARD TO THAT SIGHT GLASS, YOU UNDERSTAND 10 YOU WERE NOT THE ONLY ONE TO REPORT THAT THE SIGHT GLASS MIGHT 11 NOT BE WORKING PROPERLY, RIGHT? 12 A. RIGHT. 13 Q. SO WHEN YOU DO COME IN AND YOU SEE EVIDENCE OF SOMETHING, 14 DO YOU KNOW WHEN IT WAS THAT CAMERON CURRAN FIRST BECAME AWARE 15 THAT THERE HAD BEEN AN OVERFILL? 16 A. I DON'T KNOW FOR SURE WHEN HE FIRST BECAME AWARE. 17 Q. OKAY. 18 DRIVER CAME IN, RIGHT? 19 A. RIGHT. 20 Q. AND YOU DON'T KNOW IF THAT'S THE DAY HE FOUND OUT OR IF HE 21 HAD FOUND OUT AT SOME OTHER TIME, CORRECT? 22 A. CORRECT. 23 Q. OKAY. 24 25 YOU ONLY KNOW ABOUT WHAT YOU OVERHEARD WHEN THIS AND WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE AREA WHERE THIS OVERFILL MAY HAVE OCCURRED, DID YOU SEE A BARK-LIKE SUBSTANCE ALL AROUND? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 550 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. YEAH. 2 Q. DID YOU ACTUALLY COME TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THAT SUBSTANCE 3 WAS? 4 A. IT WAS OYSTER SHELLS. 5 Q. OYSTER SHELLS. 6 DID YOU COME TO UNDERSTAND WHAT IT IS THAT OYSTER SHELL IS 7 USED FOR WITH RESPECT TO SULFURIC ACID? 8 A. THEY HELP NEUTRALIZE IT. 9 Q. NEUTRALIZE IT MEANS WHAT? 10 A. MAKE IT LESS ACIDIC. 11 Q. MAKE IT NONHARMFUL. 12 A. UH-HUH. 13 Q. RIGHT? 14 A. LESS -- YEAH. 15 Q. SO WHEN YOU GOT THERE AND WHEN YOU LOOKED AT THE AREA 16 WHERE THE TANK WAS, THERE WAS OYSTER SHELL ALL AROUND, RIGHT? 17 A. I THINK THAT THERE WAS. 18 Q. OKAY. 19 A. THERE'S -- 20 Q. SO NOW, DID YOU KNOW HOW LONG THE OYSTER SHELL HAD BEEN 21 DOWN THERE? 22 A. NO, I DID NOT. 23 Q. AND IN SUM, DID YOU DO ANYTHING TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR 24 NOT THE OYSTER SHELL HAD BEEN THERE LONG ENOUGH FOR IT TO HAVE 25 NEUTRALIZED ANY THREAT THAT COULD HAVE BEEN POSED BY THE ACID? IT IS PART OF NEUTRALIZING IT. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 551 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. YES. 2 Q. BUT YOU DIDN'T KNOW HOW LONG IT HAD BEEN THERE, HAD YOU? 3 HOW LONG THE SPILL HAD BEEN THERE, RIGHT? 4 A. 5 WAS WITH CAMERON? 6 AT WHICH POINT IN TIME? WHEN I FIRST WENT OUT OR WHEN I WHEN I FIRST WENT OUT, I DIDN'T KNOW HOW LONG IT HAD BEEN 7 THERE. 8 Q. YOU DIDN'T KNOW HOW LONG IT HAD BEEN THERE, HAD YOU? 9 A. WHEN I FIRST WENT OUT, NO. 10 Q. NOW WHEN YOU FIRST BROUGHT THIS UP TO MR. CAMERON CURRAN, 11 THE FIRST THING HE SAID IS, NOTHING NEEDS TO BE DONE, RIGHT? 12 A. NO, NOT NECESSARILY. 13 Q. DIDN'T HE SAY THAT YOU DON'T NEED TO PUT THE TAPE OUT? 14 A. HE DID SAY THAT AT SOME POINT IN TIME. 15 TO ROPE IT OFF WITH CAUTION TAPE. 16 Q. 17 OFF? 18 A. 19 IT? 20 HE DID NOT WANT ME WASN'T THE FIRST THING HE SAID, YOU DON'T NEED TO TAPE IT FIRST THING HE SAID AS TO WHAT, OUR CONVERSATION REGARDING MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE 21 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TESTIMONY PAGE 301, LINE 5 THROUGH 8 -- 22 LINES -- ACTUALLY, PAGE 300 STARTING AT LINE 24? 23 THE COURT: 24 MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 THE COURT: HOLD ON. 300 -- CALM DOWN. I HAVEN'T SAID ANYTHING YET. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 552 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 MR. LAFAYETTE: 2 THE COURT: 3 MR. LAFAYETTE: 4 STARTING AT PAGE -- 300. 300, LINE 24 THROUGH 301, 8. AND I'M REMOVING THE COLLOQUY. 5 THE COURT: SO I CAN'T LET YOU DO THAT YET BECAUSE 6 SHE DIDN'T ANSWER YOUR QUESTION. 7 CLARIFICATION. 8 SHE WAS ASKING FOR ASK A QUESTION AGAIN AND SEE WHAT ANSWER YOU HAVE. 9 MR. LAFAYETTE: OKAY. 10 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 11 Q. 12 YOU, YOU DON'T NEED TO TAPE IT OFF. 13 FIRST THING HE SAYS, RIGHT? 14 A. 15 REGARDING THE SULFURIC ACID. 16 WHEN WE FIRST GO OUT THERE AND I TELL HIM THAT I WOULD LIKE TO 17 ROPE OFF THE AREA. 18 SO WHEN YOU GO OUT THERE WITH CAMERON CURRAN, HE SAYS TO ISN'T THAT -- THAT'S THE I DON'T KNOW IF IT'S THE FIRST THING HE SAYS TO ME IT'S THE FIRST THING HE SAYS IT COULD BE THE FIRST THING. 19 Q. 20 CAR? 21 A. A TRUCK. 22 Q. AND YOU GO IN AND YOU GET SOME MORE OYSTER SHELLS, RIGHT? 23 A. YES. 24 Q. AND THERE HAVE ALREADY BEEN OYSTER SHELLS THERE, RIGHT? 25 A. CORRECT. SO AT SOME POINT IN TIME YOU GET IN THE TRUCK, RIGHT, OR DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 553 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. 2 YOU SPOKEN TO ANYONE ABOUT THIS INCIDENT OTHER THAN CAMERON 3 CURRAN? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. HAD YOU -- SO THAT MEANS THAT YOU HAD NOT CALLED UP THE 6 OPERATOR WHO WAS ON SHIFT BEFORE YOU, RIGHT? 7 A. NO. 8 Q. YOU HAD NOT CALLED UP THE SHIFT TEAM LEADER WHO WAS 9 RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CREW BEFORE YOU, RIGHT? AT THE POINT IN TIME YOU GO TO GET THE OYSTER SHELLS, HAD 10 A. NO. 11 Q. YOU HADN'T CALLED ANY OF THEM UP TO FIND OUT WHAT THEY HAD 12 DONE, RIGHT? 13 A. NO. 14 Q. YOU HADN'T CALLED ANY OF THEM UP TO FIND OUT IF WHAT THEY 15 HAD DONE HAD EFFECTIVELY NEUTRALIZED WHATEVER HAD HAPPENED THE 16 NIGHT BEFORE, RIGHT? 17 A. I DID. 18 Q. PRIOR TO GOING TO MR. CAMERON CURRAN, HAD YOU SPOKE TO 19 THEM? 20 A. NO. 21 Q. WHEN WAS IT THAT YOU SPOKE TO SOMEONE OTHER THAN CAMERON 22 CURRAN ABOUT THE INCIDENT? 23 A. IT WOULD BE THAT NIGHT IN OUR SHIFT EXCHANGE. 24 Q. OKAY. 25 AT YOUR SHIFT EXCHANGE. AND SO PRIOR TO THAT SHIFT EXCHANGE, YOU HADN'T TOLD DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 554 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 ANYBODY ELSE ANYTHING ELSE ABOUT IT, CORRECT? 2 A. JUST MY SUPERVISOR. 3 Q. OTHER THAN CAMERON CURRAN? 4 A. NO, I DON'T THINK THAT I DID. 5 TO THE CONTRACTORS IN THE AREA. 6 Q. BUT YOU ARE NOT SURE OF THAT EITHER, ARE YOU? 7 A. NOT POSITIVE. 8 Q. LET'S STICK WITH CAMERON CURRAN FOR A SECOND. 9 A. OKAY. 10 Q. SO WE KNOW YOU TOLD CAMERON CURRAN, AND THEN YOU SAY AT 11 THE END OF YOUR SHIFT YOU SPEAK TO SOMEONE ELSE, RIGHT? 12 A. YES. 13 Q. OKAY. 14 A. I BELIEVE IT WAS PATRICK. 15 Q. YOU SPOKE WITH PATRICK. 16 A. HE WAS THE OPERATOR COMING ON. 17 Q. PATRICK WAS -- DID YOU SPEAK TO ANYONE ELSE AT THE CLOSE 18 OF YOUR SHIFT ABOUT IT? 19 A. NO. 20 Q. OKAY. 21 I MIGHT HAVE MENTIONED IT AND WHO DID YOU SPEAK WITH? NOW, PATRICK WASN'T THE PERSON WHO HAD BEEN ON SHIFT 22 BEFORE YOU, WAS HE? 23 A. CORRECT. 24 Q. OKAY. 25 SHIFT TO FIND OUT WHAT WAS DONE WHEN THE LEAK -- WHEN THE SO YOU DID NOTHING THEN PRIOR TO THE END OF YOUR DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 555 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 OVERSPILL TOOK PLACE PRIOR TO THE END OF YOUR SHIFT -- 2 A. 3 DONE. 4 JOSE WERE ON SHIFT WHEN IT OVERFILLED. 5 Q. AND DID HE TELL YOU WHAT THEY HAD DONE? 6 A. HE TOLD ME THAT THEY HAD PUT OYSTER SHELLS, BUT THAT THE 7 REASON THERE'S STILL A PUDDLE IS BECAUSE IT HASN'T NEUTRALIZED 8 YET. 9 Q. I DIDN'T HAVE TO. CAMERON ALREADY TOLD ME WHAT HAD BEEN HE TOLD ME HE TALKED TO DONNIE GOFF AND THAT HIM AND SO IT ABSORBS THROUGH. SO HE TOLD YOU -- HE TOLD YOU CLEARLY IT HAD NOT 10 NEUTRALIZED YET, RIGHT? 11 A. HE EXPLAINED TO ME HOW OYSTER SHELLS WORK. 12 Q. DID HE TELL YOU POINT BLANK IT HAD NOT NEUTRALIZED YET? 13 A. NO, NOT IN THOSE WORDS. 14 Q. THANK YOU. 15 HE TOLD YOU ABOUT THE PROCESS OF OYSTER SHELLS AND 16 NEUTRALIZATION, DIDN'T HE? 17 A. A LITTLE BIT, YES. 18 Q. NOW, IT IS ABSOLUTELY TRUE THAT AT THE TIME THIS HAPPENED 19 YOU DIDN'T KNOW IF YOU WERE REQUIRED TO REPORT THIS INCIDENT 20 TO ANYBODY OTHER THAN SHELL, CORRECT? 21 A. I WAS NOT SURE SO I TRIED TO LOOK IT UP ON THE COMPUTER. 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TESTIMONY. 24 25 I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE I THINK THAT'S LINE -- PAGE 336, LINE 24 THROUGH 337, LINE 15. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 556 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 2 MS. SMALLETS: IMPEACHING. 3 4 OBJECTION, YOUR HONOR, IT'S NOT THE COURT: FOUNDATION. 5 SUSTAINED. YOU NEED TO SET MORE YOU'VE ONLY TALKED ABOUT A PIECE OF THAT. MR. LAFAYETTE: OKAY. 6 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 7 Q. 8 UNDER ANY FEDERAL LAWS, DID YOU? 9 A. I DIDN'T KNOW FOR CERTAIN. 10 Q. AND YOU DIDN'T KNOW THAT IT HAD TO BE REPORTED UNDER ANY 11 STATE LAWS, DID YOU? 12 A. YOU DIDN'T KNOW... YOU DIDN'T KNOW THAT HAD TO BE REPORTED NOT FOR CERTAIN. 13 MR. LAFAYETTE: 14 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TESTIMONY. 15 MS. SMALLETS: 16 THE COURT: 17 OBJECTION. IT'S NOT IMPEACHMENT. SHE SAID SHE WAS NOT POSITIVE AND NOT FOR CERTAIN. 18 19 I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE SO, THERE'S NO IMPEACHMENT. UNLESS I'M MISSING SOMETHING. YOU CAN POINT ME TO LINES. 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: FINE, YOUR HONOR. 21 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 Q. 23 OF ANYBODY GETTING HURT; IS THAT TRUE? 24 A. I'M SORRY, DID YOU SAY "AS OF TODAY"? 25 Q. AS OF THE -- WITH REGARD TO THAT INCIDENT, YOU ARE UNAWARE SO THAT DAY, AS A RESULT OF THIS INCIDENT, YOU ARE UNAWARE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 557 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 OF ANYBODY BEING INJURED. 2 A. CORRECT. 3 Q. YOU WERE NOT INJURED, WERE YOU? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. AND YOU DIDN'T GO TO A DOCTOR, DID YOU? 6 A. NO. 7 Q. NOW AROUND THE BASE OF THE TANK, THERE'S A CONCRETE 8 BARRIER? 9 A. THERE'S A -- THEY CALL IT A DIKE. 10 Q. A DIKE. 11 WOULD SAY? 12 A. MAYBE A LITTLE LESS. 13 Q. IT'S KIND OF THINK? 14 A. I WOULD SAY IT'S ABOUT MAYBE LIKE A FOOT HIGH. 15 18 INCHES. 16 Q. HOW THICK? 17 A. FIVE INCHES THICK. 18 LIKE THIS (INDICATING). 19 Q. IS THE BASE OF THIS DIKE CONCRETE AS WELL? 20 A. IT IS CONCRETE, BUT THERE'S USUALLY.... 21 Q. THERE'S USUALLY OYSTER SHELLS IN THERE, RIGHT? 22 A. I BELIEVE THAT'S WHAT'S USUALLY IN THERE IN CASE OF.... 23 Q. OKAY. 24 25 AND HOW TALL IS THIS DIKE? ABOUT 18 INCHES YOU ABOUT 18 INCHES -ABOUT 6 INCHES THICK? MAYBE NOT CEMENT, LIKE CEMENT LITTLE BARRIER NOW, ASIDE FROM YOU TAKING SOME ACTION TO FILL OUT A REQUISITION TO GET THE SIGHT GLASS REPAIRED, YOU WERE ALSO DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 558 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 WORRIED THAT OTHERS HAD DONE THAT AS WELL, RIGHT? 2 A. 3 SURE. 4 Q. OKAY. 5 A. I DON'T THINK I WAS THE ONLY ONE. 6 Q. SO NOW YOU NEVER OBSERVED A PUNCTURE IN THE TANK, DID YOU? 7 A. NO PUNCTURE IN THE TANK. 8 Q. SO -- AND WHAT YOUR UNDERSTANDING WAS, AT SOME POINT YOU 9 CAME TO UNDERSTAND THAT THE PROBLEM WITH THE SIGHT GLASS WHICH I THINK WE WERE ALL POSSIBLY REPORTING IT, BUT I'M NOT 10 IS SOMETHING HAD GOTTEN IN IT AND CLOGGED; IT IS THAT 11 ACCURATE? 12 A. THAT'S WHAT I WAS... I WAS TOLD THAT IT WAS PLUGGED. 13 Q. AND YOU DIDN'T -- YOU NEVER CAME UP WITH ANY OTHER 14 UNDERSTANDING AS TO WHAT HAD HAPPENED, RIGHT? 15 A. NO. 16 Q. NOW, DID YOU FILL OUT A ZERO TO SIXTY REPORT ON THIS 17 INCIDENT? 18 A. 19 DIDN'T KNOW WHERE TO FIND A ZERO TO SIXTY REPORT, BUT I 20 REQUESTED TO FILL ONE OUT WITH CAMERON. 21 Q. 22 REPORT WAS BECAUSE YOU DIDN'T KNOW WHERE TO FIND ONE? 23 A. 24 CAMERON, AND CAMERON SAID WE'RE NOT. 25 OUT A ZERO TO SIXTY. I DID NOT BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT THE SUPERVISORS DO. AND I SO THE ONLY REASON YOU DIDN'T FILL OUT THE ZERO TO SIXTY NO. BECAUSE I WAS THE -- I WAS TRYING TO REPORT IT WITH AND I NEVER HAD FILLED I WAS UNDER THE IMPRESSION SUPERVISORS DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 559 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 DO THAT, BUT I COULD HAVE BEEN WRONG. 2 Q. 3 TO SIXTY? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. WHEN CAMERON WENT OUT TO FIX -- TO PUT SOME MORE OYSTER 6 SHELLS OUT, DID HE HAVE ON SOME GLOVES? 7 A. 8 NOT. 9 Q. OKAY. 10 A. I KNOW HE HAD SOME PPE BUT NOT ALL OF IT. 11 Q. OKAY. 12 A. I REMEMBER THAT HE DIDN'T HAVE ALL OF THE PROPER 13 PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT BUT THAT HE DID THE JOB ANYWAY. 14 Q. WHAT PART OF THE PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT DID HE HAVE ON? 15 A. I CAN'T REMEMBER TODAY WHAT HE HAD ON. 16 THAT HE DIDN'T HAVE IT ALL. 17 Q. DID YOU THINK HE WAS GOING OUT THERE -- 18 A. HE DIDN'T HAVE A FULL SUIT ON. 19 REMEMBER. 20 DON'T REMEMBER. 21 Q. SO AT SOME POINT YOU GET ASSIGNED TO A DEPARTMENT, RIGHT? 22 A. RIGHT. 23 Q. AND YOU DON'T KNOW WHO MADE THE DECISION TO ASSIGN YOU AND 24 THE REST OF YOUR CLASSMATES TO THE DEPARTMENTS, RIGHT? 25 A. THOSE ARE ALL THE REASONS WHY YOU DIDN'T FILL OUT THE ZERO DON'T KNOW IF I CAN REMEMBER TODAY IF HE HAD GLOVES OR WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT? I JUST REMEMBER I'M JUST TRYING TO I DON'T THINK HE PUT A FULL SUIT ON. MAYBE -- I NO. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 560 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. 2 OKAY. AND JUST SO THAT I AM CLEAR, YOU WERE NOT DISGRUNTLED 3 ABOUT NOT GOING TO LOGISTICS, WERE YOU? 4 A. NO. 5 Q. AND, IN FACT, YOU WERE EXCITED, EAGER, AND EXCITED TO BE 6 GOING TO OPCEN, WEREN'T YOU? 7 A. 8 AND EAGER TO BE GOING TO MY DEPARTMENT. 9 HAVE FELT THAT WAY REGARDLESS OF WHATEVER DEPARTMENT I GOT. NOT THAT IT WAS SPECIFICALLY OPCEN. 10 EXCITED TO GET TO OUR REAL JOBS. 11 MR. LAFAYETTE: 12 I WAS JUST EXCITED IT PROBABLY WOULD I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TESTIMONY AT PAGE 65, 14 THROUGH 16. 13 THE COURT: 14 MR. LAFAYETTE: 15 "QUESTION:" 16 THE COURT: 17 MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 "OKAY. 19 "ANSWER: 20 OPCEN." WELL, IT'S -- OKAY, GO AHEAD. (READING) THE QUESTION SAYS "OKAY". (READING) BUT STILL, I WAS EAGER AND EXCITED TO BE IN 21 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 Q. 23 CHRISTINE LAYNE WAS PRESENT? 24 A. 25 MEETING. NOW, HOW MANY MEETINGS DID YOU ATTEND WITH -- WHERE TWO MEETINGS, AND THREE IF YOU COUNT THE FINAL TERMINATION DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 561 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. TWO MEETINGS -- 2 A. ACTUALLY -- 3 Q. -- AND THREE IF YOU COUNT THE FINAL TERMINATION MEETING. 4 SO THAT MAKES THREE MEETINGS YOU HAD WITH MS. LAYNE, 5 RIGHT? 6 A. 7 SPOKE TO OUR ENTIRE CLASS OF 22, BUT NOT ME INDIVIDUALLY. 8 Q. OKAY. 9 A. SO THAT'S THE FOUR ENCOUNTERS. 10 Q. LET SEE IF I CAN UNDERSTAND IT. 11 YEAH. THEN IF YOU MEAN LIKE ENCOUNTERS, SHE ALSO CAME AND IN THAT FIRST SIX TO EIGHT WEEKS, HOWEVER LONG THAT WAS, 12 MS. LAYNE AND SOME OTHER PEOPLE FROM HUMAN RESOURCES CAME AND 13 GAVE SOME PRESENTATIONS, RIGHT? 14 A. RIGHT. 15 Q. THEY TALKED ABOUT, AMONG OTHER THINGS, THE THINGS THAT YOU 16 COULD DO IF YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE THE VICTIM OF HARASSMENT OR 17 DISCRIMINATION, RIGHT? 18 A. 19 WAS MADE AWARE THAT SHE WAS HR. 20 Q. DID YOU GET SOME DOCUMENTS RELATED -- 21 A. YEAH, I THINK THEY HANDED OUT DOCUMENTS REGARDING SHELL 22 POLICIES. 23 Q. OKAY. 24 A. MOST LIKELY. 25 Q. OKAY. I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT THEY TALKED ABOUT. CODE OF CONDUCT? BUT I DEFINITELY I CAN'T REMEMBER. SHELL'S CODE OF CONDUCT? TALKED ABOUT WHAT YOU SHOULD DO IF YOU THINK DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 562 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 SOMETHING IS GOING WRONG; DID THEY TALK ABOUT STUFF LIKE THAT 2 WITH YOU IN THE ORIENTATION, IN THE ONBOARDING PROCESS? 3 A. I'M ASSUMING SO, BUT I DON'T REMEMBER ANYTHING SPECIFIC. 4 Q. YOU BELIEVE THEY DID BUT YOU DON'T HAVE A SPECIFIC 5 RECOLLECTION, RIGHT? 6 A. UH-HUH. 7 Q. SO THAT'S OVER THERE. 8 MEETINGS WITH HER, CORRECT? 9 A. CORRECT. 10 Q. THE LAST ONE WAS THE TERMINATION, RIGHT? 11 A. RIGHT. 12 Q. WHEN WAS THE ONE BEFORE THAT? 13 A. I BELIEVE THAT WAS THE MEETING WITH RAY JONES AND NICK 14 BACKENS. 15 SO THEN YOU SAY YOU HAD THREE OTHER AND WHO ELSE WAS THERE? RAY JONES, NICK BACKENS, 16 CHRISTINE, AND ERIC PEREZ. 17 Q. OKAY. 18 A. SOMETIME PRIOR TO THAT WITH ERIC PEREZ. 19 THE DATES ANY... ANY LONGER. 20 Q. 21 TERMINATION? 22 A. AUGUST? 23 Q. ARE YOU GUESSING OR ARE YOU TELLING ME? 24 A. I'M GUESSING. 25 Q. YOU DON'T KNOW. SO WHEN WAS THE OTHER ONE? I DON'T REMEMBER CAN YOU GIVE ME A DATE OF THE ONE THAT WAS CLOSEST TO THE WHAT IS THE DATE OF THAT ONE? OKAY. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 563 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 WHEN IS THE MEETING THAT YOU HAD WITH HER THAT WAS BEFORE 2 THAT? 3 A. 4 IN JULY AND A MEETING IN AUGUST. 5 Q. THAT'S YOUR BEST GUESS? 6 A. UH-HUH. 7 Q. ALL RIGHT. 8 9 WELL, IT IS AFTER -- SO JULY. I THINK THERE WAS A MEETING THAT'S MY BEST GUESS. NOW, IN ONE OF THESE MEETINGS WERE YOU TOLD THAT YOU WERE GOING TO HAVE TO NAME NAMES? 10 A. 11 COULD BE WITNESSES. 12 Q. THAT'S RIGHT -- 13 A. I WAS CLAIMING -- 14 Q. THEY WANTED TO KNOW WHO THE WITNESSES WERE WHO YOU SAID 15 COULD VERIFY COMMENTS THAT YOU WERE MAKING AND/OR WHO HAD BEEN 16 TREATED DIFFERENTLY THAN YOU, RIGHT? 17 A. I WAS TOLD THAT I WOULD HAVE TO NAME NAMES OF PEOPLE WHO RIGHT. 18 MS. SMALLETS: 19 THE WITNESS: 20 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 Q. 22 OBJECTION -AND I SAID THE OTHER THREE -- AND SO -THE COURT: FIRST OF ALL, IF YOU MAKE AN OBJECTION, 23 YOU NEED TO SPEAK LOUDER. 24 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 Q. SECOND OF ALL, OVERRULED. SO, NOW -- AND THAT'S WHAT MS. LAYNE SAID, RIGHT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 564 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. I'M SORRY, I LOST YOU. 2 Q. I WILL JUST MOVE ON. WHAT DID MS. LAYNE SAY? 3 SO AFTER THAT CONVERSATION, WOULD IT BE ACCURATE THAT 4 MR. PEREZ CAME BACK TO YOU AT SOME LATER POINT TO ASK YOU IF 5 YOU HAD SOME NAMES TO SHARE? 6 A. 7 NO. MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ TWO SECTIONS OF 8 THE DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT. 9 LINES (SIC) 556, 5 THROUGH 7. 10 THE WITNESS: 11 THE COURT: 12 13 14 DO YOU WANT ME TO ELABORATE -HOLD ON, PLEASE. (PAUSE IN THE PROCEEDINGS.) THE COURT: SO THE PREPOSITION IN THE FIRST IS FEMALE, NOT MALE. 15 MR. LAFAYETTE: 16 THE COURT: 17 YES. YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT PEREZ. MR. PEREZ IS NOT A FEMALE. 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 THE COURT: 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 CHECKED BACK WITH YOU." 22 PAGE 555, LINES 13 THROUGH 15 AND THE COURT: THAT'S CORRECT, YOUR HONOR. AND SO SHE SAID. THAT'S NOT "HE SAID". SO THEN -- SO 556 IS -- "SO SOMEONE DENIED FOR IMPEACHMENT PURPOSES. 23 ISN'T THE SAME. 24 DOESN'T SAY ANYTHING ABOUT NAMES. THIS YOU'VE GOT A FEMALE AND THEN THE OTHER ONE 25 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 565 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 2 Q. 3 LAYNE, WERE THERE OTHER PEOPLE PRESENT? 4 A. WHICH CONVERSATION? 5 Q. THE ONE WHERE SHE'S ASKING YOU FOR NAMES, WASN'T MR. PEREZ 6 PRESENT? 7 A. ERIC PEREZ, YES, WAS PRESENT. 8 Q. THAT'S RIGHT. 9 MR. RAY JONES, RIGHT? WHEN YOU WERE HAVING THE CONVERSATION WITH MS. CHRISTINE 10 A. RIGHT. 11 Q. OKAY. 12 AND THE OTHER PERSON WHO WAS PRESENT WAS AND AT SOME POINT IN TIME AFTER YOU HAD THAT CONVERSATION 13 WITH MS. LAYNE, AND WHERE MR. JONES WAS PRESENT AND WHERE 14 MS. LAYNE SAID SHE NEEDED TO HAVE NAMES, MR. PEREZ, WHO WAS IN 15 THE ROOM, CAME BACK TO YOU TO CHECK IN WITH YOU, DIDN'T HE? 16 A. WE HAD A -- WE DID END UP HAVING A FOLLOW-UP CONVERSATION. 17 Q. THANK YOU. 18 AND IN THAT FOLLOW-UP CONVERSATION, HE WAS ASKING YOU FOR 19 THE NAMES AND WITNESSES, CORRECT? 20 A. 21 AND GET THEIR PERMISSION, JOSE, PATRICK, AND MENA. 22 UNDER MY IMPRESSION HE WAS ASKING ME, DID I TALK TO THEM DID I -- DID I TALK TO THEM YET? HE ASKED ME, DID I TALK 23 TO THEM? 24 Q. 25 YOU ABOUT WHETHER OR NOT YOU GOT PERMISSION FROM ANYONE. DID I GET THEIR PERMISSION. WAS HE ASKING YOU FOR NAMES OF WITNESSES? I'M NOT ASKING DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 566 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 I'M REALLY ASKING YOU, DID HE ASK YOU FOR THE NAMES OF 2 WITNESSES? 3 A. 4 THREE IN THE CLASS. 5 Q. 6 OTHER THREE PEOPLE IN THE CLASS, RIGHT? 7 A. AT THAT TIME. 8 Q. SO DID YOU EVER GIVE HIM ANY NAMES OTHER THAN THE NAMES OF 9 THE THREE PEOPLE IN THE CLASS? I THINK HE ALREADY HAD THE NAMES. I TOLD HIM THE OTHER THE ONLY WITNESSES YOU EVER GAVE HIM WERE THE NAMES OF THE 10 A. 11 ABOUT JEFF FISCHER. 12 Q. OKAY. 13 A. AND I TOLD HIM WHEN JEFF FISCHER MADE THAT COMMENT ALMOST 14 HALF THE CLASS HEARD IT. 15 THERE AT THE TIME. 16 Q. 17 I TOLD -- YEAH, I GAVE HIM OTHER NAMES BECAUSE I TOLD HIM OKAY. SO I TOLD HIM WHO I THOUGHT WAS LET ME SEE IF I THINK I UNDERSTAND IT. YOU GAVE HIM THE NAMES OF THE PEOPLE WHO WERE IN YOUR 18 CLASS, CORRECT? 19 A. CORRECT. 20 Q. AND THAT'S THREE PEOPLE, RIGHT? 21 A. EVENTUALLY THREE, YES. 22 Q. THAT'S WHAT I'M ASKING YOU. 23 THREE PEOPLE, RIGHT? 24 A. RIGHT. 25 Q. AND SO WHEN YOU DIDN'T WORK DIRECTLY WITH THOSE THREE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 567 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 PEOPLE AFTER YOU GOT OUT OF THE CLASS WITH JEFF FISCHER, 2 CORRECT? 3 YOU HAD DIFFERENT SHIFTS, LET'S PUT IT THIS WAY. 4 MAKE IT REALLY SIMPLE. 5 A. 6 SAME SHIFT. 7 Q. 8 9 YEAH. I WILL FOR THE MOST PART, TYPICALLY WE DO NOT WORK ON THE THAT'S WHAT I'M SAYING. OKAY? NOW WHEN CHRISTINE LAYNE ASKED YOU TO IDENTIFY WITNESSES, WOULD IT BE ACCURATE THAT YOU SAID WORDS TO THE EFFECT OF, YOU 10 DIDN'T WANT TO IDENTIFY PEOPLE? 11 A. NO. 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE 13 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT, PAGE 557, 01 THROUGH 13, 14 PICKING UP AGAIN AT LINE 24 TAKING IT TO 558:4. 15 16 MS. SMALLETS: MR. LAFAYETTE: MS. SMALLETS: 20 THE COURT: 21 25 OBJECTION, NOT IMPEACHMENT. I AGREE SO FAR. LET ME FINISH READING. (PAUSE IN THE PROCEEDINGS.) 22 24 PAGE 557, LINE 1 THROUGH 13, PICKING UP AGAIN AT LINE 24 GOING THROUGH 558:4. 19 23 WHAT WERE THE LINE NUMBERS? 17 18 EXCUSE ME. THE COURT: OKAY. 557 IS DENIED. LET ME LOOK AT 558. YOU CAN READ AT 557:24 THROUGH 558:4. MR. LAFAYETTE: THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 568 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 "QUESTION: 2 YOU SAYING THAT YOU DIDN'T WANT TO IDENTIFY PEOPLE? 3 DO YOU REMEMBER SAYING SOMETHING LIKE THAT WHO WERE 4 BEING TREATED BETTER THAN YOU? 5 "ANSWER: 6 THAT I SAID." AND DO YOU RECALL -- AND DO YOU RECALL NOT EXACTLY THAT, BUT SOMETHING CLOSE TO 7 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 8 Q. 9 IN YOUR CLASS, RIGHT? NOW, YOU KEEP TALKING ABOUT THE THREE NEW HIRES WHO WERE 10 A. RIGHT. 11 Q. BUT YOU DIDN'T TALK TO THE THREE NEW HIRES ABOUT BEING 12 INTERVIEWED, DID YOU? 13 A. 14 HAPPENED, BUT I DON'T THINK I EVER TALKED TO THEM ABOUT BEING 15 INTERVIEWED. 16 Q. 17 I DON'T THINK THAT I DID. DEFINITELY TALKED ABOUT WHAT THANK YOU. SO NOW LET'S TALK ABOUT AUGUST 29. 18 A. OKAY. 19 Q. OKAY? 20 NOW BEFORE YOU SPOKE WITH ERIC PEREZ ABOUT THE STICKER ON 21 THAT DAY, YOU SPOKE TO HIM ABOUT SOMETHING ELSE, DIDN'T YOU? 22 A. 23 HIM TELLING HIM I WAS BEING TREATED UNFAIRLY. 24 Q. 25 YOU SPOKE TO ERIC PEREZ ABOUT NOT BEING TREATED FAIRLY, YES. WE SPOKE ABOUT A LOT OF -- I HAD A FEW TIMES WITH SO PRIOR TO YOU TALKING ABOUT THE STICKER ON THAT DATE, DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 569 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 CORRECT? 2 A. CORRECT. 3 Q. AND YOU DID THAT BECAUSE HE ASKED THAT QUESTION OF YOU, 4 RIGHT? 5 A. 6 TOLD HIM I WAS BEING TREATED UNFAIRLY BECAUSE HE CAME TO ME 7 AND ASKED ME? 8 Q. 9 NO, I DON'T THINK SO. I MEAN, I -- I'M SORRY. YOU SAID I I HAVE ANOTHER QUESTION. NOW BEFORE YOU CAME TO -- LET'S TALK ABOUT THE BAKER TANK. 10 A. OKAY. 11 Q. HOW BIG IS THIS TANK? 12 A. PRETTY BIG. 13 Q. HOW TALL? 14 A. SIX FEET -- FIVE -- YEAH, 6 FEET. 15 Q. IS IT ON WHEELS? 16 A. NO, NOT 6 FEET. 17 Q. IS IT ON WHEELS? 18 A. NOT THAT I REMEMBER, NO. 19 EQUIPMENT THAT'S IN THERE. 20 Q. 21 TO SOMETHING, RIGHT? 22 A. 23 DRAINED INTO THE SEWER. 24 Q. 25 TANK, RIGHT? OKAY. LIKE 12 FEET LONG AND 5 FEET WIDE. SEVEN FEET MAYBE. IT IS A TEMPORARY PIECE OF SO THIS BAKER TANK HAS A HOSE, RIGHT, THAT CONNECTS THE HOSE DOESN'T CONNECT TO ANYTHING. OKAY. THE HOSE IS JUST SO THE HOSE IS CONNECTED TO THE BANKER -- BAKER DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 570 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. UH-HUH. 2 Q. THEN THAT HOSE RUNS SOMEPLACE AND DRAINS INTO SOME CATCH 3 BASIN, OR SOMETHING, RIGHT? 4 A. YES. 5 Q. AND SO THE REASON YOU ARE OPENING IT IS WHAT? 6 A. THE REASON WE WERE OPENING IT IS BECAUSE IT WAS A -- THEY 7 WERE IN TURNAROUND. 8 MATERIAL. 9 THAT BAKER TANK SO THEY COULD GET THE BAKER TANK OUT. SO THEY WERE TRYING TO GET RID OF THIS SO WE OPENED IT A LITTLE BIT EVERY DAY TO EMPTY 10 Q. SO THAT IT DOESN'T GET FULL, RIGHT? 11 A. NOT -- THERE WAS NO CONCERN ABOUT IT GETTING FULL. 12 WERE JUST GETTING RID OF THE MATERIAL INSIDE OF IT TO REMOVE 13 IT FROM THE UNIT BECAUSE IT WASN'T REGULARLY THERE. 14 Q. YOU WENT THROUGH TRAINING, RIGHT? 15 A. I DID GO THROUGH TRAINING. 16 Q. YOU WENT THROUGH YOUR PARALLEL TRAINING, RIGHT? 17 A. CORRECT. 18 Q. AND YOU TALKED TO US BEFORE, DIDN'T YOU, ABOUT OPENING 19 VALVES AND CLOSING VALVES, RIGHT? 20 A. YES. 21 Q. AND THERE WAS TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, NOT OPENING A VALVE IF 22 YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO COME OUT OF IT, RIGHT? 23 THEY DID THEY TALK ABOUT SAFETY RELATED TO OPENING VALVES? 24 A. YES. 25 Q. DID THEY TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE DANGEROUS THINGS THAT CAN DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 571 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 HAPPEN WHEN YOU OPEN VALVES? 2 A. YES. 3 Q. SO NOW -- SO THIS VALVE WASN'T PLUGGED WHEN YOU OPENED IT, 4 RIGHT? 5 A. IT WAS NOT PLUGGED. 6 Q. OKAY. 7 CAME RUSHING OUT, RIGHT? 8 A. CORRECT. 9 Q. AND THAT SURPRISED YOU, DIDN'T IT? 10 A. YES. 11 Q. AND THEN YOU REALIZED THAT YOU NEEDED TO SHUT THE VALVE, 12 RIGHT? 13 A. I SHUT THE VALVE RIGHT AWAY. 14 Q. YES. 15 A. OPENED IT. 16 SHUT IT. 17 Q. 18 AND YOU OPENED IT AND THEN WHATEVER WAS IN THERE OKAY. I DON'T EVEN THINK I TOOK MY HANDS OFF, AND THEN YOU SHUT IT. HOW BIG IS THIS VALVE? LITTLE VALVE LIKE I HAVE IN MY 19 HOME? 20 A. 21 NOT BIG. 22 Q. HOW BIG? 23 A. SMALL. 24 Q. HOW WIDE IS IT? 25 A. I DON'T REMEMBER, BUT I THINK IT WAS LIKE THIS MAYBE BIGGER. HONESTLY I DON'T REMEMBER, IT'S DEFINITELY DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 572 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 (INDICATING). 2 Q. WHAT'S THAT, ABOUT 10 INCHES? 3 A. YEAH. 4 Q. SO ABOUT 10 INCHES. 5 SO IT TAKES TWO HANDS, RIGHT? IT TAKES TWO HANDS TO OPEN 6 THIS VALVE, RIGHT? 7 A. NO. 8 Q. DID YOU DO IT WITH TWO HANDS OR ONE? 9 A. IT WASN'T EVEN NECESSARILY I DON'T THINK IT WAS A VALVE. 10 IT'S LIKE A JUST A PULL. 11 Q. OKAY. 12 A. RIGHT. 13 Q. THEN YOU WENT TO TELL ERIC -- TELL CAMERON? 14 A. I WENT DIRECTLY TO TELL CAMERON. 15 Q. OKAY. 16 A. YES. 17 Q. AND HE ASKED YOU, DID YOU CLOSE IT, RIGHT? 18 A. CORRECT. 19 Q. AND WHAT WAS YOUR ANSWER? 20 A. THAT I DID CLOSE IT. 21 Q. NOW... AND WHAT YOU DID WAS HUMAN ERROR, WASN'T IT? 22 A. CORRECT. 23 Q. AND YOU UNDERSTAND THAT THE RISK OF AN ERROR LIKE THAT IS 24 A RISK OF A LOSS OF CONTAINMENT, CORRECT? 25 A. AND SO WHEN IT HAPPENED YOU CLOSED IT, RIGHT? AND YOU TOLD HIM? YES. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 573 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. IT IS ALSO A RISK OF EXPOSURE, RIGHT? 2 A. YES. 3 Q. YOU ALSO UNDERSTAND THAT IT IS A RISK THAT PEOPLE COULD BE 4 HARMED AND INJURED, RIGHT? 5 A. YES. 6 Q. AND ALL THIS HAPPENED WHILE YOU WERE STILL ON PROBATION, 7 RIGHT? 8 A. YES. 9 Q. AND IF IT WERE UP TO YOU AND YOU WERE IN CAMERON'S SHOES, 10 YOU, TOO, WOULD HAVE WRITTEN UP THE PERSON THAT COMMITTED THAT 11 HUMAN ERROR, WOULDN'T YOU? 12 A. 13 DEFINITELY DO THE ZERO TO SIXTY AND FOLLOW THE SHELL PROCEDURE 14 FOR WHATEVER IT IS WHEN PEOPLE MAKE MISTAKES LIKE THAT. 15 YES. WELL, NO, I WOULDN'T WRITE THEM UP. MR. LAFAYETTE: BUT I WOULD I WOULD LIKE FOR YOU -- READ FROM 16 PAGE 405, LINES 4 THROUGH 5. 17 THE COURT: 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 THE COURT: 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 "BUT IF IT WAS UP TO ME, I WOULD WRITE IT UP." GO AHEAD. I AM NOT ASKING -- SHE QUALIFIED. GO AHEAD. (READING) 22 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 Q. 24 AND A SAFE PRACTICE TO DO A VISUAL CHECK TO SEE IF ANYTHING IS 25 CONNECTED, RIGHT? BEFORE YOU OPEN A VALVE LIKE THAT, IT'S A GOOD PRACTICE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 574 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. RIGHT. 2 Q. YOU DIDN'T DO THAT, DID YOU? 3 A. NO. 4 Q. YOU UNDERSTAND THAT ONCE YOU REPORTED WHAT YOU HAD DONE, 5 YOU CREATED AN IMPRESSION THAT YOU HAD BECOME COMPLACENT, 6 RIGHT? 7 A. YOU'RE ASKING IF I -- 8 MS. SMALLETS: 9 THE COURT: OBJECTION, CALLS FOR SPECULATION. SUSTAINED AS TO THE FORM OF THE QUESTION. 10 TRY A DIFFERENT ONE. 11 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 12 Q. 13 COMPLACENT, RIGHT? 14 A. I UNDERSTAND THAT IT COULD LOOK THAT WAY, YEAH. 15 Q. AND YOU LEARNED IN THE CLASS WITH MR. JOYCE THAT 16 COMPLACENCY IS WHAT GETS PEOPLE KILLED IN REFINERIES, RIGHT? 17 A. YES. 18 Q. SO NOW... AND WITH THE BAKER TANK, AS IT TURNED OUT, YOU 19 DIDN'T CLOSE THE VALVE ALL THE WAY, DID YOU? 20 A. 21 LAST -- I THINK THAT I CLOSED THE VALVE ALL THE WAY. 22 Q. 23 CLOSED ALL THE WAY? 24 A. 25 AND HE WASN'T SURE IF IT WAS LEAKING. YOU UNDERSTAND THAT WHAT YOU DID MADE YOU APPEAR TO BE ONE OF THE THINGS. I THINK THAT I CLOSED THE VALVE ALL THE WAY. I WASN'T THE DIDN'T SOMEONE COME AND TELL YOU THAT IT HADN'T BEEN HE, I BELIEVE, SAID WAS WALKING BY AND NOTICED A PUDDLE. SO HE'S LETTING ME KNOW DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 575 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 BECAUSE IF ANYONE TOUCHES ANYTHING IN YOUR UNIT, THEY'RE 2 USUALLY NOT SUPPOSED TO, BUT HE'S LETTING ME KNOW THAT HE 3 TOUCHED IT. 4 Q. HE CLOSED IT? 5 A. HE SAID I NOTICED THE PUDDLE. 6 FROM OR IF IT WAS LEAKING, SO I WENT AHEAD AND MADE SURE IT 7 WAS TIGHT AND CLOSED. 8 9 AND HE SAID -DID HE SAY HE CLOSED IT? I'M NOT SURE WHERE IT CAME AND I TOLD HIM, ACTUALLY IT'S BECAUSE I OPENED IT. Q. AND DID YOU -- DID CAMERON CURRAN COME TO YOU AND ASK YOU 10 ABOUT THAT, ABOUT WHY THE PUDDLE WAS BIGGER THAN WHAT YOU HAD 11 SAID. 12 DID HE ASK YOU THAT? 13 A. 14 WENT BACK OUT TOGETHER AND LOOKED AT IT, AND HE TOLD ME THAT 15 IT WAS MUCH BIGGER THAN HE THOUGHT IT WAS. 16 Q. AND WHAT DID YOU SAY? 17 A. I DON'T REMEMBER. 18 Q. DID YOU MENTION SOMEONE SAYING THAT THEY HAD COME LATER 19 AND NOTICED THE PUDDLE AND TURNED THE VALVE? 20 A. YES. 21 Q. IN YOUR CLASS THERE WERE THE FOUR OF YOU. 22 PEOPLE WHO WERE FURTHER ALONG THAN THE OTHER TWO? 23 A. YEAH. 24 Q. THEY WERE AHEAD OF YOU AND PATRICK, RIGHT? 25 A. YEAH. I DON'T KNOW IF HE CAME TO ME AND ASKED ME THAT. BUT WE WERE THERE TWO MENA AND JOSE. THEY BOTH HAD PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 576 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. I'M GOING TO ASK YOU A FEW QUESTIONS ABOUT MICHAEL BECK. 2 A. OKAY. 3 Q. MICHAEL BECK NEVER SAID ANYTHING THAT MADE YOU THINK HE 4 WAS BIASED AGAINST YOU, DID HE? 5 A. 6 NO. WELL -- 7 Q. 8 AGAINST WOMEN, DID HE? 9 A. NO. 10 Q. ASK YOU A FEW QUESTIONS ABOUT CAMERON CURRAN. 11 A. YES. 12 Q. CAMERON CURRAN NEVER SAID ANYTHING TO YOU THAT MADE YOU 13 THINK HE HAD A BIAS AGAINST WOMEN, DID HE? 14 A. HE NEVER SAID ANYTHING TO MAKE YOU THINK HE WAS BIASED NO, NOT PARTICULARLY. 15 MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE 16 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TESTIMONY, YOUR HONOR, PAGE 411, LINES 23 17 TO 25. 18 THE COURT: 19 MR. LAFAYETTE: 20 "QUESTION: 21 YOU THAT MADE YOU THINK HE HAD A BIAS AGAINST WOMEN? 22 "NO." GO AHEAD. (READING) SO NOW, DID CURRAN EVER SAY ANYTHING TO 23 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 24 Q. 25 THINK THAT HE HAD A BIAS AGAINST WOMEN MAY HAVE BEEN THAT HE SO THE ONLY THING THAT MR. CURRAN EVER DID THAT MADE YOU DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 577 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 FOLLOWED YOU AROUND, RIGHT? 2 A. 3 TO WORK THERE. 4 FIRST, BUT I TOOK IT OFFENSE -- LIKE BIAS AGAINST ME. 5 Q. 6 WEREN'T PROPERLY HANDLING THE PROCESSES OUT THERE, WOULD IT 7 HAVE BEEN APPROPRIATE IN YOUR MIND FOR HIM TO FOLLOW YOU? 8 A. 9 QUESTIONS OR NEEDED HELP. THAT AND, YOU KNOW, HIM REPEATEDLY ASKING ME WHY I WANTED I DIDN'T NECESSARILY TAKE IT AGAINST WOMEN AT IF HE HAD A CONCERN THAT YOU WEREN'T LEARNING AND THAT YOU IT WOULD HAVE BEEN APPROPRIATE OF HIM TO ASK ME IF I HAD AND IF HE FELT I WAS, YOU SAID, NOT 10 LEARNING, FOR HIM TO FOLLOW ME, SURE. 11 Q. 12 HE JUST LET YOU GO AND DO THINGS OR DO YOU THINK IT WOULD BE 13 APPROPRIATE FOR HIM TO CHECK AND SEE IF YOU WERE DOING THINGS 14 SAFELY? 15 A. YEAH, I GUESS SOMEBODY COULD DO THAT. 16 Q. NOW WITH REGARD TO MR. ERIC PEREZ, WOULD IT BE ACCURATE -- WHAT IF HE THOUGHT YOU WERE DOING UNSAFE THINGS? 17 THE COURT: 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 THE COURT: 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: SHOULD I CANNOT HEAR YOU. SORRY. SPEAK INTO THE MIC PLEASE. I MOVE IT AWAY BECAUSE I BRUSH INTO 21 IT SO I CAN SEE THE PAGES. 22 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 Q. 24 WHATSOEVER MADE YOU THINK THAT HE MAY HAVE A BIAS AGAINST 25 WOMEN WAS THAT WHEN YOU WENT TO HIM IN MARCH AND YOU SAID YOU I CAN'T SEE THAT FAR. SO THE ONLY THING THAT ERIC PEREZ DID THAT IN ANY WAY DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 578 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 THOUGHT GENERALLY THAT JEFF FISCHER WASN'T A GOOD GUY, HE SAID 2 HE DIDN'T AGREE WITH THAT. 3 A. DID HE SAY HE DIDN'T AGREE WITH THAT? 4 Q. THAT'S THE ONLY REASON WHY YOU THINK HE MAY HAVE A BIAS 5 AGAINST WOMEN? 6 A. 7 THAT -- AND HE DIDN'T TAKE MY COMPLAINT SERIOUSLY. 8 MAYBE THAT COULD BE IT OR MAYBE HE JUST DIDN'T UNDERSTAND. 9 DON'T KNOW. NO. 10 ISN'T THAT TRUE? THAT IS TRUE. I JUST CAME TO THAT CONCLUSION WHEN I LOST MY JOB MR. LAFAYETTE: I THOUGHT I I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE 11 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT PAGE 418, LINE 24 THROUGH 419, 12 LINE 10. 13 (PAUSE IN THE PROCEEDINGS.) 14 THE COURT: DENIED. MORE FOUNDATION. 15 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 16 Q. 17 MR. METCALF HAS A BIAS AGAINST WOMEN? 18 A. NO. 19 Q. ALL RIGHT. 20 A. I DON'T KNOW. 21 Q. SO WHEN YOU FIRST SPOKE WITH MR. PEREZ BACK IN FEBRUARY 22 AND MARCH, YOU DIDN'T TELL HIM THAT YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE BEING 23 TREATED DIFFERENTLY OR SINGLED OUT OR ANYTHING LIKE THAT 24 BECAUSE YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE A WOMAN, RIGHT? 25 A. YOU SAID... WOULD IT BE ACCURATE THAT YOU'RE UNSURE IF I DON'T THINK THAT HE DID. I DIDN'T USE THOSE WORDS. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 579 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. 2 DIFFERENTLY IN THE FIRST MEETING, CORRECT? 3 A. 4 IT CLEAR, WHICH WAS I COULD HAVE -- YOU JUST SIMPLY SAID, I FEEL LIKE I'M BEING TREATED YEAH, AND THEN I GAVE HIM AN EXAMPLE THAT I THOUGHT MADE 5 6 YOUR HONOR, THERE IS NO QUESTION MR. LAFAYETTE: PENDING. 7 THE WITNESS: 8 THE COURT: I'M SORRY. WAIT FOR THE NEXT QUESTION. 9 GO AHEAD. 10 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 11 Q. BUMPING THE PUMP. 12 A. JUST TO MAKE SURE IT DOESN'T GET PLUGGED. 13 Q. IT DOESN'T GET WHAT? 14 A. SO IT DOESN'T GET PLUGGED. 15 Q. OKAY. 16 A. THERE'S -- 17 Q. SO WHEN YOU BUMP THIS PUMP, THERE'S A TWO-STEP PROCESS, 18 ISN'T THERE? 19 A. YOU JUST TURN IT ON AND TURN IT OFF. 20 Q. THEN WHAT DO YOU DO? 21 A. AND THAT'S IT. 22 Q. DO YOU CALL OUT TO THE CONTROL ROOM TO LET THEM KNOW THAT 23 YOU'VE BUMPED THE PUMP? 24 A. 25 YOU'RE TURNING ON A PIECE OF EQUIPMENT, AND THEN THAT'S IT. WHY DO YOU BUMP THE PUMP? I DIDN'T HEAR YOU. BEFORE YOU BUMP THE PUMP, YOU CALL AND LET THEM KNOW THAT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 580 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. AND THAT'S IT? 2 A. YES. 3 Q. DON'T YOU HAVE AN INTELLITRAK MACHINE WITH YOU? 4 A. OH, YES. 5 Q. YOU HAVE AN INTELLITRAK MACHINE, RIGHT? 6 A. RIGHT. 7 Q. WHAT IS AN INTELLITRAK MACHINE? 8 A. IT'S A LITTLE HAND-HELD DEVICE THAT YOU CARRY THROUGH THE 9 UNIT, AND IT TELLS YOU WHAT'S THE PRESSURE OF THIS, DID YOU AND YOU -- 10 CHECK THE TEMPERATURE OF THIS. 11 MOTOR, DID YOU TURN ON THIS MOTOR? 12 PUMP THAT HE'S REFERRING TO. 13 Q. 14 HAVE TO LET SOMEONE KNOW YOU ARE ABOUT TO BUMP THE PUMP. 15 YOU BUMP THE PUMP, AND THEN YOU ENTER INTO THE INTELLITRAK 16 MACHINE THAT YOU BUMPED THE PUMP, RIGHT? 17 A. 18 HOWEVER YOU PREFER TO SAY IT, AND LET THE BOARD OPERATOR KNOW. 19 Q. 20 THE VERY FIRST INSTANCE SAY TO YOU, THAT THERE WAS A PROBLEM 21 WITH REGARD TO THE MANNER IN WHICH WHATEVER YOU WERE SUPPOSED 22 TO BE DOING WAS BEING DONE? 23 A. YES. 24 Q. AND IN THE VERY FIRST INSTANCE WHEN HE SAID IT TO YOU, HE 25 ASKED YOU, QUOTE, "DID YOU BUMP THE PUMP?" YOU HIT YES. DID YOU... THE IT WILL ASK YOU ABOUT THIS SO WHEN YOU -- WHEN YOU -- WHEN YOU DO THIS, FIRST YOU YES. THEN YOU CALL IN BUMPING THE PUMP OR WHATEVER YOU -- AND SO AT SOME POINT DID CAMERON CURRAN COME TO YOU AND IN CLOSE QUOTE. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 581 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 WOULD THAT BE ACCURATE? 2 A. I DON'T THINK I CAN KNOW FOR SURE WHAT HE SAID ANY MORE. 3 Q. THAT'S FINE. 4 A. HE ASKED ME SOMETHING TO THE EFFECT OF, IF I HAD -- 5 (SIMULTANEOUS COLLOQUY) 6 Q. AND REGARDLESS -- 7 A. -- ON AND OFF. 8 Q. I'M SORRY. 9 REGARDLESS OF WHAT YOU MAY NOW KNOW, DID YOU GIVE HIM AN 10 ANSWER TO HIS QUESTION OF BUMPING THE PUMP? 11 A. 12 OFF, YES, I DID, I THINK. 13 I THINK I TOLD HIM IF -- IF YOU MEAN DID I TURN IT ON AND COULD I HAVE A COPY OF HER TRANSCRIPT MR. LAFAYETTE: 14 SO SHE CAN TAKE A LOOK AT IT, PLEASE? 15 CAN YOU TURN IT TO PAGE 503? 16 MAY I APPROACH THE WITNESS, YOUR HONOR? 17 THE COURT: 18 YOU MAY. (BINDER HANDED TO WITNESS.) 19 THE WITNESS: THANK YOU. 20 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 Q. 22 LINES ON THE PAGE, RIGHT? 23 A. I'M SORRY, 503, WHAT LINES? 24 Q. LINE 21. 25 LOOKING AT PAGE 503 SPECIFICALLY IF YOU LOOK DOWN THE DO YOU SEE WHERE IT SAYS, "THAT'S WHY WHEN HE SAID, DID DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 582 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 YOU BUMP THE PUMP, I SAID NO." 2 DO YOU SEE THAT? 3 A. YES. 4 Q. SO I UNDERSTAND THE REST OF WHAT YOUR TESTIMONY IS, AND I 5 WILL GET THERE, BUT RIGHT NOW THE FIRST THING YOU TOLD HIM IS 6 YOU HAD NOT BUMPED THE BUMP, RIGHT? 7 THAT'S WHAT YOU SAID, RIGHT? 8 A. UMM -- 9 Q. I WITHDRAW THE QUESTION. 10 SO NOW HAD YOU CALLED IN TO THE CONTROLLER TO ALERT THE 11 CONTROLLER THAT YOU HAD BUMPED THE BUMP? 12 A. 13 I NEEDED TO DO. 14 Q. 15 HADN'T CALLED THE CONTROLLER, AND YOU NOW TOLD MR. CAMERON 16 CURRAN THAT YOU HAD NOT BUMPED THE PUMP, RIGHT? 17 AT THAT POINT IN TIME I WAS UNAWARE THAT WAS PART OF WHAT SO JUST SO I UNDERSTAND IT, AS OF THAT MOMENT IN TIME, YOU SO I HAVE ONE QUESTION LEFT FOR YOU. OKAY? 18 A. OKAY. 19 Q. DID YOU ENTER INTO THE INTELLITRAK MACHINE THAT YOU HAD, 20 IN FACT, BUMPED THE BUMP? 21 A. YES, I BELIEVE I TOLD CAMERON THAT I DID -- 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 THE WITNESS: 24 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 Q. YOUR HONOR, IT'S NONRESPONSIVE. OKAY. SORRY. REPEAT THE QUESTION. DID YOU ENTER INTO THE INTELLITRAK MACHINE THAT YOU HAD, DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 583 1 IN FACT, BUMPED THE PUMP? 2 A. 3 ON AND OFF, I DID TURN IT ON AND OFF. 4 Q. THANK YOU. 5 A. YES. WHEN I ENTERED INTO THE INTELLITRAK, YES THAT I TURNED IT 6 THE COURT: 7 MR. LAFAYETTE: 8 THE COURT: 9 10 OKAY. IT'S 12:58. I'M SHIFTING. ARE YOU SHIFTING -I WILL -- LADIES AND GENTLEMEN -- YOU CAN STEP DOWN, MS. NEWTON. WE ARE GOING TO ALLOW A WITNESS WHO HAS BEEN WAITING ALL 11 DAY TO TESTIFY RIGHT NOW SO THAT WITNESS DOESN'T HAVE TO COME 12 BACK TOMORROW. 13 TOMORROW, OR IF IT IS REALLY SHORT, WE WILL CONTINUE WITH HER 14 BEFORE THE END OF THE DAY. 15 16 OKAY? MS. SMALLETS: THE COURT: 18 MS. NUGENT: 19 THE CLERK: 21 YOUR HONOR, MAY I GET THE WITNESS BINDER? 17 20 SO WE'LL FINISH OFF MS. NEWTON ALL RIGHT. MS. NUGENT, YOU CALL? BRIANNA NEWTON. STAND UP THERE. (BRIANNA NEWTON, CALLED AS A WITNESS FOR THE PLAINTIFF, HAVING BEEN DULY SWORN, TESTIFIED AS FOLLOWS:) 22 THE WITNESS: 23 THE CLERK: I DO. PLEASE BE SEATED. I WANT YOU TO SCOOT UP 24 AND PULL THE MICROPHONE UP TO YOU. 25 PLEASE STATE YOUR FULL NAME AND SPELL YOUR LAST NAME. PULL IT UP THERE AND DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 584 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 2 THE COURT: 4 MS. NUGENT: GOOD AFTERNOON. COULD YOU REPEAT YOUR MIDDLE NAME AND SPELL IT? 6 7 LAST NAME IS N- AS IN NANCY -E-W-T-O-N. 3 5 BRIANNA LEINAALA NEWTON. THE WITNESS: IT'S LEINAALA. THE WITNESS: L-E-I-N AS IN NANCY -A-A-L-A. 8 THE COURT: 9 GOOD AFTERNOON. YOU MAY PROCEED. DIRECT EXAMINATION 10 BY MS. NUGENT: 11 Q. 12 THANK YOU, MS. NEWTON. HOW DO YOU KNOW CIARA NEWTON? 13 A. CIARA IS MY SISTER. 14 Q. IS SHE YOUR BIG SISTER? 15 A. SHE IS MY OLDER SISTER. 16 Q. HOW MUCH OLDER IS SHE THAN YOU? 17 A. SIX AND A HALF YEARS OLDER. 18 Q. DID YOU GROW UP WITH HER? 19 A. I DID. 20 Q. SAME HOUSE? 21 A. SAME HOUSE. 22 Q. DO YOU HAVE ANY OTHER SIBLINGS? 23 A. WE HAVE AN OLDER BROTHER. 24 Q. THE JURY HAS HEARD ABOUT YOUR FATHER'S DEATH IN 25 MARCH 2016. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 585 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 BEFORE THAT, CAN YOU DESCRIBE THE FAMILIAL RELATIONSHIP 2 THAT THE FIVE OF YOU HAD? 3 A. 4 REALLY FAMILY ORIENTED. WE WOULD GET TOGETHER ALMOST WEEKLY 5 ON THURSDAYS FOR TACOS. WE WOULD HAVE FAMILY GAME NIGHTS 6 OFTEN. 7 WE HAD A REALLY CLOSE RELATIONSHIP. OUR -- MY FATHER WAS WE WERE JUST ALWAYS TOGETHER TO THE POINT WHERE WHEN I WAS 8 A TEENAGER, I WAS ANNOYED BY IT, BUT WE WERE ALWAYS TOGETHER. 9 Q. WHAT ABOUT YOU AND YOUR BIG SISTER, HOW OFTEN WOULD THE 10 TWO OF YOU SPEND TIME TOGETHER OUTSIDE OF THE GATHERINGS YOU 11 JUST DESCRIBED? 12 A. 13 WAS MORE OF AN OLDER TEENAGER. 14 US WE DIDN'T -- WE PLAYED A LITTLE WHEN WE WERE YOUNGER BUT 15 SHE WAS TOO COOL FOR ME. 16 PRETTY OFTEN, ESPECIALLY MORE SO WHEN I STARTED -- WHEN I OBVIOUSLY THE AGE GAP BETWEEN BUT AS I GOT OLDER, WE LIVE REALLY CLOSE TOGETHER. AND 17 WE, YOU KNOW, WE WILL GO SHOPPING OR WE WOULD GO SNOWBOARDING 18 TOGETHER WITH HER HUSBAND OR MY BOYFRIEND. 19 TOGETHER, TRIPS TO THE BEACH JUST THE TWO OF US. 20 Q. FAIR TO SAY THE TWO OF YOU ARE CLOSE? 21 A. YES. 22 Q. DO YOU RECALL HER EXPRESSING AN INTEREST IN GETTING A JOB 23 AT A REFINERY? 24 A. I DO. 25 Q. LET ME ASK YOU. WE DO HIKING SO I HAVE TWO DIFFERENT INSTANCES. SO -- DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 586 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 FIRST OF ALL, WHEN WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT YOU CAN RECALL 2 YOUR SISTER EXPRESSING AN INTEREST IN A REFINERY-TYPE JOB? 3 A. 4 IRON WORKER MAYBE PERHAPS BECAUSE MY DAD WORK IN REFINERIES 5 ALL THE TIME AS A PIPEFITTER AND IRON WORKER. 6 WHEN I WAS A TEENAGER, BUT IT WAS MORE SO AS, LIKE, AN AND WHEN SHE WAS, YOU KNOW, OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL AROUND THAT 7 AGE, SHE HAD -- I REMEMBER HER EXPRESSING TO MY DAD TO HELP 8 GET HER A JOB, WHICH MY DAD DID NOT. 9 Q. DO YOU KNOW ANY REASON WHY YOUR DAD DID NOT? 10 A. HE DID NOT WANT HER WORKING IN THAT TYPE OF ENVIRONMENT. 11 Q. YOU WERE GOING TO MENTION A SECOND TIME THAT YOU HEARD 12 YOUR SISTER EXPRESS AN INTEREST IN REFINERY JOB? 13 WHAT WAS THAT? 14 A. 15 OFFERED FOR THE OPERATING -- OR TO BECOME AN OPERATOR, THE 16 CLASSES OFFERED. 17 Q. 18 ABOUT? 19 A. 20 CLASSES THAT YOU CAN SIGN UP FOR THAT PREPARE YOU TO BECOME AN 21 OPERATOR. 22 Q. 23 YOU UNDERSTOOD SHE WANTED A JOB MAYBE AS AN IRON FITTER. 24 25 THAT WAS WHEN SHE FOUND OUT ABOUT THE CLASSES THAT WERE WHAT IS YOUR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT CLASSES SHE WAS TALKING IT'S LIKE A PROGRAM, I THINK, IT WAS IN RICHMOND THAT IT'S YOU MENTIONED YOUR DAD'S RESPONSE TO THE FIRST TIME THAT ARE YOU AWARE OF HIS ATTITUDE EVER CHANGING TOWARDS MS. NEWTON BEING IN THAT TYPE OF ENVIRONMENT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 587 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 A. 2 HE BRUSHED IT OFF AND WASN'T GOING TO GET HER A JOB AS AN IRON 3 WORKER. YEAH. I MEAN WHEN HE -- I MEAN, SO ORIGINALLY, YOU KNOW, 4 BUT WHEN SHE STARTED OR HAD INTEREST IN DOING THE CLASSES, 5 YOU KNOW, I THINK HE WAS A LITTLE HESITANT, BUT HE WAS MORE ON 6 BOARD FOR IT AND ENCOURAGED HER TO DO IT BECAUSE THE MONEY 7 PAYS WELL. 8 Q. 9 THE SHELL REFINERY? AT SOME POINT DID YOU BECOME AWARE THAT SHE GOT A JOB AT 10 A. YES. 11 Q. HOW DID YOU BECOME AWARE OF IT? 12 A. I DON'T KNOW SPECIFICALLY, BUT IT WAS PROBABLY DURING ONE 13 OF OUR FAMILY NIGHTS TOGETHER WHEN SHE FOUND OUT SHE PASSED 14 AND GOT THE JOB. 15 Q. 16 ABOUT THAT? 17 A. 18 AT THE HOUSE. 19 Q. 20 HAD TOWARDS THE BAD NEWS? 21 A. 22 THAT SHE COMPLETED THE COURSE OR SHE GOT THE JOB, ONE OF -- 23 HER BOYFRIEND HAD TRIED, TOO, AND DIDN'T GET IT, BUT CIARA 24 DID. 25 Q. WHAT DO YOU RECALL ABOUT HER REACTION WHEN SHE FOUND OUT SHE WAS EXCITED. SHE WAS KIND OF BRAGGING ABOUT IT TO US SHE WAS JUST EXCITED FOR IT. AND WHAT ABOUT YOUR DAD; DID YOU NOTICE ANY REACTION HE MY DAD WAS HAPPY FOR HER. I THINK HE WAS PROUD, YOU KNOW, AT THAT POINT WERE YOU STILL LIVING WITH YOUR PARENTS? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 588 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 A. I WAS. 2 Q. AND WERE YOU LIVING THERE WHEN HE PASSED AWAY? 3 A. I WAS. 4 Q. WAS CIARA LIVING THERE? 5 A. NO, SHE WAS NOT. 6 Q. AFTER HE PASSED AWAY, DID SHE STAY OVER? 7 A. SHE DID. 8 Q. WHY? 9 A. TO HELP COMFORT MY MOM. AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, OUR DAD 10 WAS THE ROCK OF OUR FAMILY. HE WAS THE ONE THAT WAS REALLY 11 FAMILY ORIENTED. 12 WE WERE -- WE DIDN'T WANT TO LEAVE HER ALONE, SO MY SISTER -- 13 I THINK, JUST TO BE CLOSE TO COMFORT. 14 Q. 15 SISTER WORKED AT THE SHELL REFINERY. 16 AWARE OF ANYTHING THAT WAS HAPPENING THERE THAT SHE TOLD YOU 17 THAT CONCERNED HER? 18 A. YES. 19 Q. WHAT DID SHE TELL YOU? SO MY MOM WAS PRETTY UPSET AFTER HIS DEATH. I WANT TO TALK A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE TIME WHEN YOUR 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 THE COURT: DID YOU EVER BECOME OBJECTION, HEARSAY. SUSTAINED. 22 BY MS. NUGENT: 23 Q. 24 ADVICE ABOUT ANYTHING THAT SHE SHARED WITH YOU? 25 A. DID YOU EVER TELL YOUR SISTER -- OR GIVE YOUR SISTER ANY I DID. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 589 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 Q. WHAT ADVICE DID YOU GIVE HER? 2 A. WHEN... WHEN SHE FIRST STARTED TELLING ME ABOUT SOME OF 3 THE THINGS THAT WERE HAPPENING, MORE SO COMMENTS BEING MADE 4 TOWARDS HER, I THINK I JUST ADVISED HER TO MAKE SURE SHE WAS 5 TELLING SOMEONE ABOUT IT AT WORK. 6 AND THEN WITH THE STICKER INCIDENT, WHERE SHE FOUND THE 7 STICKER ON HER DESK, I TOLD HER SHE NEEDED TO TAKE A PHOTO OF 8 THAT AND WRITE A LETTER AND SUBMIT IT TO HER HR DEPARTMENT SO 9 THAT THERE WOULD BE DOCUMENTATION THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT 10 WAS HAPPENING, THAT THEY WOULD HAVE DOCUMENTATION. 11 Q. 12 FROM SHELL? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. HOW DID YOU FIND OUT ABOUT THAT? 15 A. AGAIN, IN PERSON. 16 WOULD HAVE BEEN IN PERSON JUST HER TELLING ME. 17 Q. 18 HAD BEEN FIRED FROM SHELL? 19 A. 20 DEMEANOR HAD CHANGED A LITTLE. 21 Q. HOW HAD HER DEMEANOR CHANGED? 22 A. JUST WITH THE LACK OF CONFIDENCE. 23 JUST SUPER CONFIDENT. 24 THAN LIKE WHEN YOU SEE HER, YOU SEE THE CONFIDENCE IN HER. 25 AT SOME POINT DID YOU BECOME AWARE THAT SHE HAD BEEN FIRED I DON'T KNOW WHERE WE WERE. BUT IT DID YOU OBSERVE HOW SHE -- ANY CHANGES IN HER AFTER SHE YEAH. I'D SAY SHE WAS A LITTLE LESS CONFIDENT. HER SHE -- CIARA IS ALWAYS LIKE I DON'T KNOW HOW TO EXPRESS IT OTHER BUT THEN AFTER THIS SHE WAS MORE LIKE RESERVED AND NOT... DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 590 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 NOT AS OPENLY CONFIDENT. 2 Q. DID YOU NOTICE ANYTHING ELSE? 3 A. I MEAN SHE WAS UPSET OBVIOUSLY. 4 LITTLE DEPRESSED, THAT CIARA -- WE DON'T, AS A FAMILY, WE 5 DON'T EXPRESS OUR EMOTIONS AS MUCH AS YOU WOULD THINK. I FEEL LIKE SHE WAS A 6 WHEN OUR DAD DIED, WE WEREN'T HOLDING EACH OTHER CRYING, 7 WE WERE ALL JUST TRYING TO BE STRONG AND NOT BE LESS SAD FOR 8 ONE ANOTHER. 9 SO DURING THIS TIME, I COULD SENSE THAT FROM HER EVEN IF 10 SHE WAS TRYING TO, YOU KNOW, BE STRONGER THAN HOW SHE WAS 11 FEELING. 12 AND SHE HAD LIKE ANXIETY WHEN WE WOULD GO TO FAMILY 13 FUNCTIONS OR LIKE A FRIEND'S WEDDING, COUSIN'S WEDDING BECAUSE 14 SHE DIDN'T WANT TO TELL PEOPLE THAT SHE WAS FIRED. 15 Q. 16 SHE WAS FIRED? DID SHE TELL YOU THAT, THAT SHE DIDN'T WANT TO TELL PEOPLE 17 MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 THE COURT: OBJECTION, HEARSAY. SUSTAINED. 19 BY MS. SMALLETS: 20 Q. HOW DID YOU KNOW THAT SHE WAS FEELING ANXIETY? 21 A. BECAUSE SHE WOULD EXPRESS BEFORE GOING TO THE WEDDING THAT 22 SHE DIDN'T WANT TO GO. 23 EVERYONE IN OUR FAMILY KNEW THAT SHE HAD GOTTEN THIS JOB. 24 SO THEY WOULD ASK, YOU KNOW, HOW'S WORK GOING, AND SHE DIDN'T 25 WANT TO ANSWER THOSE QUESTIONS. SHE DIDN'T WANT TO DEAL -- BECAUSE DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC AND 591 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 Q. 2 CHANGES IN YOUR SISTER THAT ARE DIFFERENT FROM THE WAY THAT 3 SHE WAS BEFORE SHE WAS FIRED FROM SHELL? 4 A. 5 HER JUST IN HOW SHE IS TODAY. 6 LITTLE. 7 Q. WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY THAT? 8 A. I GUESS, AGAIN, I WOULD GO BACK TO THE CONFIDENCE. 9 JUST MORE HESITANT. TO THIS DAY, HAVE YOU -- ARE YOU STILL OBSERVING ANY YEAH. I MEAN, I WOULD SAY THAT IT'S DEFINITELY IMPACTED I THINK IT'S KNOCKED HER DOWN A SHE'S NOT AS... SO SURE OF EVERYTHING. 10 IT KIND OF LIKE SHE DOUBTS HERSELF A LITTLE. 11 Q. 12 HAD ON HER? 13 A. 14 STRUGGLED, I THINK, WITH HER FINANCES. 15 HER FINANCES EXACTLY, BUT SHE ALSO COULDN'T -- ARE YOU AWARE OF ANY FINANCIAL IMPACTS THAT HER FIRING HAS YEAH. 16 17 SHE IS I MEAN SHE WAS OUT OF A JOB FOR A REALLY LONG TIME. MR. LAFAYETTE: I MEAN, I DON'T KNOW OBJECTION, HEARSAY, LACKING FOUNDATION. 18 THE COURT: WE DON'T KNOW -- IT'S NOT HEARSAY, BUT I 19 DON'T KNOW WHAT FOUNDATION SHE HAS. 20 BY MS. NUGENT: 21 Q. 22 HAS BEEN IMPACTED FINANCIALLY BY LOSING HER JOB AND CAREER AT 23 SHELL? 24 A. 25 SO LAY A FOUNDATION. HAS YOUR SISTER SHARED WITH YOU ANY OF THE WAYS THAT SHE AGAIN -MR. LAFAYETTE: THAT'S HEARSAY. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 592 B. NEWTON / DIRECT / NUGENT 1 THE COURT: THAT IS HEARSAY. SUSTAINED. 2 BY MS. NUGENT: 3 Q. 4 YOUR MOM AFTER YOUR DAD'S DEATH? 5 A. I DID. 6 Q. WHY? 7 A. IT WAS TOO HARD TO BE AT THE HOUSE WITHOUT MY DAD THERE. DID YOU MOVE OUT OF THE HOME THAT YOU WERE LIVING IN WITH 8 9 MR. LAFAYETTE: OBJECTION, RELEVANCE. MOVE TO STRIKE. 10 THE COURT: I ASSUME THERE'S SOME REASON FOR THAT 11 QUESTION. 12 BY MS. NUGENT: 13 Q. YOUR MOM -- DOES YOUR MOM STILL LIVE IN THAT HOUSE? 14 A. NO. 15 Q. HOW LONG HAD THEY LIVED THERE BEFORE YOU MOVED OUT? 16 A. WE MOVED THERE IN 2012. 17 Q. DO YOU LIVE WITH YOUR MOM NOW? 18 A. I DO NOT. 19 Q. DO YOU KNOW -- IS SHE LIVING WITH YOUR SISTER? 20 A. NO. IT DOESN'T SEEM RELEVANT. 21 MS. NUGENT: 22 THE COURT: 23 MR. LAFAYETTE: I HAVE NOTHING FURTHER. ALL RIGHT. ANY EXAM? JUST A LITTLE BIT, YOUR HONOR. 24 25 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 593 B. NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 CROSS-EXAMINATION 2 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 3 Q. GOOD AFTERNOON. 4 A. HELLO. 5 Q. DO YOU WORK IN HUMAN RESOURCES? 6 A. I DO. 7 Q. WERE YOU WORKING IN HUMAN RESOURCES IN 2016? 8 A. I WAS. 9 Q. AND AS A PERSON IN HUMAN RESOURCES, WERE YOU A RESOURCE TO 10 YOUR SISTER WHILE SHE WAS WORKING AT THE REFINERY? 11 A. NOT AS A HUMAN RESOURCE. 12 Q. NOT AS A HUMAN RESOURCE, BUT YOU DID ANSWER AND 13 PROVIDED -- YOU PROVIDED ADVICE TO HER, RIGHT? 14 A. I DID. 15 Q. DID YOU AT ANY POINT IN TIME TELL HER THAT IF SHE THOUGHT 16 SOMETHING WAS GOING ON SHE NEEDED TO DOCUMENT IT? 17 A. YES. 18 Q. DID YOU TELL HER THAT IF YOU THOUGHT THAT THERE WERE 19 PEOPLE DOING STUFF TO HER, THAT SHE NEEDED TO WRITE THAT DOWN? 20 A. I DID AFTER THE STICKER INCIDENT. 21 Q. HAD YOU TOLD HER AT ANY POINT IN TIME BEFORE THAT, THAT IF 22 THERE WAS SOMETHING GOING ON, SHE NEEDED TO DOCUMENT IT? 23 A. 24 NEEDED TO SPEAK UP AND SAY SOMETHING. 25 Q. I DIDN'T TELL HER TO DOCUMENT ANYTHING. I TOLD HER SHE SPEAK UP AND STAY SOMETHING. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 594 B. NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 SHE NEEDED TO SPEAK UP TO WHO? 2 A. 3 AUTHORITY. 4 Q. 5 MANAGEMENT STREAM AND TELL THEM SOMETHING WAS GOING ON, 6 CORRECT? 7 A. CORRECT. 8 Q. YOU TOLD HER THAT IF THERE WAS A HUMAN RESOURCES 9 DEPARTMENT, SHE NEEDED TO REACH OUT TO THEM, DIDN'T YOU? EITHER -- WELL, HER SUPERVISOR, SOMEONE IN A MANAGER SO YOU TOLD HER THAT SHE NEEDED TO CONTACT SOMEONE IN THE 10 A. CORRECT. 11 Q. YOU TOLD HER THAT IF THERE WAS SOME TYPE OF HELP LINE OR 12 SOMETHING, SHE NEEDED TO CALL THAT, RIGHT? 13 A. NO. 14 Q. YOU DIDN'T TELL HER THAT? 15 A. NO. 16 Q. OKAY. 17 A. YES. 18 Q. OKAY. 19 BUT YOU TOLD HER THE OTHER TWO THINGS? AND DID SHE EVER -- ALL RIGHT. AND WHEN YOU TOLD HER THAT SHE NEEDED TO WRITE A LETTER 20 ABOUT THE STICKER, WHAT DID YOU MEAN? 21 A. 22 THE HUMAN RESOURCE DEPARTMENT SO THEY CAN INVESTIGATE IT. I MEANT THAT SHE NEEDED TO WRITE A LETTER AND TURN IT INTO 23 24 25 MR. LAFAYETTE: OKAY. NO FURTHER QUESTIONS, YOUR HONOR. THE COURT: ANYTHING ON THOSE QUESTIONS? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 595 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 MS. NUGENT: 2 THE COURT: NO, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT, MS. NEWTON, BECAUSE I CAN'T 3 REMEMBER YOUR MIDDLE NAME WHICH LOOKED VERY LONG, YOU ARE 4 EXCUSED. THANK YOU. 5 THE WITNESS: 6 THE COURT: 7 YOU'RE WELCOME TO SAY IN THE COURTROOM AT THIS POINT IF YOU'D LIKE. 8 9 THANK YOU. MS. NEWTON, IF YOU WILL COME BACK TO THE STAND WE WILL FINISH THE DAY. 10 CROSS-EXAMINATION RESUMED 11 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 12 Q. YOU MENTIONED A PERSON NAME IAN CHAMBERLAIN? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. AND THIS IS WHEN HE SAW YOU OUTSIDE WITHOUT THE GOGGLES ON 15 YOUR HELMET AND WITHOUT A RADIO, RIGHT? 16 A. RIGHT. 17 Q. AND YOU DIDN'T HAVE THOSE TWO ITEMS WITH YOU, DID YOU? 18 A. NO. 19 Q. AND WAS THERE ANYBODY ELSE PRESENT -- 20 A. YES. 21 Q. -- WHEN THIS CONVERSATION TOOK PLACE? 22 A. YES. 23 Q. WHO? 24 A. CHRIS SALAS, MY TRAINER. 25 Q. WAS THERE ANYBODY ELSE PRESENT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 596 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 SOMEONE NAMED ASHTON? 2 A. NO, HE WASN'T THERE WHEN IAN MADE THOSE COMMENTS. 3 Q. HE WASN'T AROUND? 4 A. HE WAS THERE WHEN I SAID MY GOGGLES WERE BROKEN, BUT HE 5 WASN'T WITH US WHEN IAN APPROACHED US. 6 Q. 7 TO HIM BEFORE THAT? 8 A. NO. 9 Q. SO HE WALKED STRAIGHT UP TO YOU, RIGHT? 10 A. RIGHT. 11 Q. AND HE WALKED UP TO YOU AND HE DIDN'T SEE THE GOGGLES OR 12 THE RADIO, RIGHT? 13 A. CORRECT. 14 Q. THAT'S WHEN HE STARTED TALKING, RIGHT? 15 A. RIGHT. 16 Q. TO THE EXTENT YOU HAD AN EXPLANATION FOR WHY YOU DIDN'T 17 HAVE THOSE THINGS WITH YOU, HE SPOKE BEFORE YOU EVER GAVE THE 18 EXPLANATION, DIDN'T HE? 19 A. CORRECT. 20 Q. ARE THE GOGGLES SOMETHING THAT ARE THERE AS A SAFETY 21 MECHANISM? 22 A. YES. 23 Q. OKAY. 24 A. CORRECT. 25 Q. BECAUSE YOU NEVER KNOW IN A REFINERY WHEN SOMETHING MIGHT NOW, WHEN HE SAID SOMETHING TO YOU, HAD YOU SAID ANYTHING PROTECT YOUR EYES, RIGHT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 597 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 HAPPEN AND YOU MAY NEED EYE PROTECTION, CORRECT? 2 A. CORRECT. 3 Q. AND THE RADIO IS THERE FOR A VERY SERIOUS REASON, ISN'T 4 IT? 5 A. COMMUNICATION. 6 Q. NOT JUST COMMUNICATION; IF SOMETHING HAPPENS TO YOU IN 7 THAT REFINERY, IT'S YOUR LIFE LINE, ISN'T IT? 8 A. YES, TO COMMUNICATE FOR HELP. 9 Q. IT'S WHAT YOU ARE GOING TO USE TO SAY, HEY, I GOT A 10 PROBLEM AND I NEED SOME HELP. 11 A. CORRECT. 12 Q. LIKEWISE, IF YOU ARE IN THE REFINERY AND SOMEBODY ELSE 13 NEEDS HELP, THAT'S THEIR WAY TO COMMUNICATE WITH YOU TO GET 14 HELP, ISN'T IT? 15 A. CORRECT. 16 Q. AND IF THERE IS SOMETHING THAT IS HAPPENING IN THE 17 REFINERY THAT'S DANGEROUS, THAT'S HOW PEOPLE CAN LET YOU KNOW 18 THAT THAT'S GOING ON, RIGHT? 19 A. RIGHT. 20 Q. SO IT IS IMPORTANT FOR TO YOU HAVE THOSE ITEMS WITH YOU IN 21 THE REFINERY, ISN'T IT? 22 A. IT IS IMPORTANT. 23 Q. AND AS A NEW PERSON, AS A PERSON WHO IS ON PROBATION, IT'S 24 IMPORTANT FOR THOSE WHO HAVE BEEN THERE FOR A WHILE TO LET 25 THEM KNOW THAT THEY NEED TO TAKE THE SAFETY ITEMS SERIOUSLY RIGHT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 598 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 AND TO USE THEM AND CARRY THEM WITH THEM; IT IS IMPORTANT FOR 2 THEM TO DO THAT, ISN'T IT? 3 A. YES. 4 Q. NOW OTHER THAN THAT ONE-OFF CONVERSATION THAT YOU HAD WITH 5 IAN CHAMBERLAIN, DID YOU EVER HAVE ANY OTHER CONVERSATIONS 6 WITH HIM? 7 A. 8 HAVE THE GOGGLES, AND WE WERE ON OUR WAY TO GET THE GOGGLES, 9 OTHER THAN THAT, NO FORMAL CONVERSATION. JUST AFTER WHEN I WENT TO CLARIFY WITH HIM WHY WE DIDN'T 10 Q. YOU DON'T KNOW TOO MUCH ABOUT HIM EITHER, DO YOU? 11 A. JUST WHAT I'VE SEEN AT WORK. 12 Q. OKAY. 13 YOU? 14 A. NO. 15 Q. AND YOU DON'T KNOW OF HER TO HAVE A BIAS AGAINST WOMEN, DO 16 YOU? 17 A. NO. 18 Q. NOW YOU ARE AWARE OF ALL THE THINGS IN YOUR PD LOG, AREN'T 19 YOU? 20 A. YES. 21 Q. AS OF THE DATE THAT YOU WERE TOLD THAT YOU WERE BEING 22 TERMINATED, YOU WERE AWARE OF ALL THE THINGS IN YOUR PD LOG, 23 WEREN'T YOU? 24 A. 25 EVERYTHING IN THERE I WAS AWARE OF. AND YOU DON'T PERSONALLY KNOW CHRISTINE LAYNE, DO I BELIEVE SO. I DON'T HAVE IT HERE ANYMORE, BUT I THINK DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 599 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. 2 ALL RIGHT. AND THE ITEMS IN YOUR PD LOG HAD BEEN COVERED WITH YOU IN 3 AT LEAST ONE OF THOSE MEETINGS WHEN CHRISTINE LAYNE WAS 4 PRESENT, RIGHT? 5 A. YES, I BELIEVE SO. 6 Q. OKAY. 7 AND ISN'T IT YOUR BELIEF THAT IF SHE BELIEVED ALL THOSE 8 ITEMS WERE TRUE, THERE WOULD BE JUSTIFICATION FOR HER MAKING 9 THE DECISION TO LET YOU GO. 10 A. IS IT MY BELIEF? 11 Q. THAT IF SHE BELIEVED THAT ALL THOSE ITEMS WERE TRUE, THAT 12 THAT WOULD BE A JUSTIFICATION FOR LETTING YOU GO. 13 A. 14 WHAT YOU ARE ASKING ME? 15 Q. NO. 16 A. YOU ARE ASKING MY BELIEF, IF THAT WOULD BE A 17 JUSTIFICATION? 18 Q. 19 TRUE -- 20 A. I DON'T KNOW -- 21 Q. THAT WOULD BE JUSTIFICATION -- 22 A. IF SHE BELIEVED THEY WERE TRUE, THAT WOULD BE UP TO HER. 23 24 25 I UNDERSTAND THAT WAS PROBABLY HER JUSTIFICATION. IS THAT IF SHE BELIEVED, IF SHE BELIEVED THAT THOSE ITEMS WERE MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ THE WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT AT PAGE 629 -THE COURT: 69? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 600 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: SIX TO NINE, YOUR HONOR, LINES 8 THROUGH 11. 3 THE COURT: 4 MR. LAFAYETTE: 5 "QUESTION: 6 THESE WERE TRUE, WOULDN'T THESE BE JUSTIFICATIONS FOR 7 LETTING YOU GO? 8 "ANSWER: 9 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: GO AHEAD. (READING) AND IF SHE HAD, AND IF SHE BELIEVED THAT YES." 10 Q. I'LL TALK ABOUT THE DRAEGER TUBE WITH YOU. 11 A. OKAY. 12 Q. NOW THE DRAEGER TUBE IS A GLASS CYLINDER, RIGHT, THE TUBE 13 ITSELF? 14 A. YES. 15 Q. AND WHEN YOU GO TO GET ONE, DO THEY COME IN A BOX? 16 A. WHEN YOU OPEN UP A BRAND NEW PACK, THEY ARE IN A BOX. 17 Q. OKAY. 18 TUBE IS IN ITS OWN BOX, ISN'T IT? 19 A. NO. 20 Q. AND ARE THEY ENCASED IN ANYTHING? 21 A. NO. 22 Q. THEY ARE NOT IN PAPER, JUST -- 23 AND EACH INDIVIDUAL ONE, EACH INDIVIDUAL DRAEGER THERE'S ABOUT LIKE 25 IN A BOX. (SIMULTANEOUS COLLOQUY) 24 A. JUST THE -- SORRY. 25 Q. THAT'S ALL RIGHT. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 601 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 JUST A BUNCH OF GLASS TUBES AND ONE BOX AND NOT SEPARATED 2 BY ANYTHING? 3 A. 4 CYLINDERS ARE INSIDE. 5 Q. 6 YEAH. A SMALL BOX LIKE THIS (INDICATING) AND THE THEY ARE NOT SEPARATED BY ANYTHING. OKAY. AND SO HELP ME IF I THINK I UNDERSTAND THIS RIGHT. I 7 DON'T WANT TO BREAK MY PENCIL, BUT YOU TAKE THE DRAEGER TUBE, 8 AND IT'S GOT TWO GLASS ENDS ON IT, RIGHT? 9 A. RIGHT. 10 Q. YOU BREAK OFF ONE END AND THEN YOU BREAK OFF THE OTHER 11 END, RIGHT? 12 A. RIGHT. 13 Q. THEN YOU TAKE THAT THING WITH THE TWO ENDS BROKEN OFF OF 14 IT, AND YOU STICK IT INSIDE OF A PUMP, RIGHT? 15 A. 16 BUT NOT THE WHOLE THING. 17 Q. 18 SOMETHING, YOU'RE DRAWING SOMETHING, SOME GAS INTO IT, RIGHT? 19 A. RIGHT. 20 Q. AND THEN YOU'RE LOOKING TO SEE WHAT HAPPENS WITH THE TUBE, 21 RIGHT? 22 A. CORRECT. 23 Q. OKAY. 24 RIGHT? 25 A. YOU STICK THE WRITING PORTION OF THE PEN INSIDE THE PUMP, THAT'S RIGHT. AND THEN YOU ARE SUPPOSED TO DRAW BUT THE FIRST THING YOU DO IS BREAK BOTH ENDS OFF, YES. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 602 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. NOW -- AND WHAT WERE YOU TESTING FOR? 2 A. WE WERE TESTING FOR H2S. 3 Q. H2 WHAT? 4 A. S. 5 Q. WHICH IS WHAT? 6 A. HYDROGEN SULFIDE? 7 Q. IS THERE A RISK IN USING SOMETHING OTHER THAN A PRISTINE 8 DRAEGER TUBE? 9 A. WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY "PRISTINE"? 10 Q. I'M SAYING ONE WHERE NONE OF THE ENDS HAVE BEEN BROKEN OFF 11 OF IT. 12 A. IS THERE A RISK? 13 Q. OKAY. 14 LIKE NEW? NOT THAT I WAS -- AM AWARE OF. LET'S TALK ABOUT IT FOR A SECOND. THE ONE THAT YOU USED, 15 ONE OF THE ENDS WAS ALREADY BROKEN OFF, RIGHT? 16 A. CORRECT. 17 Q. DO YOU KNOW WHO BROKE IT OFF? 18 A. NO. 19 Q. DO YOU KNOW WHY THEY BROKE IT OFF IN? 20 A. NO. 21 Q. DO YOU KNOW IF THEY DISCARDED IT BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT THAT 22 SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH IT? 23 A. NO, IT WASN'T DISCARDED. 24 Q. DO YOU KNOW THAT THEY DIDN'T USE IT BECAUSE THEY THOUGHT 25 SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH IT? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 603 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. NO, I DO NOT. 2 Q. SO YOU DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT WHAT ALL HAD HAPPENED 3 WITH THIS DRAEGER TUBE BEFORE YOU GOT IT, RIGHT? 4 A. 5 DRAEGER TUBES. 6 Q. YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT ALL HAPPENED TO IT, DO YOU? 7 A. NO. 8 Q. NOW ONCE YOU GOT A DRAEGER TUBE LIKE THAT, LET'S ASSUME 9 YOU COULDN'T FIND ANOTHER ONE, YOU HAD SOME OPTIONS AVAILABLE THIS DRAEGER TUBE WAS JUST WHERE I WAS SHOWN TO GET EXTRA 10 TO YOU BEFORE YOU JUST TRIED TO USE IT, DIDN'T YOU? 11 A. IF I COULDN'T FIND ANOTHER ONE, DID I HAVE MORE OPTIONS? 12 Q. YOU HAD SOME OPTIONS, RIGHT? 13 A. YES. 14 Q. ONE IS YOU COULD HAVE CALLED SOMEONE AND ASKED THEM SHOULD 15 YOU CONTINUE TO USE THIS DRAEGER TUBE THAT ALREADY HAS AN END 16 BROKE OFF, RIGHT? 17 DONE, RIGHT? 18 A. IF WHAT? 19 Q. YOU COULD HAVE CALLED SOMEONE AND ASKED THEM IF IT WAS ALL 20 RIGHT TO USE THAT DRAEGER TUBE LIKE THAT, RIGHT? 21 A. 22 CHRIS SALAS IN PARALLEL TRAINING, BUT I.... 23 24 25 THAT'S ONE OF THE THINGS YOU COULD HAVE WELL, MY TRAINER HAD ALREADY TOLD ME THAT IT WAS OKAY, MR. LAFAYETTE: I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT PAGE 799, LINE 9 THROUGH 15. MS. SMALLETS: WHAT PAGE? DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 604 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 THE COURT: 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: 3 I DON'T HAVE -I'M SORRY, YOUR HONOR, 277. I APOLOGIZE. 4 (PAUSE IN THE PROCEEDINGS.) 5 MR. LAFAYETTE: 6 THE COURT: 7 MR. LAFAYETTE: 8 "QUESTION: 9 YOU SEE THAT THE TOP IS BROKEN OFF ALREADY, OKAY, YOU LINES 9 THROUGH 15. GO AHEAD. (READING) SO ONCE YOU GET TO THIS DRAEGER TUBE AND 10 HAVE SOME OPTIONS, RIGHT? 11 "ANSWER: 12 "ONE IS YOU COULD CALL SOMEONE AND ASK THEM SHOULD 13 YOU CONTINUE TO USE IT. 14 "ANSWER: 15 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 16 Q. RIGHT. RIGHT." YOU HAD SOME OTHER OPTIONS, DIDN'T YOU? 17 THE COURT: 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 THAT'S A QUESTION? I'M ASKING HER, YES, YOUR HONOR, THAT'S A QUESTION. 20 THE WITNESS: YES. 21 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 Q. 23 RIGHT? 24 A. RIGHT. 25 Q. ANOTHER OPTION WOULD BE TO NOT TAKE THE TEST AT THAT TIME, ONE IS THAT YOU COULD HAVE JUST USED IT BROKEN AS IT WAS, DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 605 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 RIGHT? 2 A. 3 THAT WOULD BE AN OPTION. 4 Q. 5 ONE OF THE OPTIONS YOU COULD HAVE USED WAS NOT TO HAVE USED 6 THAT DRAEGER TUBE AT ALL, RIGHT? 7 A. RIGHT. 8 Q. NOW... AND WITH REGARD TO THAT LAST OPTION WE JUST 9 DISCUSSED, THERE WAS NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT OPTION, WAS IF I THOUGHT THERE WAS A PROBLEM WITH THE DRAEGER TUBE NO. IF THAT DRAEGER TUBE WAS IN THE CONDITION IT WAS IN, 10 THERE? 11 A. WITH NOT USING IT? 12 Q. YES. 13 A. NO. 14 Q. AND... BUT IF YOU USED IT, YOU UNDERSTOOD THAT YOU RAN THE 15 RISK OF GETTING A FALSE READING, DIDN'T YOU? 16 A. NO, I DIDN'T. 17 MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TESTIMONY. 19 THAT, YOUR HONOR. 20 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 Q. 22 IS IMPORTANT THAT YOU GET THE TEST RIGHT, ISN'T IT? 23 A. YES. 24 Q. AND IF YOU CAN'T VALIDATE THE TEST RESULTS, THEN YOU'RE 25 GETTING A BAD RESULT, AREN'T YOU? I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE PAGE 278, LINES 11 -- STRIKE SO NOW... SO WITH REGARD TO THIS -- THIS DRAEGER TUBE, IT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 606 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 A. 2 RESULT? 3 Q. YES. 4 A. YES. 5 Q. NOW, WHEN YOU USED THE DRAEGER TUBE, DO YOU RECORD YOUR 6 FINDINGS? 7 A. YES. 8 Q. DO YOU RECORD THE FINDINGS IN THE INTELLITRAK MACHINE? 9 A. YES. 10 Q. SO ON THAT NIGHT, DID YOU HAVE THE INTELLITRAK MACHINE 11 WITH YOU? 12 A. I BELIEVE I DID. 13 Q. AND THAT NIGHT YOU ENTERED A FINDING INTO THE INTELLITRAK 14 MACHINE, DIDN'T YOU? 15 A. YES. 16 Q. AND IT WAS AFTER YOU ENTERED THAT FINDING IN THE 17 INTELLITRAK MACHINE THAT CAMERON CURRAN CAME AROUND, WASN'T 18 IT? 19 A. YES. 20 Q. AND SO AT THAT POINT IN TIME YOU HAD ENTERED A FINDING IN 21 THE INTELLITRAK MACHINE WITH THE DRAEGER TUBE THAT YOU KNEW 22 WHEN YOU FIRST PICKED IT UP WASN'T PRISTINE, CORRECT? 23 A. IT WASN'T -- 24 Q. PRISTINE. 25 A. PRISTINE? IF YOU CAN'T VALIDATE THE TEST RESULT, THEN IT IS A BAD DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 607 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 Q. YES. 2 A. MEANING IT WAS BROKEN ON ONE END, YES. 3 Q. YES. 4 OKAY. AND WHEN HE ASKED YOU WHERE WAS THE DRAEGER TUBE THAT YOU 5 HAD USED, DID YOU GIVE HIM ONE? 6 A. 7 THINGS THAT YOU DON'T KEEP. 8 Q. SO YOU DIDN'T GIVE HIM THE DRAEGER TUBE THAT YOU HAD USED? 9 A. NO. 10 Q. DID YOU POINT HIM TO THE DRAEGER TUBE SO THAT HE COULD SEE 11 IT FOR HIMSELF? 12 A. 13 DRAEGER TUBES, SO IT WOULD BE HAVE BEEN IMPOSSIBLE, BUT I 14 SHOWED HIM WHERE I FOUND THE DRAEGER TUBE. 15 Q. WHERE YOU PUT IT? 16 A. I NEVER SHOWED HIM -- 17 Q. I'M ASKING YOU, THE DRAEGER TUBE THAT YOU USED, DID YOU 18 EVER SHOW HIM THE DRAEGER TUBE THAT YOU ACTUALLY USED? 19 A. NO. NO. I SHOWED HIM WHERE IT WAS. I SHOWED HIM -- THERE'S A GARBAGE FULL OF HUNDRED I DON'T BELIEVE I DID. 20 MR. LAFAYETTE: 21 THE COURT: 22 I DIDN'T -- THOSE ARE I THINK I'M AT THE MARK. WE STARTED FIVE MINUTES LATE SO YOU GET FIVE MORE MINUTES. 23 MR. LAFAYETTE: 24 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 Q. THANK YOU. YOU REALIZE BY USING THAT LESS-THAN-PRISTINE DRAEGER TUBE, DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 608 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 THAT YOU RAN THE RISK OF GETTING A WRONG READING. 2 A. ARE YOU ASKING ME A QUESTION? 3 Q. YES. 4 DID YOU UNDERSTAND THAT BY USING THAT LESS-THAN-PRISTINE 5 DRAEGER TUBE THAT YOU RAN THE RISK OF GETTING A WRONG READING? 6 A. 7 HAD SEEN OTHER PEOPLE DO IT. 8 I THOUGHT IT WAS OKAY TO USE THE USED DRAEGER TUBE AS I MR. LAFAYETTE: 9 OBJECTION. I'M SORRY, YOUR HONOR. GO AHEAD. 10 SINCE TYPICALLY YOU DON'T GET A READING THE WITNESS: 11 USUALLY IT IS 0 H2S, AND THAT DAY I DID GET A READING AND THAT 12 WAS UNUSUAL, I THOUGHT MY PLAN WAS TO GO BACK AND FIND OUT 13 WHERE WE GET A BRAND NEW BOX SINCE THE BOX THAT I FOUND WAS 14 ALREADY OPENED, WHERE TO GET A NEW BOX. 15 MY ROUNDS, TAKE ANOTHER TEST. 16 DRAEGER TUBE, BUT BECAUSE I HAD A READING AND I WANTED TO MAKE 17 SURE THAT READING WAS ACCURATE. 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 AND WHEN I COMPLETE NOT BECAUSE I HAD USED A BROKEN I WOULD LIKE TO READ FROM THE WITNESS'S DEPOSITION TRANSCRIPT, PAGE 496:17 THROUGH -- 20 THE COURT: 21 MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 THE COURT: 23 EXAMINATIONS. 24 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 Q. FOUR WHAT? 496:17 THROUGH 497:2. DENIED. THESE ARE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT DID YOU REALIZE THAT YOU COULD POSSIBLY GET A READING THAT DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 609 NEWTON - CROSS / LAFAYETTE 1 WAS WRONG BY USING LESS THAN A PRISTINE DRAEGER TUBE? 2 A. I DON'T THINK THAT I DID. 3 4 I -- NOW I WOULD LIKE TO READ THE MR. LAFAYETTE: TESTIMONY. 5 THE COURT: 6 MR. LAFAYETTE: 7 "QUESTION: 8 GET A READING BUT IT COULD BE WRONG? 9 "ANSWER: GO AHEAD. (READING) DID YOU REALIZE THAT YOU COULD POSSIBLY YES." 10 "OKAY. I JUST WANT TO MAKE SURE WE ARE CLEAR ABOUT 11 THAT. JUST BECAUSE YOU GET A READING DOESN'T REALLY 12 MEAN ANYTHING, DOES IT? 13 "ANSWER: 14 "THE ONLY READING THAT MAKES ANY SENSE IS ONE THAT'S 15 RIGHT, CORRECT? 16 "ANSWER: 17 THE WITNESS: 18 MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 NO. CORRECT." I WON'T EAT ANY MINUTES, YOUR HONOR. OKAY? 20 THE WITNESS: 21 MR. LAFAYETTE: 22 SO -- SO I JUST UNDERSTOOD ALSO -YOUR HONOR, THERE IS NO QUESTION PENDING. 23 THE WITNESS: 24 BY MR. LAFAYETTE: 25 Q. OKAY. WHILE YOU WERE AT SHELL, DID YOU TAKE ANY MEDICATION FOR DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 610 1 ANY EMOTIONAL-RELATED ISSUES? 2 A. NO. 3 Q. AND SINCE YOU'VE LEFT SHELL, YOU HAVE NOT TREATED WITH ANY 4 DOCTORS FOR ANY EMOTIONAL-RELATED ISSUES, HAVE YOU? 5 A. NO. 6 Q. WHILE YOU WERE AT SHELL, YOU DIDN'T TREAT WITH ANY DOCTORS 7 FOR ANY EMOTIONAL-RELATED ISSUES, HAVE YOU? 8 A. NO. 9 Q. AND SINCE YOU'VE LEFT SHELL, YOU HAVE NOT TAKEN ANY 10 MEDICATION FOR ANY EMOTIONAL-RELATED ISSUES, HAVE YOU? 11 A. NO. 12 MR. LAFAYETTE: 13 THE COURT: 14 15 16 I THINK I'M THERE, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT. OKAY, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, WE ARE DONE FOR THE DAY. QUESTIONS? YES. 17 JUROR: WOULD IT BE POSSIBLE TO BE REMINDED WHAT THE 18 CLAIMS ARE THAT WE ARE TRYING TO LISTEN FOR? 19 CLAIMS? 20 21 22 23 24 25 ANY THE COURT: IS NO. WHAT ARE THE SO THE ANSWER TO THAT QUESTION RIGHT NOW JUST LISTEN TO THE FACTS, LISTEN TO THE TESTIMONY. THIS IS A COMPLICATED CASE. THERE ARE ACTUALLY FIVE DIFFERENT CLAIMS, AND EACH CLAIM HAS MANY DIFFERENT ELEMENTS. SO YOU WILL BE GIVEN INSTRUCTIONS. AND THE WAY I DO IT, THE INSTRUCTIONS I GIVE YOU ARE ACTUALLY -- YOU WILL GET A DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 611 1 WRITTEN COPY, AND EACH CLAIM WILL HAVE EACH SET OF ELEMENTS. 2 WE ARE REQUIRED UNDER THE LAW TO ORALLY GIVE THEM TO YOU, 3 BUT THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO WAY THAT YOU ARE GOING TO REMEMBER 4 EVERYTHING I SAY WITHOUT A WRITTEN COPY. 5 SO WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO NOW IS JUST LISTEN TO THE TESTIMONY 6 AND GATHER THE FACTS, AND THEN AT THE END, I'LL NOT ONLY 7 ORALLY, I WILL PROVIDE YOU WRITTEN COPIES WITH EACH CLAIM WITH 8 EACH ELEMENT. 9 OKAY? 10 11 ANYTHING ELSE? 8:00 A.M. ALL RIGHT. WE WILL SEE YOU TOMORROW. REMEMBER MY DO NOTS. 12 JUROR: 13 THE CLERK: 8:30. 14 THE COURT: WHAT DID I SAY? 15 THE CLERK: YOU SAID 8:00. 8:30. 16 I WILL BE HERE, BUT I WILL SEE YOU AT 8:30, YES. 17 (PROCEEDINGS HELD OUTSIDE THE PRESENCE OF THE JURY.) 18 19 THE COURT: THE RECORD WILL REFLECT THAT THE JURY IS GONE. 20 YOU MAY STEP DOWN, MS. NEWTON. 21 ANYTHING -- SO I'M STILL MISSING DEFENDANT'S EXHIBITS. 22 23 24 25 MR. LAFAYETTE: YOUR HONOR? (EXHIBITS HANDED TO COURT.) THE COURT: THANK YOU. GIVEN THAT WE ANTICIPATE THE PLAINTIFF'S CLOSING TOMORROW DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 612 1 DO I ALSO ANTICIPATE GETTING SOME MOTION FROM THE DEFENSE? 2 MR. LAFAYETTE: 3 THE COURT: YES, YOUR HONOR. ALL RIGHT. I DO NOT LOSE TRIAL TIME. 4 ONCE WE CLOSE, I WILL MAKE A NOTE IN THE RECORD THAT ANY 5 ANTICIPATED MOTION WILL BE DEEMED TIMELY AND WE KEEP GOING 6 WITH EVIDENCE. 7 OKAY? MS. SMALLETS: YOUR HONOR, I ACTUALLY DON'T THINK WE 8 WILL CLOSE TOMORROW BASED ON THE TIMES TODAY. 9 PROBABLY BE FRIDAY. 10 THE COURT: 11 MS. SMALLETS: 12 THE COURT: 13 OKAY. 15 THE COURT: FOR PURPOSES OF THE CODE, BUT WE WILL KEEP MOVING. MR. LAFAYETTE: 18 THE COURT: 21 I APPRECIATE THAT. AND BOTH SIDES KNOW IT WILL DEEMED TIMELY 17 20 YES. MOVING WITH THE TRIAL TIME. MR. LAFAYETTE: 19 FRIDAY IN THE MORNING. IN ANY EVENT, WE'RE JUST GOING TO KEEP 14 16 IT WILL THAT'S FINE, YOUR HONOR. WE WILL SEE YOU ALL -- WE WILL SEE YOU AT 8:00 A.M. MS. SMALLETS: YOU WANT TO TALK ABOUT THE UNION CONTRACT EXHIBIT -- 22 MR. LAFAYETTE: 23 MS. SMALLETS: 24 THE COURT: 25 MR. LAFAYETTE: LET'S TALK ABOUT IT TONIGHT. OKAY. ALL RIGHT. LET ME KNOW IN THE MORNING. THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC 613 1 2 MS. SMALLETS: THANK YOU, YOUR HONOR. (PROCEEDINGS ADJOURNED AT 1:37 P.M.) 3 4 5 CERTIFICATE OF REPORTER I, DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL REPORTER FOR THE 6 UNITED STATES COURT, NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA, HEREBY 7 CERTIFY THAT THE FOREGOING IS A CORRECT TRANSCRIPT FROM THE 8 RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE ABOVE-ENTITLED MATTER. 9 10 _____________________________ 11 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, CSR 4909, RPR, FCRR 12 WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 12, 2018 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 DIANE E. SKILLMAN, OFFICIAL COURT REPORTER, USDC