THE FOLLOWING ARE THE POLICE STATEMENTS AND GRAND JURY STATEMENTS OF TRISTAN BLANCHARD. YOU WILL SEE HOW MUCH HIS STATEMENTS ARE SO DIFFERENT. HOW HIS STORY CHANGES TO MATCH KYLES. IN HIS INITIAL STATEMENTS TO THE POLICE HE SAYS NOTHING ABOUT GUNS WERE EVER MENTIONED. THAT COREY NEVER OFFERED HIM THE GUN. YOU WILL SEE HOW HIS STORY CHANGES AS TO WHEN VINNIE WAS AT HIS HOUSE BETWEEN HIS INITIAL STATEMENTS AND HIS GRAND JURY STATEMENTS. THEN COMPARE THESE TO HIS TESTIMONY AT THE TRIAL. YOU WILL SEE THE MANY TIMES HE LIED AND COMMITTED PERJURY. YOU WILL WONDER WHY HE HAS NOT YET BEEN INDICTED AND YOU WILL KNOW WHY HE'S STILL ON THE STREET COMMITTING CRIMES...

20       Q.     Okay.  So Corey went into the house and

21   brought out a gun?  

22       A.     Um hum.  

23       Q.     Okay.  And why did they do that?  

24       A.     For protection as far as I'm concerned.  

25       Q.     Did they say something?  


                                                         32
 1       A.     Did they say --  

 2       Q.     Did they make comment about I'm going to get

 3   my gun or anything like that?  

 4       A.     No.  No.  

 5       Q.     They just came out and had the guns?  

 6       A.     Um hum. 

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                                                          1
 1               STATE OF VERMONT
                   WINDSOR COUNTY, SS.

 2   

 3   
    STATE OF VERMONT          ) WINDSOR DISTRICT COURT

 4                          ) DOCKET NO. 972-8-08 Wrcr
              v.            )           

 5                          )
    KYLE BOLASKI,             ) Digital Recording

 6                Defendant.  )
    _____________________________

 7   

 8   

 9   

10                      STATEMENT

11                         OF

12                   TRISTAN BLANCHARD

13   
        As recorded on August 18, 2008, at the Vermont

14       State Police Barracks, Rockingham, Vermont.          

15   

16   

17   

18   APPEARANCES:

19      DET. SGT. WALT SMITH

20   

21   

22   

23   

24   

25              


                                                          2
 1                   (August 18, 2008)

 2               DET. SGT. WALT SMITH:  This is Detective

 3   Sergeant Walt Smith of the Vermont State Police.  

 4   Today's date is 8/18/2008.  The time now is 1716 hours.  

 5   I'm at the Rockingham barracks, state police barracks.  

 6   I'm in an office.  And here with me is --  

 7       Q.     Sir, would you please state your full name

 8   and date of birth for the record?  And this will pick up

 9   your voice.  You don't have to lean into it or anything.  

10       A.     Okay.  Tristan Ryan Blanchard, 03/27/86.  

11       Q.     Okay.  And Tristan, you already told me, but

12   could you please, for the record, tell us your actual

13   physical address?  

14       A.     My actual physical address is 23 School

15   Street, Chester, Vermont.  

16       Q.     Okay.  And what's your social security

17   number, Tristan?  

18       A.    xxx-xx-xxxx 

19       Q.     Okay.  And where were you born?  

20       A.     In Springfield, Vermont at the hospital.  

21       Q.     Okay.  All right.  What I'd like to do is

22   talk about the incident that occurred between Saturday

23   and Sunday, which would have been yesterday -- Sunday

24   was the 17th, Saturday would have been the 16th; is that

25   right?  


                                                          3
 1       A.     Yeah, but the prior incident had started it

 2   on Wednesday night or it was Thursday.  Thursday night

 3   is when it started at our house.  

 4       Q.     It started at your house?  Okay.  

 5       A.     On Thursday night was the first -- not the

 6   incident to do with the shooting but started at our

 7   house was the first time we ever met this kid.  

 8       Q.     Okay.  Who, the -- Vincent?  

 9       A.     Vinny.  

10       Q.     Okay.  

11       A.     Vincent.  

12       Q.     All right.  Let's start from Wednesday then.  

13       A.     It's Thursday.  It was Thursday (inaudible).  

14       Q.     Thursday.  But before we do that, give me a

15   little background.  What is the history between this

16   Vinny and your friend Ben?  

17       A.     Ben Millay?  

18       Q.     Yeah.  

19       A.     I am lost on this.  Vinny, I've -- like I

20   said, that was the first time I met him Thursday night.  

21       Q.     Okay.  

22       A.     So as far as I know, Vinny is from Boston

23   and he's going out with a girl named Julie Kronberg --  

24       Q.     Okay.  

25       A.     -- and Ben Millay used to hang out with her.  


                                                          4
 1   Never used to date her officially, but he used to hang

 2   out with her.  From what I know, she obviously has been

 3   filling his head full of stuff to get him mad at Ben.  

 4   That's all I know on the situation.  The first night he

 5   had met us was on Thursday, and Ben was at my house on

 6   Saturday, on that incident on Saturday which led to

 7   Sunday.  

 8       Q.     Okay.  Tell me about Thursday.  

 9       A.     Thursday night, we're sitting in our house,

10   me and --  

11       Q.     Who?  

12       A.     It was me, Tristan Blanchard, Jeff Goal

13   (phonetically), a friend of mine from Springfield,

14   Vermont, and Michelle Lachapelle, my girlfriend, and

15   Jordan Ebel, a 16-year-old younger girl.  We were

16   sitting there, and me and my friend Jeff were playing

17   Call of Duty on Playstation 3, and I had got a call on

18   my phone, a weird number.  

19             I wasn't sure who it was, so I answered it

20   naturally, and it ended up being Kirby Donahue.  She

21   asked if she could come over and hang out with a friend

22   Vincent.  I said that shouldn't be a problem and they

23   came over.  Ended up showing up at my house and --  

24       Q.     Who showed up?  

25       A.     Vincent and -- well, Tim Barillo


                                                          5
 1   (phonetically) I think was his last name, and Kirby

 2   Donahue, and they came walking upstairs, and when I saw

 3   him, I can easily say I was pretty intimidated.  He's a

 4   big boy.  He's definitely a big kid.  He appeared to be

 5   older.  

 6             And he didn't seem like he was causing too

 7   much of a problem until he sat down.  He sat down, and I

 8   could tell instantly that he was a really messed up kid.  

 9   He pulled out pills and tried selling me Xanax bars and

10   Oxycontin 80's and Klonopins, which I found out later on

11   he's prescribed to, I guess, the Klonopins and the Xanax

12   bars.  I don't know about the Oxy 80's.  

13             I said I -- I didn't want any of that, I

14   don't do any of that stuff, don't bring that near here.  

15   I had two Percocets that were on the table, ten

16   milligrams that I'm prescribed to.  I have all the

17   paperwork at my house.  Can I buy those?  Can I buy

18   those?  I said no, I'm prescribed those, I don't sell

19   pills.  Oh, come on, come on, I'm CT's brother on the

20   Real World, I'm CT's brother, I'm from Boston, and I

21   said I can't do that, I'm not here to do that, you're

22   here to hang out.  

23             And we stayed there playing games, kind of

24   just kept our mouth shut.  We were trying to stay on our

25   good graces because we were intimidated by this kid and


                                                          6
 1   I just wanted to get him out of my house.  He ended up

 2   leaving, good terms, said he might bring his brother CT

 3   over sometime.  I said good enough, I'd like to meet

 4   him, that's pretty cool, he's on the Real World, and he

 5   ended up leaving that night.  

 6             Well, then it led on to Saturday.  Saturday,

 7   Kirby was calling my phone -- Kirby Donahue was calling

 8   my phone repeatedly, called it twice, and called

 9   Michelle Lachapelle's phone, my girlfriend, and she kept

10   calling, and Michelle goes don't answer it, don't answer

11   it, and the reason I answered it the other day was

12   because I didn't know her new number, so now I knew her

13   number and I said I'm not answering this.  

14             I didn't answer it, and I wrote her a text

15   message simply stating that we have had friends coming

16   into -- over to our house for years, over two years, I

17   have a lot of friends, there's been obviously a lot of

18   drama between my girlfriend and you and a lot of

19   girlfriends that you guys have.  I said if there's going

20   to be problems between you and my girlfriend and all

21   these girls, I said we don't want you at our house

22   anymore, please don't come to our house, please don't

23   bring strangers to our house, which clearly meant

24   Vincent, and please don't call mine or Michelle's phones

25   anymore, very sincere, nice message.  


                                                          7
 1             Next I get two calls from her, I didn't

 2   answer her, and 20 minutes later, he was walking up my

 3   stairs in my kitchen, and I can honestly say I've never

 4   been more scared in my life.  I knew something was

 5   happening, I knew something was going on, and I did not

 6   know what to do.  For the first time in my life, I never

 7   felt like I could protect myself, don't mind my

 8   girlfriend, in my own home.  

 9             He's standing there and he's just looking at

10   me, and Kirby Donahue comes up behind him, and Michelle

11   comes walking out of my bedroom as Ben Millay, me and

12   Jordan Ebel were all sitting out on the couches in our

13   living room.  Michelle comes walking out and sees

14   Vincent standing there, says what the fuck are you doing

15   in my house, what are you doing in my house, get out.  

16             Kirby comes walking up behind him, Donahue,

17   and starts screaming Michelle, what's your problem with

18   me, why don't you like me, and Michelle said clearly you

19   cause a lot of drama, you've been running your mouth

20   about our friends Mallory and a bunch of girls and

21   stuff, causing problems basically ever since you and Gib

22   broke up, because she used to date Gib, a bigger kid

23   that's involved in the situation, and I said we only let

24   you over here basically because you were going out with

25   our friend, otherwise you never came here, Kirby, said


                                                          8
 1   we don't want you here, please leave.  Michelle said get

 2   out of my house clearly.  

 3             She turned off bawling, crying and left.  

 4   Well, he stood there and he came walking in my living

 5   room.  Michelle said I said get the fuck out of my

 6   house, leave.  He weren't leaving.  He kept walking up.  

 7   He walks right up to the couch that Ben Millay was

 8   sitting on, says who are you, and Ben goes I'm Ben.  

 9   You're Ben?  He goes yeah.  You want to go outside?  

10   This is what Vincent said to Ben.  

11             And Ben goes no, I don't want to go outside,

12   and he goes why not, I want to talk to you, and Ben goes

13   we're talking right now, I don't have -- I don't have

14   anything I need to talk about, and he goes well, I want

15   to talk to you outside, what are you, not a man?  And

16   Ben goes no, I just don't have anything I need to say.  

17   He goes come on, let's go outside.  

18             Later on that night, Ben had told me he went

19   outside -- he put a cigarette in his mouth and went

20   outside with him to get him out of my house because he

21   felt it was safer to have him outside, that we could get

22   him out of the house.  So he put a cigarette in his

23   mouth and we all followed him downstairs, and Michelle

24   said clearly we're following you, Ben, don't feel

25   intimidated or anything, said we're right behind you,


                                                          9
 1   this kid is not going to touch you.  

 2             We get outside, and we're all standing

 3   outside at that point in time, and he's in Ben's face

 4   over by the cars in my parking lot on 23 School Street,

 5   and he's just in Ben's face saying that Ben had wrote in

 6   a text message earlier that morning to Julie Kronberg

 7   saying to come over and hang out with him or something

 8   of the sort at his house after he got out of the shower,

 9   and he went over to Julie's car and said look, Julie,

10   where's this text message on your phone, and she said

11   um, um.  Didn't know what to say because it wasn't true

12   obviously.  

13             And Vincent still stayed mad at him.  I

14   didn't hear their exact words, but I did hear -- hear a

15   little bit of it, basically Vincent saying -- I heard

16   him over saying if I wanted to fight you, Ben, you

17   wouldn't be scared right now, you wouldn't be scared of

18   me, and Ben's like I'm not scared of you because I'm not

19   going to fight you, I'm not going to fight you over a

20   girl, I don't have a problem with you, I never had a

21   problem with you, I don't even know who you are.  

22             And at that point, I had went back upstairs

23   to go see if my girlfriend was okay, she was the only

24   one upstairs, and ask her what we should do, should we

25   call the cops, get this kid out of here?  I said I'm


                                                         10
 1   lost, Michelle.  

 2             At that point, I look down at my table and

 3   there was a personal possession missing, which I don't

 4   wish to disclose -- Matt Birmingham, my counsel, said

 5   you guys could call him if you need to -- and there was

 6   $40 taken off my table.  I immediately said Michelle, he

 7   just robbed us, just took that money off my table.  

 8             I ran downstairs and I was screaming at him,

 9   and he took off, gets in the car, just takes off, and I

10   said this is ridiculous.  I yelled at him.  I went to

11   throw something, and I held it in my hand and didn't

12   throw it, took all I had not to.  I had no shoes on at

13   that point in time.  

14             Hopped in my mom's car with her keys and

15   went down Main Street after him.  Got behind him in the

16   car, and I got down by -- down by the ball field about,

17   and I was behind him, and I realized I don't have a cell

18   phone on me, I don't have any shoes on, I don't have

19   anything, what am I going to do, what am I going to say

20   to this kid.  

21             So I pulled into my closest buddy's house,

22   Mike Gleason's house, and I was in tears, I was all

23   upset, and I explained to him what was going on, and he

24   said all right, I'll get in the car, let's go, we need

25   to go where -- we need to go find your girlfriend, see


                                                         11
 1   what's going on.  

 2             We go back to my house on 23 School Street

 3   and no one's there.  They all took off, Ben, Michelle

 4   and Jordan Ebel.  They all took off, and I guess they

 5   were foll -- they were trying to find him, following him

 6   into town.  They went to town, and they had followed him

 7   all the way to Springfield.  By the time I had gotten

 8   all the way to Springfield --  

 9             Or I guess there was a altercation on the

10   back road, which I wasn't there for.  I guess they got

11   him to pull over on the back road, and Michelle said

12   give me my money back, and the kid said I don't have

13   your money, I'm from Boston.  Michelle said go back to

14   Boston then, is what she told me, and the kid drove off

15   on her.  

16             Then by the time I got to Springfield, me

17   and Mike Gleason in my car, we had pulled up on School

18   Street where we found out where they were.  I mean, not

19   School Street, up on Summer Street in Springfield,

20   Vermont, and that's where Julie Kronberg lives.  I see a

21   bunch of people down there, a whole group of people.  

22   Her brother was down there, Jeremiah Wright, Gib was

23   down there and -- Gib Bastion (phonetically), and

24   Michelle was down there and Jordan Ebel, and I was

25   walking down and Gleason and there was a couple other


                                                         12
 1   kids there.  

 2             And I get down there and the kid's holding a

 3   knife.  He's got a knife in his hand, opening and

 4   closing it, opening and closing it.  I said what the

 5   hell's going on?  Her brother -- her brother was up in

 6   his face, he's smoking a stogy, and he's basically just

 7   letting him know how he feels saying you come to my

 8   sister's house and you think you're just going to walk

 9   up in there when they told you not to go there, you

10   think you're going to pull this stuff in Springfield,

11   Vermont and was just telling him.  

12             And he's like drop that knife, he had told

13   him, and the kid -- kid came at him, went to stab him

14   with the knife, and Miah backed up, he said you're a

15   fucking pussy, dude, don't do that stuff, and at that

16   point it just -- there was back talk between everyone

17   there.  Everyone was screaming, everyone was yelling.  

18             The two girls were up on the porch, Julie

19   Kronberg and Kirby Donahue, and my girlfriend and Jordan

20   started yelling at him and they were yelling at each

21   other, and my girlfriend and Jordan went to walk on the

22   property.  The mom came running out of the house, got in

23   Michelle and Jordan's face and said look, you need to

24   get off our property now.  

25             And Michelle and Jordan -- Michelle tried to


                                                         13
 1   explain to the lady -- the lady was pushing her, and

 2   Michelle tried to explain to her what just happened at

 3   our house.  The lady said get off my property, and

 4   Michelle turned around and walked right off.  She knew

 5   what to do.  She knows you can't be on someone's

 6   property, but she was trying to be nice and explain to

 7   the lady they were just over in Chester, we just

 8   followed them over here, they just came up into our

 9   house.  They go you're not understanding, lady,

10   you're -- and this kid's got a knife out here on your

11   lawn, are you seeing this?  

12             And so Michelle and them got off, and when

13   they started to walk away from the mom, Vincent came

14   over and he pushed Michelle and 16-year-old Jordan Ebel,

15   one arm, just pushes them right back.  They almost fall

16   on their back, they go way back.  And Gib runs over,

17   don't you fucking touch those girls, don't put your

18   hands on those girls, that's a pussy move, don't do

19   that, and her brother ran over, too, at the same time.  

20             He turned around again and went to stab at

21   Miah, her brother, Jeremiah, and missed him again and

22   Miah backed up, and Gib was standing there.  He looked

23   to the left to see if the girls were okay and asked the

24   girls are you okay.  He looked back to the right, and

25   that kid hit him upside the mouth, open with a hand,


                                                         14
 1   with a knife in the hand open, knife was wide open in

 2   his hand, clocked him right upside the mouth.  

 3             Dropped a 380-pound man on the ground.  He

 4   hit the ground, he rolled around, got straight back up,

 5   said you fucking pussy, you just cheap-shotted me, and

 6   the kid -- I'm from Boston, I'm from Boston, that's what

 7   I do, I just knocked your biggest guy out.  Gib goes you

 8   didn't knock me out, you just cheap-shotted me, I just

 9   got back up, you didn't knock anybody out.  You knocked

10   me down, he goes, but you didn't knock me out.  

11             And right after that, here come -- here come

12   the cops.  Well, within the time everyone sees the cops

13   coming from down the road, he ran in the house, ditches

14   that knife, gets rid of the knife, and we go down there

15   to meet the cops, and we're like he's got a knife, he's

16   got a knife.  We're telling him what's going on.  

17             The cops come over, and they went down and

18   talked to him, they come back over and talked to us.  It

19   was Officer Hean, H-e-a-n, Officer Daniels and Officer

20   Fullerton all of Springfield PD, and we explained our

21   side of the story, that they were in Chester, he came up

22   in our house when we told him not to, which was pretty

23   much no trespassing even though we don't have a no

24   trespassing order on him because we never needed to, we

25   didn't even know the kid, and explained to them what he


                                                         15
 1   took out of our house, explained to them what happened,

 2   that we followed him to town and explained to them that

 3   he had a knife right here, he jabbed at her brother

 4   twice, explained to them that he just hit him with an

 5   open knife in his hand, and he had a fat lip, he had to

 6   go up to the hospital, and just explained to them

 7   everything.  

 8             They said that we all needed to fill out

 9   statements, and after we filled out the statements and

10   they figured out the story, they might charge everyone

11   with disorderly conduct for following him to town, which

12   I had just got there at the last second and I questioned

13   them on that.  I said I just got here.  I said you guys

14   pulled in right after I just got here, I said I

15   shouldn't be charged with any -- well -- and the guy

16   goes you didn't hear me, I never said you were getting

17   charged with disorderly conduct, I said we can charge

18   everyone for following him to Chester.  I said I didn't

19   follow him, I weren't behind him, and I just kind of

20   argued with them on the fact.  

21             And then they said and we can charge him

22   with simple assault, and I said why aren't you putting

23   him in handcuffs right now, did you find the knife, and

24   they said no, he probably had time to bring it back in

25   the house by now, we didn't find no knife.  I go are you


                                                         16
 1   kidding me?  And they go no.  I go and he's not going to

 2   guest get arrested for punching that kid?  I go that's

 3   easily simple assault, if not aggravated.  

 4             He didn't break a bone, so I know it's not

 5   aggravated, but I know simple assault.  I said I've

 6   punched two kids before in my lifetime, I've done it

 7   before, and I was put right in handcuffs by the

 8   Springfield PD.  They came and found me at my

 9   girlfriend's house, put me in handcuffs.  

10             And I did not understand what was going on

11   that day.  It seemed like they were scared of this kid.  

12   I was lost.  If this was taken care of on Saturday, who

13   knows what would happen on Sunday, but this led to

14   Sunday now because nothing was taken care of as far as

15   I'm concerned, and the Springfield PD did not do their

16   job at all.  

17       Q.     Okay.  So then what?  

18       A.     Then it comes on to the next day.  I'm

19   driving -- I headed into Springfield and I come back to

20   town.  My girlfriend headed in town to get food and

21   bring Jordan to her house to get some clothes and stuff.  

22   I headed in town to go to my sister's house, visit with

23   her while they were doing that and I head back.  When I

24   head back, I'm driving by my house.  Michelle had

25   already pulled in.  She was inside.  Drive by my house,


                                                         17
 1   and they're driving out in front of my house, pointing

 2   at me, laughing, stalking my house.  

 3       Q.     What time was that?  

 4       A.     It was in the afternoon.  It must have been

 5   two to three hours before the scene at the park.  

 6       Q.     Okay.  

 7       A.     I mean, it was -- it was in the evening

 8   but -- and they're driving by my house, and once again I

 9   felt scared for my life, my girlfriend's.  I didn't know

10   what to think.  I said now this kid's stalking my house.  

11             Prior to that incident, which I forgot to

12   mention, Ben had told us -- wrote us a text message and

13   we talked to him Sunday morning, and we had found out

14   the night before that from what we know, no one could

15   prove it, but someone went to Ben's house and slashed

16   his tires on his truck, two of his tires.  

17             And he had talked to Vince in the morning,

18   and he told me that Vince said -- asked him if he was

19   having a nice day, and Ben said yeah, I'm going to a

20   baseball game, Red Sox game, why, just trying not to

21   mention the tires, and he goes I just want to let you

22   know that I'm going to break every bone in everyone's

23   body that was there that day and I'm going to rape all

24   their mothers.  

25             And Ben told me that and I couldn't believe


                                                         18
 1   that.  I said this kid is psycho.  I'm like I'm losing

 2   it, Ben, I don't know what to think, I'm not even safe

 3   in my home, I don't feel safe at all, I think he's going

 4   to come back, I have a feeling he's going to come back,

 5   I don't know why.  I said he took offense to the fact

 6   that I wrote that text message to Kirby saying that we

 7   don't want strangers up here, which obviously meant him

 8   because he's the only stranger that had been up there,

 9   and he didn't like that.  

10             So then when I had seen them drive by, Kyle

11   Bolaski was calling my phone at that time, and I

12   answered the phone to Kyle, and Kyle said -- Kyle asked

13   me what was going on and -- just seeing what's up.  He

14   didn't even know what was going on.  And I said Kyle,

15   these kids are driving by my house right now.  I said

16   they're stalking my house.  I go I can't even stay at my

17   house anymore, I got to move or something.  

18             And he said Tristan, (inaudible), I'll come

19   to your house right now.  We got over there, and it was

20   him and his brother and Jerry Ucci in the truck, and

21   they said get in the truck, calm down, we're going to

22   take you for a ride, calm down, we're just going to get

23   you out of here so they're not chasing you anymore.  I

24   said all right.  

25             Went around, rode with them.  We drove into


                                                         19
 1   Springfield, drove around, drove back into Chester,

 2   drove some back roads out by Trebo Road and stuff, and

 3   we ended up -- what happened next.  Jerry used my phone

 4   to call Vincent on Kirby Donahue's phone, said give me

 5   your phone, where can I get -- where can I get a hold of

 6   him?  I said I don't know.  He said would he be with

 7   Kirby?  And I said you can call her, you can use my

 8   phone to call Kirby.  

 9             At that point, he got on the phone with

10   Kirby and said Kirby, where's this Vincent kid, because

11   he knows Kirby, he went to school with her, they both

12   went over here to Green Mountain, and Kirby says I don't

13   know, don't get in the middle of this, Jerry, and he

14   says no, Kirby, where is he, I want to know where he is.  

15   Kirby goes he's not with me, he's not with me.  Then

16   give me an address, give me a phone number.  I want to

17   talk to this kid, I want to know what his problem is, he

18   can't just be walking up in people's houses and pulling

19   out knives on people like this, what's going on, Kirby,

20   who is this kid, why is he here.  

21             And Kirby actually ended up putting Vince on

22   the phone, he was with her, and he goes -- this is all

23   from Jerry's side.  I can't hear on the phone, but I --

24   is this Vincent he said, and the kid said yeah, and he

25   goes who the hell do you think you are, what are you


                                                         20
 1   doing coming into our -- into Vermont thinking you're

 2   tough, you're from Boston?  He said you can't go into --

 3   up into people's houses and pull out knives on people,

 4   chase people into town and punch people like that, who

 5   the hell do you think you are, and he just kept talking

 6   to him.  

 7             And then he said -- he said to him look, and

 8   he said I'm not going to deal with this, and at that

 9   point Vincent said I'm crazy.  He goes I just want to

10   let you know I'm crazy, and Jerry goes I'm crazy too,

11   I'm crazy, and he starts screaming, I'm crazy, you want

12   to meet me, you want to meet me at the baseball field in

13   Chester?  You can meet there.  He said you want to come

14   there?  You want to plan this up?  He's like you can

15   come meet me at the Chester baseball field.  

16             And after that, he had to use my phone to

17   call another friend, Tim Arbuckle, one of his friends,

18   and he said look, Tim, I heard you had problems with

19   this kid the night before, he said let's end this with

20   this kid, he said, and deal with the situation the best

21   we can and see if this kid's going to come after us with

22   a knife is what I figured was going to happen or a fight

23   or I didn't know what was going to happen at that point

24   in time.  I had no idea.  

25             He talked to Timmy, and Tim was down at the


                                                         21
 1   softball field already.  They had just got done playing

 2   a softball game, men's league, and there were kids down

 3   there, there were parents down there, they had barbecues

 4   set up, a tent, and all the trucks were parked down on

 5   the field, and the parking lot's a ways up there.  

 6             We got down there -- or right before we got

 7   down there, we got a call saying that one of our

 8   friends, Mike Gleason, had an altercation outside of his

 9   house.  Gib and -- Gib Bastion and Jordan Ebel were

10   driving down to the softball field because they heard

11   everyone was going down there and they were going to try

12   and stop whatever was going to happen.  

13             On their way down there, right in front of

14   the softball field where Mike Gleason's house is, right

15   down here on the right, they pulled over because -- or

16   Vincent, actually, they saw Vincent and Kirby and Julie

17   Kronberg, and they pulled over and so did Gib, and

18   Vincent got out on Gleason's lawn, and Gleason was

19   outside, Mike Gleason, one of my friends and his

20   girlfriend, Adrianne Stearns, walks up to him, from what

21   I know, and said who the fuck do you -- you want to

22   fight?  You got a problem?  

23             And from what I know, Mike Gleason said no,

24   I don't have a problem, I don't even know who you are,

25   and he said -- he said well, call those mother fuckers


                                                         22
 1   that have a problem with me, I want to know where the

 2   fuck they are, I want to meet them right now.  Mike goes

 3   I'll make the call for you, but I'm not in the middle of

 4   this, man, I don't even know what's going on.  

 5             So I guess Vincent had left there and headed

 6   down to the baseball field at that point or I don't know

 7   where he was.  We ended up -- we were in Chester down at

 8   Jiffy Mart and they drove down to the baseball field.  

 9   We get down there to the baseball field and we're

10   pulling in, and Kyle and Jerry get out of the truck, out

11   of Kyle's truck.  We were in Corey's truck before.  We

12   had stopped at Corey's house and then switched and got

13   in Kyle's truck and then went down there in Kyle's

14   truck.  

15             And Kyle gets out, Jerry gets out, and I

16   looked at Corey in the front seat and I said Corey, I'm

17   scared.  I said Corey, I don't know what's going to

18   happen right now, I don't know what's going on, this kid

19   is psycho.  I said he's going to hurt people,

20   something's going to happen, I can feel it, Corey, I

21   don't want to be here.  Corey said don't worry, Tristan,

22   nothing's going to happen.  

23             The whole time there was -- there was one

24   loaded gun in the truck the whole time we were driving

25   around from what I know.  I don't know if it was loaded


                                                         23
 1   or not, but I know there was a gun in the truck with

 2   bullets.  I don't even know what kind of guns they were.  

 3   From what I was told, they're 30-06, but I don't know

 4   anything about guns, so I couldn't tell you what they

 5   were, but when we had stopped at the house to get the

 6   other truck, Corey had went in and got his gun as well,

 7   and they came outside and then we went down there.  

 8             The guns were left in the truck when they

 9   got out of the truck, and we went over and talked to all

10   the people down there that just got done the baseball

11   game, Tim Arbuckle, Matt Parker, some other people that

12   were down there, Brian Perkins I think was (inaudible).  

13             We're standing over there, then you see the

14   Pontiac drive in up the parking lot ways up there, and

15   it's Vince and Julie Kronberg and Kirby Donahue, and

16   he's pulling out a Taser up there, lighting a Taser off

17   or a stun gun more or less because a Taser would shoot

18   out at you, so he's lighting off a stun gun, you can

19   here it, bzzz, bzzz, bzzz, and Tim Arbuckle looks over,

20   he goes what the hell is this fucking kid's problem, who

21   the hell does this kid think he is?  He goes what's his

22   problem with me anyways?  

23             And from what I know, Jerry had called Tim

24   as protection basically or to help the situation to try

25   and calm this kid down or whatever they were going to


                                                         24
 1   do, so I don't understand why Tim was saying what's this

 2   kid's problem with me because really from what I know,

 3   Vince didn't really have a problem with Tim, but Tim

 4   weren't having it.  He said -- he said you bring that

 5   fucking Taser down here right now, I'll put that Taser

 6   up your fucking ass, big boy, get down here.  

 7             He weren't coming anywhere.  He was staying

 8   up there by the car, right -- he got out of the back

 9   seat and he was standing right there.  Tim starts

10   walking towards him.  He walks up, and he almost gets up

11   there, and I was behind -- a ways behind Tim and Kyle

12   and Corey and Gib and Jerry Ucci, and this kid grabs an

13   ax, full size ax, grabs it off the floor and just starts

14   running.  

15             Never seen a kid that big in my life, that

16   scary in my life come running with an ax that fast.  He

17   was catching up.  I ran to the left side with Gib.  As

18   far as I know, Corey and Kyle ran to the right, Tim was

19   running straight, everyone's spread out, and from what I

20   know, he was catching up to Kyle and Corey.  

21             I went running.  I darted as fast as I could

22   down by that baseball field.  There's a river down there

23   that flows down behind the field and some bushes right

24   there.  I got behind those bushes and I looked back, and

25   as I was looking back, from what I was told, he was --


                                                         25
 1   he got -- he caught up to Kyle, and he went to swing at

 2   Kyle, his back of his legs, and he missed his legs, and

 3   Kyle caught up speed.  

 4             And what I saw was Kyle get to his truck,

 5   and he's yelling to Corey, unlock the truck, unlock the

 6   truck, and he had got his gun out of the truck, I think,

 7   at that point in time.  I didn't see him grab his gun.  

 8   I didn't see Kyle grab his gun.  What I saw was Vince

 9   take that ax, almost hit Kyle and hit that truck one

10   time, two times, three times.  He put the mallet of that

11   ax through that truck and pulling it back out.  I mean,

12   this thing was like a pencil in this guy's hand.  This

13   guy is huge.  I never seen something with -- someone

14   with so much power.  He's just putting that mallet

15   through that hard as he could, putting holes in the

16   truck that I can't even believe an ax would do.  

17             And next thing I know -- I went running when

18   I saw him do that.  I wasn't having it.  I said I'm

19   getting out of here, I don't want him to see me over

20   here hiding alone, he's going to come after me because

21   shit's been going on at my house or he's going to go

22   after Gib because when he first got out of the vehicle,

23   I left out that he was yelling I want him, I want Gib,

24   and Gib looked at me and goes what's he want me for,

25   dude, I don't even know what I did.  


                                                         26
 1             But he's -- all that is going on in my head

 2   is Kirby and this Julie are filling this kid's head full

 3   of all this stuff.  This kid's never met anyone in

 4   Springfield, Vermont.  He doesn't know any of us.  We're

 5   all good people, and he's getting all the judgments

 6   through Kirby and Julie, the only two people he knows.  

 7   As far as I know, this kid's prescribed these Klonopins

 8   and Xanax bars, which is for someone that is really

 9   messed up, and that's what he seemed to me, really

10   messed up, intimidating, scary and big.  

11             And I -- I was scared.  I ran.  I ran when I

12   saw him hitting that truck, and I looked back, and I

13   never saw Kyle shot him, but I heard the first gunshot

14   go off and I ran back.  When I ran back, I saw Vincent

15   laying on the ground, and I turned around, I ran as fast

16   as I could away from that ball field.  I ran.  I kept

17   running, and I heard the other gunshots go off and I

18   just kept running.  

19             I ran out towards the road, and it let out

20   into the main road, which is where Mike Gleason and

21   Adrianne's house was.  Adrianne saw me and she grabbed

22   onto me, and Gleason came over and they brang me over in

23   their driveway.  I was -- I was so upset, I was puking

24   all over the place.  I didn't know what to do, I didn't

25   know what happened, and then Mike's saying that he heard


                                                         27
 1   someone got shot over there.  Vincent ended up getting

 2   shot is all I heard.  I heard both of them shot him, I

 3   heard Kyle shot him in the leg and blew his leg off, I

 4   heard Corey shot him in the chest.  

 5             I didn't know what happened.  I didn't see

 6   anything that Corey had done.  I didn't see where Corey

 7   had shot.  From what I'm being told now, Corey shot off

 8   a couple rounds at the ground to try and scare Vincent,

 9   because the story I've been told is Vincent caught up to

10   Kyle, and when he caught up to him, hit the truck three

11   times.  

12             Kyle came around with the gun, and Vincent

13   lunged at him with that ax and Kyle shot his leg, and

14   then Vincent made it still after Kyle, ran halfway

15   around the truck, and then Kyle shot him again, and

16   while he was running after Kyle, Corey had shot off two

17   shots, and Corey's hit the ground, and Corey told me

18   himself on the phone, he said Tristan, I was trying to

19   scare him, I didn't know what to do, he was chasing my

20   brother and my brother already shot him.  He said I had

21   no idea, I'm so lost to this.  I said Corey, I don't

22   know what to say about your situation because I didn't

23   see you.  

24             I only saw what I saw.  I saw him hit Kyle's

25   truck with that ax and I turned around after he was


                                                         28
 1   shot.  I never saw anyone get shot, so I can't -- and I

 2   saw the part with Kyle.  I didn't see Kyle shoot him,

 3   but I saw more of that part.  I didn't see anything with

 4   you because I ran once that happened.  I ran as fast as

 5   I could, Corey.  

 6             And Corey said if you could do anything you

 7   can, just talk to my attorneys.  I go -- you know my

 8   brother, he's not a murderer, and I said I know, Corey,

 9   I'm going to do everything I can, I'm scared for my

10   life, I don't know what to think.  If something like

11   that didn't happen or something -- I knew that kid was

12   going to hurt somebody in this town.  He was after

13   people.  

14       Q.     Okay.  Now, let me ask you a couple

15   questions.  Okay?  One, obviously you've talked to Corey

16   since this incident?  

17       A.     Yeah.  

18       Q.     Okay.  Have you talked to Kyle since this

19   incident?  

20       A.     No.  He's in custody.  

21       Q.     Okay.  After you spoke to Corey, did you

22   speak to his attorney?  

23       A.     No.  

24       Q.     Have you spoken to any attorney?  

25       A.     Yes.  


                                                         29
 1       Q.     Whose attorney did you speak with?  

 2       A.     Matt Birmingham out of Ludlow.  

 3       Q.     Who's -- who's he representing?  

 4       A.     It's just my attorney.  He's not anyone's

 5   attorney.  I just called him for legal advice and he

 6   tol --  

 7       Q.     You have a re -- okay.  And what did he tell

 8   you?  

 9       A.     I didn't explain the whole situation to him.  

10   I just said I'm going up here to be investigated and

11   talk to one of the detectives, should I bring a lawyer

12   with me, and he said I don't think you're going to need

13   a lawyer, I think they're just going to question you and

14   they're going to tape your recording and get what you

15   know, Tristan.  He said if you need anything, let me

16   know, and when you get out of there, just call me and

17   give me a heads up and let me know what happened.  

18       Q.     Okay.  

19       A.     He goes it should be completely fine.  I

20   said okay.  

21       Q.     Okay.  Did -- let me ask you this.  You said

22   that you were riding with Kyle, Corey and who?  

23       A.     Kyle, Corey and Jerry Ucci.  

24       Q.     Okay.  Just a minute.  

25       A.     I've only met him twice in my life.  


                                                         30
 1       Q.     Kyle, Corey.  

 2       A.     Bolaskis.  

 3       Q.     Yep.  And --  

 4       A.     And Jerry Ucci.  

 5       Q.     Jerry -- spell the last --  

 6       A.     I don't know him, but I say it's Y-u-s-i.  

 7       Q.     Ucci?  

 8       A.     Yeah.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  Now, you're riding around.  This

10   Jerry takes your phone, calls Kirby, then gets Vincent

11   on the phone?  

12       A.     Um hum.  

13       Q.     Okay.  Make arrangements to meet at this

14   ball field; is that right?  

15       A.     Yep.  

16       Q.     Okay.  And then you said there was a rifle

17   in the truck at that time; is that right?  

18       A.     Um hum.  

19       Q.     How did you know the rifle was in the truck?  

20       A.     It was -- I mean, it's a For -- or we were

21   in Corey's Chevy at that time.  It's a Chevy.  I mean,

22   it's three seats in the back, two in the front.  There

23   ain't anywhere to put a rifle without it being seen.  It

24   was right --  

25       Q.     Okay.  Did anybody make comment about the


                                                         31
 1   rifle?  

 2       A.     No.  

 3       Q.     And then you said you went to whose house to

 4   get another gun?  

 5       A.     We stopped at Corey and Kyle's house when we

 6   got into Chester because their house is in Chester --  

 7       Q.     Okay.  

 8       A.     -- to switch out into Kyle's truck because I

 9   guess Corey had no gas and they just wanted to get in

10   Kyle's truck.  

11       Q.     Okay.  And did you -- did they transfer the

12   rifle from the truck you were in to the other truck?  

13       A.     Yeah.  

14       Q.     Okay.  Who did that?  

15       A.     I think it was Kyle because that first one

16   was his gun --  

17       Q.     Okay.  

18       A.     -- and then, like I said, Corey came out

19   with the other one.  

20       Q.     Okay.  So Corey went into the house and

21   brought out a gun?  

22       A.     Um hum.  

23       Q.     Okay.  And why did they do that?  

24       A.     For protection as far as I'm concerned.  

25       Q.     Did they say something?  


                                                         32
 1       A.     Did they say --  

 2       Q.     Did they make comment about I'm going to get

 3   my gun or anything like that?  

 4       A.     No.  No.  

 5       Q.     They just came out and had the guns?  

 6       A.     Um hum.  

 7       Q.     Okay.  What type of comments did they make

 8   about the guns?  

 9       A.     They didn't make any comments (inaudible).  

10       Q.     You didn't make any comment, nothing?  I

11   mean --  

12       A.     No.  When we got there -- when we got there

13   and I said to Corey I'm scared, Corey, I don't know what

14   to do, Corey, he --  

15       Q.     Well, I -- I want to -- I want to back up.  

16   We're at the house.  You guys are riding around.  This

17   Jerry Ucci takes your phone, he calls this Vince kid,

18   talks to Vince.  They have a heated argument on the

19   phone; is that right?  

20       A.     Um hum.  

21       Q.     Okay.  Arrangements were made for Jerry --  

22       A.     Between both of them.  

23       Q.     -- to meet Vincent at the ball field?  

24       A.     Vincent to meet Jerry.  

25       Q.     Huh?  


                                                         33
 1       A.     For Vincent to meet Jerry.  

 2       Q.     Right.  

 3       A.     The same thing.  

 4       Q.     Right.  

 5       A.     I mean, either way, both of them were

 6   meeting.  

 7       Q.     They were going to meet there.  They -- they

 8   had a -- a conversation on the phone you said --  

 9       A.     It was a mutual agreement.  

10       Q.     -- you described it -- I would describe it

11   as a heated conversation --  

12       A.     Yeah.  

13       Q.     -- from what you told me; is that true?  

14       A.     Oh, yeah.  

15       Q.     Okay.  Then you go back to Corey's house,

16   right?  

17       A.     Um hum.  

18       Q.     Corey goes inside, gets a gun you say?  

19       A.     Um hum.  

20       Q.     What did the gun look like?  

21       A.     It's just a rifle from what I know.  I don't

22   know much about guns --  

23       Q.     Okay.  

24       A.     -- but they both were rifles, and I was told

25   they were 30-06 with different calibers.  


                                                         34
 1       Q.     All right.  And Kyle has a gun in his

 2   truck --  

 3       A.     Um hum.  

 4       Q.     -- is that right?  

 5       A.     Um hum.  

 6       Q.     I --  

 7       A.     Yes.  

 8       Q.     Okay.  

 9       A.     Sorry.  

10       Q.     And did Kyle take the rifle out of the

11   truck?  

12       A.     Out of Corey's?  He took it out of Corey's

13   and then put it in his truck --  

14       Q.     And put it in Kyle's --  

15       A.     -- and then we -- and then we headed down to

16   the field.  

17       Q.     Okay.  So you were in Corey's truck, you

18   drove to Corey's house, got into Kyle's truck?  

19       A.     Um hum.  

20       Q.     When you got into Kyle's truck, Kyle took

21   the rifle from Corey's truck and put it into Kyle's

22   truck with him?  

23       A.     Yes.  

24       Q.     Corey went into the house?  

25       A.     Um hum.  


                                                         35
 1       Q.     Came back out with another rifle --  

 2       A.     Um hum.  

 3       Q.     -- is that right?  

 4       A.     Yeah.  

 5       Q.     Okay.  So then you get into the truck.  

 6   That -- that didn't generate any conversation with you

 7   or anybody else that these guys put guns in a truck

 8   that -- with you guys and you guys were going to this

 9   ball field to meet this crazy person?  

10       A.     No, it didn't because Corey and Kyle live

11   for hunting.  They're hunters.  They're -- these are all

12   legal guns, they're registered under them --  

13       Q.     Right.  They're -- they're legal guns.  

14       A.     -- and they can have them in their car.  Not

15   loaded.  

16       Q.     They're legal guns.  They're legal guns.  

17       A.     Exactly.  

18       Q.     But I'm saying they're going --  

19       A.     So for it to be in their car isn't something

20   that is not normal to me.  

21       Q.     But you're not going hunting.  They're not

22   going hunting.  They're going to a ball field.  

23       A.     Not at all.  Oh, yeah.  

24       Q.     Okay.  

25       A.     But you can --


                                                         36
 1       Q.     Corey goes in his house and brings out an

 2   extra gun.  Already had one gun.  He went in the house,

 3   brought out another gun, and that's what I'm trying to

 4   understand is there must have been some sort of talk

 5   between them or you or whoever that talked about the

 6   rifle.  

 7       A.     No, because Kyle and Corey were the only two

 8   that got out.  Kyle -- Kyle got out, me got out, Jerry

 9   got out.  I got on the phone.  I think I was talking to

10   my girlfriend or Gib at the time, and Jerry and Kyle had

11   got -- Kyle's gotten out.  Jerry and Kyle got in the

12   Ford, and then I was standing there talking on the phone

13   and then here comes Kyle --  

14       Q.     Okay.  All right.  

15       A.     -- I mean here comes Corey.  

16       Q.     Okay.  

17       A.     And there was no talk to me -- no one said

18   anything to me about the rifles.  

19       Q.     And nobody said anything about the guns?  

20   Nobody said anything about the guns --  

21       A.     No.  

22       Q.     -- the whole way there --  

23       A.     No.  

24       Q.     -- anything?  Okay.  So then you drove and

25   you went to -- then Jerry calls this Tim Arbuckle; is


                                                         37
 1   that right?  

 2       A.     He had already -- already talked to him

 3   prior to that.  

 4       Q.     Okay.  Already talked to him prior to

 5   that --  

 6       A.     Yeah.  

 7       Q.     -- said we're coming (inaudible)?  

 8       A.     Like -- like a little while after they

 9   talked with him so --  

10       Q.     We're coming down there?  

11       A.     Yeah.  

12       Q.     Is this Tim Arbuckle, is he a good size kid?  

13   What's --  

14       A.     Yeah, he's pretty good size.  I mean, I

15   guess, yeah.  

16       Q.     Yeah.

17       A.     I don't really know him very well.  I never

18   had a conversation with him.  

19       Q.     Looked like he could take care of himself?  

20       A.     Not against this Vincent kid, no.  

21       Q.     Okay.  But they --  

22       A.     No.  No.

23       Q.     So now it's you, Kyle, Corey, Jerry --

24   Jerry's a pretty good size kid -- going down to the ball

25   field.  Tim's there.  You guys all know that this


                                                         38
 1   Vincent's coming here.  This --  

 2       A.     He's supposed to be.  

 3       Q.     Right.  

 4       A.     We -- we didn't get there until --  

 5       Q.     Arrangements were made for him to go there?  

 6       A.     Yeah, arrangements were made.  

 7       Q.     And arrangements were made between Jerry,

 8   Tim, Kyle, Corey that they were going to meet him there.  

 9   You were in the truck with them.  

10       A.     But the only arrangements were made between

11   Jerry and him --  

12       Q.     Right.  

13       A.     -- to meet there.  

14       Q.     Okay.  So you get there --  

15       A.     Irregardless -- irregardless who else was

16   there, their arrangements were to meet and them two to

17   talk --  

18       Q.     Right.  Okay.  

19       A.     -- by the sounds of it.  Was only these two.  

20       Q.     So -- so they go there, right, and you're

21   there at the ball field; is that right?  

22       A.     Um hum.  

23       Q.     Okay.  You're all at the ball field?  

24       A.     We're down there.  

25       Q.     You see the Pontiac pull in?  


                                                         39
 1       A.     Um hum.  

 2       Q.     You see Vincent get out of the Pontiac; is

 3   that right?  

 4       A.     Yeah, the back door.   

 5       Q.     And he --  

 6       A.     I think it was pass -- I think it was

 7   driver's side back door.  

 8       Q.     Okay.  And he has a Taser?  

 9       A.     Um hum.  

10       Q.     How far away from you guys was he at that

11   point?  

12       A.     (Inaudible).  

13       Q.     Looked like quite a ways to me when I saw

14   the car.  

15       A.     Yeah.  I mean, it was all the way from the

16   ball field up to the parking lot (inaudible).  

17       Q.     Hundred yards?  

18       A.     I don't know even what to say.  Yeah.  

19       Q.     (Inaudible) --

20       A.     I mean, 75 to 100 -- yeah, it was a ways

21   away.  

22       Q.     Right.

23       A.     I mean, he was a ways back.  You could just

24   barely --  

25       Q.     Would you say three telephone poles --  


                                                         40
 1       A.     Yeah, easily.  

 2       Q.     -- distance?  

 3       A.     Yeah, about.  Easily.  

 4       Q.     Okay.  So he's up there --

 5       A.     Yeah, and you could hear -- you could barely

 6   see the Taser.  You could see the electricity going

 7   between the Taser and you could hear it all every --

 8   everywhere.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  Was he saying anything?  

10       A.     No.  He was just standing up there with that

11   Taser.  

12       Q.     Okay.  

13       A.     I think I heard him say something to Tim

14   when Tim was yelling, but I couldn't hear him though.  

15       Q.     Okay.  So Tim -- Tim was down there with

16   you, so you guys are --  

17       A.     Kind of.  Tim was down there because he just

18   finished a softball game, men's league.  

19       Q.     Right.

20       A.     I mean, there was a bunch of men down there,

21   league.  They're --

22       Q.     Right.  But you guys are together at that

23   point, right?  

24       A.     No.  We're all spread out.  I went over and

25   talked to two friends that I knew there and stayed out


                                                         41
 1   of it pretty much while they were dealing with it.  

 2       Q.     Okay.  Okay.  So you hear --  

 3       A.     Everyone's spread out.  There was a lot of

 4   people down there.  They were having a cookout.  

 5       Q.     Did you hear -- you heard the yelling

 6   though?  

 7       A.     Yeah.  

 8       Q.     And at one point, Jerry and Tim, Kyle,

 9   Corey, you trailed behind a little bit --  

10       A.     Everyone was walking.  I stayed --  

11       Q.     -- started -- but they started walking

12   toward Vincent; is that true?  

13       A.     Oh, yeah, Tim and Jerry and Kyle --  

14       Q.     Okay.  

15       A.     -- were right up there.  

16       Q.     So they were headed up there?  

17       A.     Tim, Jerry and Kyle were headed up there,

18   and Gib was a little off to the right.  

19       Q.     Okay.  

20       A.     He stayed back.  I stayed back.

21       Q.     And what did it sound like to you was taking

22   place while they're walking up there?  

23       A.     From what I hear -- like I said, Tim said --

24   back there, he said bring that Taser down there, I'll

25   shove that thing up your ass and --  


                                                         42
 1       Q.     Okay.  But he didn't come down.  

 2       A.     No.  

 3       Q.     He stayed up there.  

 4       A.     No, he didn't dare come down, I don't think,

 5   because --  

 6       Q.     So if he stayed up there and you said he

 7   didn't dare to come down, you didn't think he dared to

 8   come down because --  

 9       A.     I think he did, but he wanted us to come up

10   there --  

11       Q.     Okay.  

12       A.     -- was what he wanted.  

13       Q.     So he wasn't coming down to you guys?  

14       A.     He -- he weren't going to walk down there

15   with 100 people down there, but he ended up -- he did.  

16       Q.     Right, but let me ask you this.  He's up in

17   the parking lot near the car with the Taser.  Tim's

18   yelling at him.  Is Jerry yelling at him?  

19       A.     No.  

20       Q.     Just Tim.  Okay.  And he's telling him to

21   come down there, and Vincent's not coming down there,

22   he's staying up there; is that right?  

23       A.     Right.  Yeah, and I think Vincent's trying

24   to get him up there.  

25       Q.     Okay.  So -- so he's up there.  You guys are


                                                         43
 1   about 75 to 100 yards away.  You're --  

 2       A.     They were close.  Those three were close.  

 3   They walked up.  We stayed back with --  

 4       Q.     They're moving closer to him, right?  

 5       A.     -- we stayed back with the girls and kids.  

 6   There were four kids over there, and I'm talking to the

 7   mom right there --

 8       Q.     Okay.

 9       A.     -- of the kids, and she's like we can't have

10   this here.  

11       Q.     Right.  So they're moving toward Vincent at

12   this time?  

13       A.     Yeah.  

14       Q.     As they get closer to Vincent, you said

15   Vincent -- how close to the car was Corey, Jerry, Kyle

16   and Tim?  

17       A.     Corey was back --  

18       Q.     At the time --  

19       A.     -- Corey was back a ways.  It was Jerry,

20   Kyle and Tim that were closer.  

21       Q.     Okay.  Jerry, Kyle, Tim were closer.  How

22   close to the car were they when -- when you say Vincent

23   reached into the back of the car and took out an ax?  

24       A.     50, 60 feet.  I mean --  

25       Q.     50, 60 feet?  


                                                         44
 1       A.     -- they were -- they were a little ways

 2   away.  Enough, I mean, to run but --  

 3       Q.     Okay.  

 4       A.     -- they were close.  

 5       Q.     So 50, 60 feet but close?  

 6       A.     They were getting up there.  

 7       Q.     They were getting up there.  He gets an ax.  

 8   Then what?  They --  

 9       A.     Well, what -- what I remember -- what I

10   think I remember Tim saying was what's your problem with

11   me, man, why do you -- and that's what I told you, I

12   didn't -- Tim didn't understand what he -- what his

13   problem was with him, and Tim wanted to go up there,

14   what it sounded like to me, and just figure it out,

15   what's your problem with me.  He wanted -- he started to

16   talk to him, and then when he got up there, Vincent

17   weren't having no talk.  There wasn't -- it wasn't about

18   talking.  

19       Q.     Well -- well, prior to that, though, he's up

20   there with a Taser, Tim's down there yelling up to him,

21   you know --  

22       A.     I think Vincent's trying to attract him up

23   there.  

24       Q.     -- to come down here, I'm going to shove

25   that up your ass?  


                                                         45
 1       A.     Pretty much --  

 2       Q.     Okay.  

 3       A.     -- same way, and Vincent wants us up here

 4   and they want him down here and talk.  

 5       Q.     Okay.  So they get up there, they get close,

 6   Vincent reaches in, grabs an ax, and you say Vincent

 7   chases after them; is that right?  

 8       A.     Oh, yeah.  

 9       Q.     You say that he chases down Kyle at some

10   point, and he's hitting Kyle's truck with the ax?  

11       A.     He was running behind Kyle, and he swung

12   behind Kyle.  He caught up to Kyle a little bit.  

13       Q.     Okay.  

14       A.     Kyle got up to the truck.  

15       Q.     Did Kyle ever get hit with the ax?  

16       A.     Not yet.  

17       Q.     Okay.  

18       A.     No, he never -- I don't think he did at all.  

19       Q.     So the -- the ax is hitting the truck; is

20   that right?  

21       A.     Um hum.  

22       Q.     Kyle's in the truck?  

23       A.     No.  I don't know if Kyle was in the truck.  

24       Q.     Or Kyle reaches in the truck, gets a gun you

25   saw?  


                                                         46
 1       A.     I think so.  I didn't see him grab the gun.  

 2       Q.     Okay.  

 3       A.     I didn't see him grab the gun.  All I saw

 4   was -- through the bushes is Vincent hitting that truck

 5   with that ax.  

 6       Q.     Okay.  So then you say you hear a shot?  

 7       A.     I see Vincent hitting that truck three times

 8   with that ax I'm pretty sure --  

 9       Q.     Okay.  

10       A.     -- and then I started running.  When I

11   started running, I got about halfway up out of the field

12   towards the road and I hear the gunshot and look back

13   (inaudible).  

14       Q.     Okay.  So you hear the gunshot, you go back,

15   and you say you saw Vincent on the ground?  

16       A.     I see Vincent on the ground.  

17       Q.     How was he lying on the ground after that

18   shot?  

19       A.     He was just lying on his back.  

20       Q.     On his back?  

21       A.     But I was a ways away.  

22       Q.     Okay.

23       A.     I couldn't see if his eyes are open, I

24   couldn't see how --  

25       Q.     Right.  And then you run off?  


                                                         47
 1       A.     Um hum.  

 2       Q.     And as you're running off, you hear two more

 3   shots?  

 4       A.     I hear more gunshots.  I don't know how many

 5   there was.  

 6       Q.     More gunshots.  You don't know how many.  

 7       A.     From what I think, there was four or five

 8   that went off total.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  So you hear more gunshots, and you

10   run -- but you never turned to look back or anything?  

11       A.     No, I was out of there.  

12       Q.     You got out of there?  

13       A.     Gone.  

14       Q.     That's the last you knew of the incident?  

15       A.     Called my sister, called my -- and she came

16   and picked me right up.  

17       Q.     So let me -- just to recap because I want to

18   understand this.  

19       A.     Yes.  

20       Q.     Okay?  You had problems with Vincent.  Okay?  

21   Ben's had problems with Vincent, right?  You --

22       A.     Or he's had problems with us --  

23       Q.     Right.  

24       A.     -- is what it sounded like coming up into my

25   house and trespassing.


                                                         48
 1       Q.     Right.  It's a -- yeah.  

 2       A.     It isn't mutual.  

 3       Q.     Right.  

 4       A.     I don't know this kid.  I don't have a

 5   problem with him.  I never did.  

 6       Q.     Right.  You guys have had problems with him

 7   is what I'm saying.  He's -- he's not welcome at your

 8   house.  He went there, there was problems, however that

 9   happened, but on Sunday, you drive to your house, and

10   he's out front driving past your house.  You call Kyle

11   or Corey?  

12       A.     No, Kyle was calling me.  

13       Q.     Kyle was calling you?  

14       A.     At the same time it was going on.  

15       Q.     And you told him, you know -- you know, you

16   had a conversation with him about this Vincent's at your

17   house, you're afraid of him, you know, he's stalking

18   you, you said, something along those lines.  Kyle tells

19   you we're coming to get you, right?  

20       A.     He said -- he said we're coming over, wait

21   at your house --  

22       Q.     Okay.  

23       A.     -- is what I said.  

24       Q.     So he shows up there.  He's got Corey with

25   him, he's got Jerry Ucci with him?  


                                                         49
 1       A.     They were in Corey's truck.  Corey was

 2   driving at that point.  

 3       Q.     They were in Corey's truck.  You get in

 4   with -- with them?  

 5       A.     Yeah, they said get in, calm down, Tristan,

 6   let's go for a ride, just calm down.  

 7       Q.     Okay.  So as you're riding around, this

 8   Jerry at some point takes your cell phone, calls Kirby.  

 9   Kirby tells him, you know, I don't know where Vincent

10   is, but then finally Vincent gets on the phone.  Jerry

11   has a heated conversation with Vincent.  You can't hear

12   the other end, but from what you hear from Jerry's end,

13   you're saying it sounded -- I need it in your words.  It

14   sounded --  

15       A.     It sounded heated.  

16       Q.     Are you sure?  I'm -- I don't want to put

17   words in your mouth.  I want this to be -- this is --  

18       A.     I mean, they -- they were yelling.  It

19   definitely sounded --  

20       Q.     I'm trying to get a -- I'm trying to get a

21   summary of the events so --  

22       A.     If anything -- if anything, it sounded Jerry

23   was upset.  Like I said, Jerry was saying strictly how

24   he felt about the situation, you come over here and you

25   break into people's houses when they tell you not to


                                                         50
 1   come over, you pull out knives on people, you hit

 2   somebody with an open knife in your hand.  He was

 3   explaining the situation loud and clear.  

 4       Q.     Okay.  And then at some point during that,

 5   you heard Jerry say, you know, to meet us at this ball

 6   field.  

 7       A.     Um hum.  

 8       Q.     Is that true?  

 9       A.     Yes.  

10       Q.     Okay.  So then because gas was low in

11   Corey's truck, you guys drove to Corey's house, got out.  

12   Kyle took a gun that was in Corey's truck and placed it

13   in Kyle's truck.  Corey goes into the house, comes out

14   with another gun, puts it in Kyle's truck.  You guys all

15   get back in Kyle's truck.  Sometime prior to that, Jerry

16   has a conversation with Tim Arbuckle on the phone.  

17   Tim's at that ball field; is that right?  

18       A.     Yep.  He just got done playing a softball

19   game.  

20       Q.     Okay.  And --  

21       A.     By the looks of it.  

22       Q.     Okay.  So then you guys drive to the ball

23   field.  You get to the ball field, you --  

24       A.     Before the ball field was the altercation at

25   Gleason's house.  


                                                         51
 1       Q.     At whose?  

 2       A.     Mike Gleason's house.  

 3       Q.     Were you at that house?  

 4       A.     I wasn't at that --  

 5       Q.     Right.  That -- that -- that took place.  

 6   You weren't there though.  

 7       A.     Yeah, I wasn't there.  

 8       Q.     Okay.  So you guys went to the ball field?  

 9       A.     Um hum.  

10       Q.     When you get to the ball field, you meet up

11   with Tim?  

12       A.     I didn't meet up with him.  I don't even

13   know Tim.  I never had a conversation (inaudible).  

14       Q.     They -- did they meet up with him --  

15       A.     Jerry know -- Jerry's the only one that knew

16   Tim, I think.

17       Q.     Okay.  So Jerry talked to Tim?  

18       A.     Um hum.  

19       Q.     Okay.  So Jerry meets up with Tim at the

20   ball field.  They already had a conversation about this

21   Vincent.  Right?  Is that true?  

22       A.     Um hum.  Um hum.  Yes.  

23       Q.     Okay.  And they had that conversation by

24   cell phone while they were in your truck --  

25       A.     Yeah.  Yes.  


                                                         52
 1       Q.     -- while Jerry was in your truck?  

 2       A.     Yes.  

 3       Q.     Okay.  So you guys get there, and at some

 4   point during this, the Pontiac pulls in in the upper

 5   parking lot approximately 75 to 100 yards from you?  

 6       A.     Yeah, it was quite a ways, yeah.  

 7       Q.     Okay.  

 8       A.     I'm pretty sure that sounds right.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  

10       A.     It's hard to --  

11       Q.     And you say Vincent gets out.  He's got a

12   Taser?  

13       A.     Yeah.  

14       Q.     Is that right?  

15       A.     Stun gun I would say because the Tasers

16   shoot out.  

17       Q.     Okay.  And you say that Tim is hollering up

18   to him.  What is it he's telling him?  

19       A.     Tim at first said come down here with that

20   Taser, big boy, is what I heard him say, and -- and then

21   Vincent lit it off a couple more times.  He said come

22   down here with that, and then he said -- after he said

23   that, he's like come down here, I'll shove that thing up

24   your ass.  

25       Q.     Okay.  During this, you're saying Tim,


                                                         53
 1   Jerry, Kyle, Corey's back a little bit, you're back a

 2   little bit?  

 3       A.     And Gib's back and Jor --  

 4       Q.     Gib's back?  

 5       A.     -- Jordan Ebel.  

 6       Q.     But Cor -- Kyle, Jerry, Tim start walking

 7   toward Vincent; is that right?  

 8       A.     All of us were.  I was behind but I wasn't

 9   (inaudible) --  

10       Q.     Right.  

11       A.     -- stayed with the people with -- Gib stayed

12   back because he's a bigger kid, he knows he ain't going

13   to be able to run too fast --  

14       Q.     Right.  

15       A.     -- and Corey stayed back because I think

16   he's younger, he don't want to deal with it much either,

17   he just wants, you know --  

18       Q.     Um hum.  So they're walking up?  

19       A.     They're closer, headed up.  

20       Q.     Vincent's staying at the car?  

21       A.     Um hum.  Yes.  

22       Q.     As they get close or closer, you say Vincent

23   comes out of the vehicle -- reaches in the vehicle,

24   comes out with an ax?  

25       A.     He was already -- yeah, he was standing at


                                                         54
 1   the back door and he was standing there already.  

 2       Q.     Okay.  

 3       A.     And he rea --  

 4       Q.     So he comes out with an ax?  

 5       A.     He reached down on the floor -- it looked

 6   like it wasn't on the seat.  He reached down on the

 7   floor, and all of a sudden I see this huge pole come

 8   out, and I thought it was a metal pole of some sort, and

 9   then I heard people saying he's got an ax, he's got an

10   ax as we turned around and started running because the

11   first person I see start running is Tim Arbuckle.  I

12   said if he's running, I'm out of here.  I already had a

13   head start.  I'm running down by that river.  I'm going

14   to hide.  

15       Q.     Okay.  So then as you're running, you say

16   you see Vincent swinging the ax, hitting the truck

17   several times?  

18       A.     Yeah.  I see him chasing Kyle because he was

19   catching up to Kyle is what I see.  

20       Q.     Okay.  

21       A.     And then as he was catching up to Kyle, I

22   didn't see him swing towards his legs, but I guess he

23   caught up to Kyle, and what I did see was when Kyle was

24   going to grab -- if he was grabbing the gun -- I didn't

25   see him with it, so it's hard to say if he was grabbing


                                                         55
 1   the gun at that point or when he got the gun.  I didn't

 2   see when he got the gun --  

 3       Q.     Okay.  

 4       A.     -- but I did see him swing and Kyle duck and

 5   run around the truck, and when he swung, he just barely

 6   missed Kyle, hits that truck once, twice, three times,

 7   and he's putting the full head of that mallet through

 8   that truck.  

 9       Q.     So he's hitting this truck?  

10       A.     Oh, yeah.  

11       Q.     And he's --  

12       A.     And there's people screaming, there's kids

13   there, there's people there.  I've never seen someone go

14   on a rampage like that.  I thought someone --  

15       Q.     So he's hitting the truck --  

16       A.     Oh, yeah.  

17       Q.     -- is that right?  

18       A.     Oh, yeah.  

19       Q.     Okay.  And then you hear a shot?  

20       A.     As I start running.  

21       Q.     Right.  You hear a shot.  You didn't see the

22   shot, but you turn around, you say, and went back; is

23   that right?  

24       A.     Yep.  

25       Q.     And you see Vincent lying on the ground; is


                                                         56
 1   that right?  

 2       A.     Yeah, I see Vincent lying on the ground, I

 3   see all kinds of -- it was so fast --  

 4       Q.     Do you see Kyle?  

 5       A.     -- I see all the people around.  I don't

 6   remember seeing Kyle.  I can't --  

 7       Q.     Okay.  

 8       A.     I mean, I might have saw Kyle for a fraction

 9   of a second, Corey, everyone.  There's so many people,

10   kids, parents that just --  

11       Q.     I don't want to put words in your mouth.  

12   I'm saying I'm -- I want this -- what you say you saw --  

13       A.     Yeah, that's what I saw.  

14       Q.     -- because you say you turned around after

15   hearing the shot --  

16       A.     I see a bunch of people.  It was like seeing

17   all the same people.  

18       Q.     Okay.  

19       A.     There was just so many people.  

20       Q.     But you see Vincent lying on the ground.  

21   Where was he on the ground?  

22       A.     Right.  Yeah, I see someone laying there.  I

23   want to say on the passenger's side because all our

24   trucks are parked there.  They're parked in a circle.  

25   One's parked this way, this way, that way.  They're all


                                                         57
 1   park weird.  

 2       Q.     Okay.  

 3       A.     And I think Kyle's truck was sitting like

 4   this and Vincent was laying on this -- on the left side

 5   of it, on the passenger's side on the ground.  

 6       Q.     Was Vincent face down or face up?  

 7       A.     He was on his back.  

 8       Q.     He was on his back.  Okay.  And then you

 9   turn and run again away and you hear more shots.  Do you

10   know how many shots?  

11       A.     I don't -- what I don't remember honestly is

12   if -- when I started running the first time, I know I

13   heard that first shot, but there might have been a

14   second shot when he was chasing him.  That's how I don't

15   know how he got on the ground because what I -- I mean,

16   I wasn't there, didn't see that, but what I was told was

17   he shot him in the leg and he still came after him.  

18       Q.     Who told you that?  

19       A.     There -- who told me he was shot in the leg.  

20       Q.     But you didn't see that.  What you saw --  

21       A.     I talked -- we talked to so many people last

22   night.  I talked to so many people calling my phone,

23   asking me what happened, were you with them, were you

24   with them, and I talked to so many people, and

25   everyone's saying Corey shot him in the chest, he's --


                                                         58
 1   Kyle shot him in the leg.  I mean, there's so many

 2   stories to this but -- but what I --  

 3       Q.     But you -- but what you heard was a shot --  

 4       A.     -- what I saw was the first shot, and there

 5   might have been another shot or two because I heard four

 6   or five total.  I mean, I can't -- what I honestly --  

 7       Q.     Right.  

 8       A.     -- can tell you right now, I can't put all

 9   the shots together.  

10       Q.     But what I'm saying is after you heard the

11   first shot, you looked back --  

12       A.     And there might have been another one.  

13       Q.     -- and you saw Vincent lying on the ground?  

14       A.     Yeah, and there might have been two shots at

15   that point.  

16       Q.     Okay.  

17       A.     I just don't remember.  There was four to

18   five shots within such a period of time from when I ran

19   back and was running, just from the two times I ran,

20   there must have been four to five, maybe even six shots,

21   and I -- I know --  

22       Q.     Okay.  Did you hear anybody saying anything?  

23       A.     He's hurt, he's hurt.  

24       Q.     And who said that?  

25       A.     Just some lady.  People were screaming he's


                                                         59
 1   hurt, he's hurt, and that's when I thought someone got

 2   hit with the ax, and I thought the guns were being shot

 3   off in self-defense.  I knew they were in self-defense.  

 4       Q.     But you don't know that?  

 5       A.     I know my friends and --  

 6       Q.     But you don't know that.  You didn't see it.  

 7       A.     I didn't --  

 8       Q.     I don't want you to talk about what you

 9   think.  I want you to talk about what you saw.  That's

10   what we're talking about here.  Okay?  What you heard

11   and what you saw.  

12       A.     Um hum.  

13       Q.     You heard a shot, you looked back, you see

14   Vincent on the ground, you turn and run away.  You did

15   not look back, but you heard other shots after that?  

16       A.     I -- I heard a couple shots, like I'm

17   saying.  

18       Q.     You -- right.  

19       A.     I'm not going to lie, so I don't know how to

20   explain this.  I'm telling you I heard the first shot,

21   but whether there was another one right after that that

22   put him on the ground, I don't know.  

23       Q.     Right.  

24       A.     I don't remember if there was another shot

25   when I started running or if I turned around and there


                                                         60
 1   was four shots after that.  

 2       Q.     But after -- from -- after hearing a

 3   gunshot --  

 4       A.     So fast.  

 5       Q.     -- or some gunshots, you turn and look and

 6   you see Vincent lying on the ground?  

 7       A.     And he was laying there, yeah.  

 8       Q.     Prior to that, you never saw anybody

 9   actually get hit with the ax; is that right?  

10       A.     No.  

11       Q.     I'm sorry?  

12       A.     No, I didn't.  

13       Q.     Okay.  What you did see was Vincent hitting

14   the truck with the ax several times?  

15       A.     And almost hit Kyle the first time.  

16       Q.     Okay.  

17       A.     The first shot that came at the truck was

18   towards Kyle.  He hit the truck, and then he decided to

19   keep going after the truck --  

20       Q.     Okay.  

21       A.     -- is what I saw.  

22       Q.     Okay.  Okay.  So you see what I'm

23   wondering -- I -- I'm getting at is I'm trying to -- I'm

24   trying to see the whole picture of what's going on at

25   the ball field, and it's obvious that arrangements were


                                                         61
 1   made to meet at that ball field and that -- you know,

 2   that there was some heated conversations prior to that

 3   and there's a little bit of history from the days prior

 4   leading up to this, and when Vincent gets there -- who

 5   else was in the vehicle with Vincent when he gets to the

 6   ball field?  

 7       A.     Julie Kronberg, his girlfriend, and Kirby

 8   Donahue.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  And --  

10       A.     Julie was driving.  

11       Q.     Okay.  And --  

12       A.     I think.  Pretty sure (inaudible).

13       Q.     -- when he was standing up there with this

14   stun gun, he was approximately 75 to 100 yards from you?  

15       A.     Yeah.  

16       Q.     It was your guys' group that advanced to his

17   location; is that right?  

18       A.     Yeah.  

19       Q.     He stayed by the vehicle?  

20       A.     Yeah, it was Tim who basically was the head

21   of everybody.  

22       Q.     And once -- how many people were in your

23   group moving up to him?  

24       A.     There was three moving up to him.  We stayed

25   back where all the other people were.  


                                                         62
 1       Q.     But how many were -- okay.  How many people

 2   were there approximately yelling maybe?  

 3       A.     How many people were at the ball field?  

 4   God, I don't know.  There was the team plus the parents.  

 5       Q.     Were they all -- but I mean how many in the

 6   total group of people moving toward Vincent?  

 7       A.     The top -- the top three were moving towards

 8   him.  We stayed back.  Obviously we were --  

 9       Q.     But you were moving up toward them though.  

10   You were back, but you were still going in the same

11   direction?  

12       A.     No.  No.  

13       Q.     You just stood there and you never walked

14   toward him?  

15       A.     If you want to say -- I -- no, I was in the

16   group with all the people.

17       Q.     Right.  

18       A.     Right here in the middle of the group is

19   where I was talking because I went over and saw a couple

20   of my friends over there --  

21       Q.     Um hum.  

22       A.     -- talking to them.  When Tim started to

23   head up there, I see they're a ways ahead and they

24   started out there, and I walked out towards the end of

25   these group of people that were hanging out, and I was


                                                         63
 1   standing next to a lady that was saying I can't have

 2   this here, my kids, my kids, and I said no, I said this

 3   ain't good, I don't -- I said I don't know what's going

 4   to happen, and I stayed back there with the lady that

 5   was right there within the whole group of people.  

 6       Q.     Okay.  

 7       A.     They all headed up there in the top three

 8   that were right up there near him that walked up -- in

 9   fact, if Tom was right ahead, then behind him were these

10   two.  

11       Q.     Now, is there -- is there still some verbal

12   communication between them and Vincent at this time?  

13       A.     I couldn't hear what -- I couldn't hear what

14   was being said at that --  

15       Q.     Could you hear yelling?  

16       A.     I could hear -- yeah.  

17       Q.     Okay.

18       A.     I mean, I could hear both of them saying

19   some stuff, but I couldn't hear it.  I was back here.  

20       Q.     What did it sound to you like?  

21       A.     I don't know.  They were just talking.  They

22   weren't completely screaming, yelling.  Little heated.  

23   As mad as they were on the phone, no.  Like I said, Tom

24   was -- Tim was going up there to figure out what this

25   kid's problem was.  That's what it sounded like to me


                                                         64
 1   with Tim.  

 2       Q.     Um hum.  

 3       A.     Tim had made that loud and clear.  

 4       Q.     How did Tim get involved in this?  

 5       A.     I told you Jerry called him.  

 6       Q.     Right, but I mean how did Tim think that

 7   Vincent had a problem with Tim?  

 8       A.     I don't know.  That's what I said.  He just

 9   kept saying that at the field.  He just kept saying

10   why -- what's this kid's problem with me, why does he

11   got a problem with me, I'll go figure this out.  

12       Q.     Did somebody say he had a problem with --  

13       A.     No, no one ever said he had a problem.  When

14   Jerry called him, Jerry never said he had a problem with

15   Tim prior.  I think Tim was just there just getting --

16   so -- to make sure nothing happened because Tim's a

17   bigger kid from what I know.  I've never met him.  

18       Q.     So this -- it sounds to me that Jerry --

19   when you guys were riding in the truck, Jerry makes this

20   call to Tim; is that right?  

21       A.     I think he was scared by the sounds of it.  

22       Q.     Who was?  

23       A.     Jerry obviously if he was calling somebody

24   else.  

25       Q.     Okay.  Is that why they chose the ball


                                                         65
 1   field?  

 2       A.     Why?  

 3       Q.     Because Tim was there?  

 4       A.     I don't know.  I don't even know.  That's

 5   the first time I've been down to that ball field in

 6   Chester.  

 7       Q.     I mean, how did --  

 8       A.     I don't know why they chose the ball field.  

 9       Q.     When Jerry called Tim, did he know that Tim

10   was at the ball field?  

11       A.     No, he didn't.  That was the weird thing.  

12   He had called and he said we could meet at the -- he

13   said we're going to go down the ball field, and Tim said

14   I'm already down here.  He just had -- they just had a

15   baseball game.  

16       Q.     Okay.  

17       A.     I don't know if it was a tournament or if it

18   was just a game, but it just got done.  

19       Q.     Okay.  Okay.  All right.  So since this --

20   since this happened, okay, who have you spoken with

21   about this incident?  

22       A.     Who have I spoken with?  I talked to -- I

23   didn't -- I talked to Corey just before I came here

24   about the event.  

25       Q.     Okay.  And what did Corey tell you?  


                                                         66
 1       A.     Corey told me that he -- his parents have a

 2   lawyer, and he gave me the lawyer's number, and the

 3   lawyer wants me to call him and talk with him.  

 4       Q.     Did you call him?  

 5       A.     I haven't called him yet.  

 6       Q.     Who's the lawyer?  

 7       A.     I don't know.  I just got the number at the

 8   house.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  So you spoke to Corey.  What else did

10   Corey tell you?  Did he say anything about the incident?  

11       A.     That was just it.  That was just it.  He

12   told me that we can use as much help as we can get,

13   Tristan.  He just said my -- my lawyer needs -- he needs

14   people to talk to him from the incident, and he goes he

15   told me to talk to anyone I can and try and get them to

16   call him and set up a meeting.  I said Corey, I will

17   definitely do that for you in a heartbeat.  

18       Q.     Now, let me ask you this.  You, Kyle, Corey

19   and Jerry are in the -- in Kyle's truck with two guns.  

20   Jerry's had this heated conversation with Vincent.  He's

21   also spoken to Tim Arbuckle about Vincent and this

22   altercation that's going to take place, this -- this

23   meeting at the ball field.  As you're going there --

24   and, you know, I'm sure there's some, you know -- is

25   there some conversation in the truck about this on the


                                                         67
 1   way there?  

 2       A.     Not really.  I mean, they were just playing

 3   music, loud music.  They kept turning the music up so he

 4   couldn't even talk.  

 5       Q.     Okay.  Was anybody drinking?  

 6       A.     Yes.  

 7       Q.     Who?  

 8       A.     Corey, Kyle and Jerry.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  When you say drinking, how much had

10   they had to drink?  

11       A.     I don't know honestly because when I got in

12   the truck with them --  

13       Q.     Were they drinking while they were driving?  

14   Look, this isn't a DWI case, okay, but were they

15   drinking when they were driving?  Or when they were

16   cruising around, were they drinking?  Were they having

17   some beers?  

18       A.     I didn't see -- I didn't -- no, I didn't see

19   Corey with a beer in his hand.  I think I was pretty

20   aware that he had been drinking, I think, but I didn't

21   see him with a beer in his hand when he was driving.  

22       Q.     Okay.  When you say that you were aware

23   that they had been drinking, did you see Jerry with a

24   beer?  

25       A.     Yeah, Jerry had a beer.  He was in the back


                                                         68
 1   seat.  

 2       Q.     Did you see -- did you see Corey with a

 3   beer?  

 4       A.     No, not Corey.  

 5       Q.     Did you see Kyle with a beer?  

 6       A.     Yeah.  

 7       Q.     What kind of beer was it?  

 8       A.     Budweiser I'm pretty sure.  

 9       Q.     The King of Beers?  

10       A.     Oh, yeah.  

11       Q.     Okay.  

12       A.     I hate beer.  

13       Q.     How do you know Corey was drinking?  You say

14   it was obvious to you that he was?  

15       A.     Because it just seemed -- it seemed as

16   though they were all -- they were all riled up, they

17   were just listening to music, and I know them, but I

18   don't know if Corey was honestly because he didn't have

19   a beer.  I knew those two because they had a beer in

20   their hand.  

21       Q.     How was their speech?  

22       A.     How was their speech?  Sounded fine to me.  

23       Q.     Their eyes?  

24       A.     Looked fine to me.  That other two, Jerry

25   and obviously Kyle were drinking.  


                                                         69
 1       Q.     Okay.  

 2       A.     But I don't know about Corey.  It just seems

 3   as though, but I don't know if he was or not.  He could

 4   have been at his house.  Who knows.  But I didn't see

 5   Corey with any beer.  

 6       Q.     But without a doubt, you're positive you saw

 7   Kyle and Jerry drinking beer?  

 8       A.     Yeah.  

 9       Q.     Budweiser?  

10       A.     Yeah.  

11       Q.     How many did you see them drink?  

12       A.     Two or three within the time I was with

13   them.  

14       Q.     Two or three at the time that you were with

15   them?  

16       A.     Um hum.  

17       Q.     Did you see any empty cans?  

18       A.     Did I see any empty cans?  Yeah, they must

19   have had empty cans in the -- in the 12-pack or whatever

20   they had.  I didn't even see whether it was 12- or

21   24-pack, but I imagine there was some in there, but no,

22   I didn't see it.  

23       Q.     Was it more than a six-pack they had?  

24       A.     I'm pretty sure there was a 12-pack.  

25       Q.     Okay.  


                                                         70
 1       A.     I don't know if it was 12 or 24.  I don't

 2   know honestly, and I'm sure they were putting them back

 3   in there.  

 4       Q.     Okay.  So my question is this is taking

 5   place.  You guys think this Vincent -- or you think this

 6   Vincent -- because it doesn't sound like Jerry's afraid

 7   of him?  

 8       A.     Well, if he's calling Tim Arbuckle, it does

 9   though.  

10       Q.     Okay.  

11       A.     To me.  I mean, I think he -- I think people

12   try to act tougher than they are, and when you see

13   something like that, when he's calling Tim and just

14   explain to Tim, you know, this kid --  

15       Q.     At what point --  

16       A.     -- it sounded like he was scared of him at

17   that point.  

18       Q.     At what point while you --

19       A.     (Inaudible).

20       Q.     -- you're riding in the truck with these

21   three people who you know have been drinking --  

22       A.     The two.  

23       Q.     Or two that you know have been drinking.  

24   You think -- you thought Corey might have been

25   drinking?  


                                                         71
 1       A.     I'm not sure if Corey was.  

 2       Q.     But you're not sure.  Okay.  You're not

 3   sure.  You're not sure.  Kyle and Jerry are definitely

 4   drinking?  

 5       A.     Yeah.  

 6       Q.     They've got guns in the truck.  They're on

 7   their way to confront this Vincent, Jerry and Tim

 8   Arbuckle and whatnot.  You're going to the ball field to

 9   confront him.  At any time during that, did you or

10   anybody else in the truck say hey, let's -- let's go

11   to the police station, let's tell the police about

12   this?  

13       A.     No, and you want to know why in my eyes?  

14   Because Springfield PD didn't do their job.  

15       Q.     Okay.  At what point did anybody say let's

16   go to the state police barracks in Rockingham?  

17       A.     What's the state police any different than

18   Springfield's around here.  Statewide jurisdiction.  

19   They're all the same to me, and I've dealt with all of

20   them --  

21       Q.     Okay.  

22       A.     -- and I can tell you right now that they

23   weren't doing their job.  

24       Q.     You're saying the state police?  

25       A.     I'm saying that Springfield didn't do their


                                                         72
 1   job --  

 2       Q.     Okay.  

 3       A.     -- and the state police should have been

 4   involved when that kid came, you know, trespassing at my

 5   house and I told him not to.  

 6       Q.     Okay.  Now, when you guys are in the truck,

 7   you're going to meet with this -- this is important.  

 8   Okay?  It's important.  

 9       A.     Oh, yeah, definitely.  

10       Q.     All right?  You guys are on your way to

11   confront somebody who you -- you're afraid of, you said,

12   and you've got guns in the trucks, there's alcohol

13   involved, and I'm wondering did anybody say let's call

14   the state police?  

15       A.     No.  

16       Q.     Did anybody say let's call Springfield

17   police?  

18       A.     Why would they?  

19       Q.     Okay.  Did anybody say let's call Chester

20   police?  

21       A.     No.  

22       Q.     Okay.  But you have a cell phone with you;

23   is that right?  

24       A.     Yeah.  

25       Q.     You have the ability to call 911; is that


                                                         73
 1   right?  

 2       A.     Um hum.  

 3       Q.     Okay.  I --  

 4       A.     I wasn't doing anything wrong, though, but

 5   it was --  

 6       Q.     And that's fine, but you --  

 7       A.     I wasn't drinking, I didn't have a gun in my

 8   hand --

 9       Q.     I -- I'm not saying --

10       A.     -- I wasn't doing nothing --

11       Q.     Believe me --

12       A.     -- and why am I going to call someone that I

13   don't feel is there even to help me.  

14       Q.     Tristan, believe me, I understand that

15   you --  

16       A.     I'm just saying I'm going to explain my

17   side on this a little bit, too, and how I feel about

18   the situation and how I feel about them doing their

19   jobs.  

20       Q.     Right.  I understand that.  But what I'm

21   saying is you -- you saw these guys put guns in the

22   truck and you know where you're going.  Now, I'm not

23   saying you did anything -- I'm not saying you did

24   anything wrong, Tristan.  I'm trying to get to the

25   bottom of it.  Okay?  


                                                         74
 1             I'm trying to understand the mood, the

 2   situation where you guys are moving to this ball field.  

 3   Okay?  What's taking place here and what's taking place

 4   to lead up to that, and I'm -- I'm trying to see that,

 5   you know, you know where you're headed with this -- I

 6   mean, you got -- you're sitting in the truck headed

 7   there.  You -- did you -- did you think this was a bad

 8   situation as you're driving there?  

 9       A.     I told you when Jerry and Kyle got out of

10   the truck, I said to Corey I'm scared, Corey, you know,

11   I don't know what's going to happen.  

12       Q.     Okay.  So you -- you knew it wasn't a good

13   situation?  

14       A.     I knew that that kid is not a good

15   situation.  

16       Q.     Okay.  

17       A.     I knew he was going to hurt somebody.  I

18   knew he -- you know, I thought --  

19       Q.     So when he was standing up there

20   approximately 75 to 100 yards away and you saw Kyle,

21   Jerry and Tim headed toward him, you didn't think that

22   was a good situation, did you?  

23       A.     Scared shitless.  

24       Q.     You were what?  

25       A.     Scared shitless, shaking.  


                                                         75
 1       Q.     Okay.  Okay.  So --  

 2       A.     I know I -- I told everyone -- I told

 3   everyone that this kid is psycho, he's huge, he's big.  

 4   No one listened to me, dude.  I can -- I didn't -- you

 5   just see him -- I didn't feel comfortable in my house

 6   anymore after he came to my house that night.  I have

 7   never -- when that kid walked up in my house that day,

 8   Detective, I have never felt so uncomfortable in my

 9   house when he walked up there, when we told him not to

10   come up there.  

11       Q.     Tell me about this -- did -- what was the

12   situation between Ben, Julie and Vincent?  

13       A.     I don't know because I've never been in the

14   middle of that.  All I know is what was said that day at

15   my house (inaudible).  

16       Q.     Okay.  But it was said there.  Did -- did it

17   seem to you that Vincent was there to see this Ben?  

18       A.     Um hum.  And because I don't think he

19   liked the text message I wrote to her saying don't

20   bring strangers to my house, which clearly meant

21   Vincent.  

22       Q.     Yeah.  

23       A.     I mean, he was there that -- on Thursday

24   night, and we were scared shitless and intimidated by

25   him, and Michelle said please don't ever let that kid


                                                         76
 1   back in our house.  I said trust me, I won't.  And then

 2   Kirby was calling us that day and we didn't answer, and

 3   I wrote a text message saying please don't bring

 4   strangers into our house, we can't deal with the drama

 5   at our house, short story, and please don't call mine or

 6   Michelle's phones.  20 minutes later, he's walking in my

 7   house, and I never felt like I could not protect myself

 8   or my girlfriend for the first time in my life.  

 9       Q.     What was the conversation in the truck with

10   Jerry, Tim, Kyle?  What -- what was going on when they

11   were talking about meeting this Vincent?  What were

12   their intentions?  What were they going to do?  

13       A.     They never said what they were going to do.  

14   There was never any intentions to fight, there was never

15   any intentions to shoot somebody, there was never any

16   intentions to anything.  All that I thought was going to

17   happen to is someone was going to get scared, at the

18   least, someone was going to throw a punch.  That's what

19   I thought was going to happen.  

20             I figure that these kids just don't want

21   people coming into Vermont and going in people's houses

22   and scaring the shit out of someone like us and carrying

23   a knife around, carrying a stun gun around, punching

24   somebody with an open knife in his hand.  I mean, people

25   are scared of this kid.  This kid is crazy and that's


                                                         77
 1   how I felt.  

 2       Q.     Okay.  Okay.  You understand I'm trying to

 3   get the full picture --  

 4       A.     Yeah.  

 5       Q.     -- because, you know, at some point during

 6   that road trip with the alc -- with Jerry and Kyle

 7   drinking -- were you drinking?  

 8       A.     No.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  So Kyle and Jerry drinking, the

10   conversations you're hearing take place --  

11       A.     They tried to offer me a beer.  

12       Q.     -- knowing where you're headed, guns in the

13   vehicle, and I -- I just -- I wanted to understand, you

14   know, the situation that -- and you had the cell

15   phone --  

16       A.     I think that everyone -- I think everyone

17   felt scared because if -- I mean, if Kyle's got a --  

18       Q.     But not --  

19       A.     -- Kyle's got a gun, Corey ends up getting a

20   gun, that seemed like scared acts to me, and then Jerry

21   calling Tim, another scared act.  I mean, I'm filling

22   these kids -- telling them that I -- this kid's crazy.  

23   I go I'd even -- I said it.  I told them plenty of

24   times, I said this kid's crazy, I don't feel safe at my

25   house, I don't know if he's going to be there when I go


                                                         78
 1   home at nighttime.  

 2             I can't even sleep anymore.  I'm staying

 3   at my sister's house.  I got -- we got to move out of

 4   our apartment over here in Chester now.  And now me

 5   and my girlfriend are scared shitless, and she's so

 6   scared that we can't even stay in our apartment that

 7   people are going to come up from Boston because of this

 8   situation.  

 9       Q.     Okay.  Okay.  What I'd like to do -- and

10   time right now is 1899 hours.  If you could raise your

11   right hand for me, please.  Do you swear everything you

12   have told me is the truth, nothing but the truth, so

13   help you God?  

14       A.     Yes, I do.  

15       Q.     Do you have any reason to lie to me today?  

16       A.     No, I don't.  

17       Q.     Is there any lies in this statement that you

18   provided?  

19       A.     No, there is not.  

20       Q.     Okay.  Have you got any reason to lie for

21   anybody?  

22       A.     No, I do not.  

23       Q.     Okay.  Would you lie for somebody?  

24       A.     No, I wouldn't.  

25       Q.     Okay.  Again do you swear everything you


                                                         79
 1   have told me, including what we just went over, is the

 2   truth, nothing but the truth, so help you God?  

 3       A.     Yes, I do.  

 4               DET. SGT. WALT SMITH:  Okay.  And that

 5   concludes this statement.  The time now is 1820 hours.  

 6   The date is still 8/18/2008.  

 7       (Thereupon, the proceedings were concluded.)

 8    

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                                                         80
 1                     CERTIFICATE

 2    

 3          I, Donna Gould, do hereby certify that the

 4   foregoing pages, numbered 1 through 80, inclusive, are a

 5   true and accurate transcription, to the best of my

 6   ability, of the digitally-recorded statement of Tristan

 7   Blanchard held on August 18, 2008, in the matter of

 8   State v. Kyle Bolaski, at the Vermont State Police

 9   barracks in Rockingham, Vermont.

10    

11    

12    

13                           ____________________________

14    

15                                        Donna Gould

16                                        Transcriber
 
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------[if

THE FOLLOWING ARE THE GRAND JURY STATEMENTS OF TRISTAN BLANCHARD. YOU WILL SEE HOW MUCH IT DIFFERS FROM HIS INITIAL STATEMENTS TO NOW COINCIDE WITH BOLASKI'S. YOU WILL SEE HOW ROBERT SAND ALLOWS, AND EVEN ENCOURAGES  BLANCHARD TO LIE ABOUT THE EVENTS. HOW SAND NEVER CHALLENGES HIM ON ANY OF HIS TESTIMONY. HOW SAND ALLOWS PERJURY!

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Tristan Blanchard

05               MR. SAND:  Tristan Blanchard is the next

 06  witness. 

 07               (Witness sworn by Foreperson)

 08               THE WITNESS:  Yes.

 09  BY MR. SAND: 

 10  Q.     Would you introduce yourself, please, to the grand

 11  jury?

 12  A.     Tristan Blanchard, born in Springfield, work for

 13  NBC Solid Services, Springfield.

 14  Q.     Where do you live now?

 15  A.     In Chester, Vermont, 23 School Street, middle of

 16  Chester, on the green.

 17  Q.     And who do you live with?

 18  A.     My girl friend, Michelle Lachapelle.

 19  Q.     How would you like me to address you,         

 20  Mr. Blanchard, Tristan?

 21  A.     Tristan's fine.

 22  Q.     Okay.  Tristan, before you came here today, are

 23  you aware that I had some discussions with an attorney

 24  that you had spoken with?

 25  A.     Yes.

0206

 01  Q.     Okay.  And are you aware that I indicated in a

 02  letter to your attorney that, to the extent you had any

 03  contact, connection with, involvement with anything

 04  involving any illegal drugs that related to this case,

 05  you would not be prosecuted for that?

 06  A.     Yep.

 07  Q.     You remember?

 08  A.     Yes.

 09  Q.     So you were given what we call immunity so that

 10  could you talk here today, tell the jury, grand jury, the

 11  truth, and you won't have to worry about getting yourself

 12  in trouble?

 13  A.     Um-hum, yes.

 14  Q.     Right?  So is it your understanding today as I ask

 15  you questions you won't get in trouble for anything that

 16  I ask you?

 17  A.     Yes.

 18  Q.     Okay.  So with that understanding, when is the

 19  first time that you met a person who, by the name of

 20  Vinny?

 21  A.     It was the Thursday night prior to Sunday which

 22  was the incident on Sunday.

 23  Q.     How did you meet Vinny?

 24  A.     Kirby had called my phone, Kirby Donahue, they

 25  had -- Gib Bastian, one of the other people involved,

0207

 01  they used to come over to our house frequently because me

 02  and Michelle known Gib for years, and she used to date

 03  Gib.  They broken up before this happened.  And we didn't

 04  really want Kirby at our house anymore.  We knew she was

 05  trouble.  We knew she was problem.  She caused a lot of

 06  drama between Michelle and her cousin and other friends

 07  involved.  We basically, we didn't want her at our house

 08  anymore.  She called our phone Thursday night.  I wasn't

 09  aware of her number.  They changed her number because Gib

 10  and her broke up.  A lot of people were answering her

 11  phones for that reason.  Me and Michelle aren't going to

 12  be one, do you want to go out and party, you want to go

 13  out and do something?  Basically getting us to go out. 

 14  Can I stop by?  I have a friend with me, his name is

 15  Vinny.  I mean, friends stop by, so I said go ahead,

 16  bring him over.

 17  Q.     As a result of that phone call, did they come to

 18  your house?

 19  A.     Yes.

 20  Q.     Had you met Vinny before?

 21  A.     Never.

 22  Q.     Who arrived at your house?

 23  A.     As far as I know, Julie Kronberg.

 24  Q.     Who arrives in the house?

 25  A.     In my house, came in my house, was Kirby and


0208

 01  Vinny.

 02  Q.     Who was at your house?

 03  A.     Me and Michelle and Jeff Cole, C-O-L-E. 

 04  Q.     How did that visit go?

 05  A.     A little scary.  When he walked in the door, he

 06  walked up my stairs inside the kitchen, I got the

 07  impression I was in trouble.  I mean, he wasn't a kid.  I

 08  can tell he was older, what, I know he was thirty-three

 09  years old.  He was easily two hundred fifty, three

 10  hundred pounds, had a tools wife beater on, which is a

 11  tank top, kind of, for guys.  And we walked up and sat

 12  down.  Kirby sat down.  They told us they were going out,

 13  I want to say they were going to West Lebanon, New

 14  Hampshire, out to the club.  I'm not sure, pretty sure

 15  that's what they said, though.  And they were trying to

 16  get Michelle more or less to go because they know I don't

 17  like to go, or Kirby does, and Michelle's saying I don't

 18  want to go, we're saying at the house .  He started

 19  introducing himself, he said my name's Vin, I'm from

 20  Boston, with a Boston accent.  He said my brother is CT,

 21  he's known very well from being on the MTV show Real

 22  World, where they bring a bunch of kids together from the

 23  world, put them in the house together, and they live

 24  together, and they tape it.  His brother is pretty well

 25  known.  I know who he was.  And he said I'm CT's brother,

0209

 01  I'm Vinny, I'm from Boston, I'm from Boston.  He started

 02  going on next about some pills, he said I can get

 03  OxyCotin eighty milligrams, I just had a hundred, a

 04  hundred fifty of them the day before, bring them back

 05  from Boston, get you plenty more.  Do you want any?  Do

 06  you like them?  I said no, I'm not interested, I don't do

 07  stuff like that.  Well, you like Xanax?  I can get them. 

 08  I said no, I don't like them.  He sat there and kept,

 09  you're sure?  I explained several times I didn't want

 10  them.  He looked on the table, I had two pills on the

 11  table, one and a half, actually, they were OxyCotin,

 12  Percocet.  I'm prescribed them for my work, I've been out

 13  of work for workman's comp. 

 14  Q.     You're --

 15  A.     I'm, for a back injury at NBC, I'm prescribed

 16  OxyCotin.  I've been to the Mt. Ascutney Medical Center,

 17  plenty of places.  Well, he said, can I get one of those

 18  off you?  I said no, I'm prescribed those, those are for

 19  my back, I'm out on workman's comp.  He said come on,

 20  come on, I like those, too.  I said I don't care. 

 21  Several times I told him no.  Got to the point where he

 22  kept asking, said, well, he picks up the half one, can I

 23  have this, can I have this?  I'll give you Xanax for it. 

 24  I sat there, I didn't know what to say anymore.  I told

 25  you no a thousand times.  He put it in his pocket and

0210

 01  threw the Xanax on the table.  Threw it out after he

 02  left.  Before he left he sat there, he said, Kirby, let's

 03  get fucked up, here, this is this koladapin.  She

 04  swallows it.  Ask Michelle again to go out.  We made it

 05  clear we didn't want to go out.  He stood up, shook my

 06  hand.  That night I let him go on his good graces, get

 07  him out of my house.

 08  Q.     Okay, I'm going to certain areas, try to move you

 09  along a little bit.  If I cut you off, I'm not trying to

 10  be rude, but I'm also aware of the time. 

 11  A.     Yep.

 12  Q.     As a result of that visit, did you call or text

 13  anyone about telling them not to come back to your house?

 14  A.     Not until they called again.

 15  Q.     Who called you?

 16  A.     Saturday, Kirby called me.  And she called me

 17  several times.  Only reason I answered her phone call on

 18  Thursday was because she had broken up with Gib and

 19  changed her number.  Now I have her number, I said I'm

 20  not answering this phone call.  Michelle said several

 21  times don't answer it, so I didn't.  I had decided the

 22  best thing to do is write her a text message, which write

 23  on the phone, she can read it.  I wrote to her simply

 24  stating there's been problems with you, Michelle, other

 25  friends that came here for years, I said obviously if

0211

 01  there's problem with you and the people coming here, you

 02  can't be coming here anymore.  I said don't call my

 03  phone, don't call Michelle's phone anymore, and please

 04  don't ever bring a stranger to my house again.  Thank

 05  you.  Very simple and nice.

 06  Q.     In referencing that you're telling Kirby stop her

 07  contact with you and Michelle, and you are indicating

 08  don't bring strangers, referencing Vinny?

 09  A.     Um-hum.

 10  Q.     Yes?

 11  A.     Oh, yeah.

 12  Q.     That's a text message?

 13  A.     Yep.

 14  Q.     When's the next time that you see Vinny?

 15  A.     About ten, twenty minutes later.

 16  Q.     After sending the next message?

 17  A.     Yep.

 18  Q.     What happened? 

 19  A.     We're sitting there playing PS3 on my TV in my

 20  living room, me, Ben Millay, was there, and Jordan. 

 21  Michelle was in the bedroom.  I look over, and it was

 22  like stunning, he's standing in my kitchen.  He got to

 23  walk through two doors at the bottom of my stairs to get

 24  into my apartment.  It's apartment building.  You walk

 25  through one door, mud room, walk through another door, go

0212

 01  upstairs, you're in the kitchen.  The kitchen is the

 02  living room.  I look over, he's standing in my kitchen. 

 03  Standing there.  I said, I looked twice, what's going on

 04  here?  Said something bad is going to happen here.  Don't

 05  know what he wants, don't know what he needs.  He

 06  obviously saw that text message, was upset.  She showed

 07  it to him.  Well, out comes Kirby.  Michelle came walking

 08  out of the bedroom and looked and saw him.  Michelle

 09  didn't take that kind of stuff, is not one to take him

 10  walking into her home.  Michelle came out, get out of my

 11  house now.  He didn't move, didn't listen, didn't say

 12  nothing.  Kirby started yelling, Michelle, what did I do

 13  to you?  What's wrong?  What did I do to you?  Michelle

 14  started explaining herself quickly, she said I don't have

 15  to explain myself, this is my house, get out. 

 16  Q.     If I do this, Tristan, I'm slowing you down. 

 17  A.     I'll try to watch you.  She turned around, crying,

 18  turned around, down the stairs.  And he stood there,

 19  still didn't say anything.  He approached, come walking

 20  up that first step, walked right up in my living room. 

 21  That's when I needed to stand up, stand up in my home,

 22  say something, do something.  I didn't know exactly what

 23  to do.  I was still nervous, and he's a lot bigger than I

 24  am.  Walked up, stands in my face, he puts his finger in

 25  my face, and he says you got a fucking problem?  I said

0213

 01  not really, other than you're in our home, I don't know

 02  who you are, you're a stranger to me.  He looked at Ben

 03  sitting on the couch, he goes who are you?  I'm Ben.  

 04  Let's go outside and talk.  Ben goes no, don't want to go

 05  outside and talk.  I said, Ben, stay right here.  He

 06  goes, goes again, let's go outside and talk, what, are

 07  you scared?  Ben says, no, we're talking right here,

 08  talking right now, you can talk to me right here.  He

 09  said no, come on, let's go outside.  Said it several

 10  times.  Ben told me later on that night he put a

 11  cigarette in his mouth and went outside with him to get

 12  him out of my house.  He felt it was the best thing, just

 13  to get him out. 

 14  Q.     Did he go out?

 15  A.     Yes.  Michelle said don't worry, Ben, we are right

 16  behind you.  He went down there, he got in Ben's face.  I

 17  couldn't hear what they were talking about other than

 18  Vinny saying something about a text message sent to Julie

 19  this morning or some point, and Ben, I heard say, there's

 20  no text message, I don't know what you're talking about,

 21  said I don't know what to tell you.  Said so there is a

 22  text message, you're lying to me, it's like you want to

 23  fight me right now.  Ben says no, I don't want to fight

 24  you.  Told him flat out.  What, are you scared?  No, I'm

 25  not scared because I'm not going to fight you.

0214

 01  Q.     Is that Ben talking or you talking?

 02  A.     That was Ben talking to him.  He said I'm not

 03  going to fight you, I'm not scared, the only reason I'm

 04  not scared because I have no reason to fight you, he

 05  said, over a girl, when I didn't even write this, Ben

 06  said.  Here, come over with me.  Walked over to Julie's

 07  car and Julie was sitting in the back seat.  Said Julie,

 08  where's that text message?  She didn't have anything to

 09  say.  There was no text message.

 10  Q.     Did you have some further interaction with Vinny?

 11  A.     Oh, yeah.  At that point, he came over and looked

 12  at me, started yelling, get me a forty bag, get me a

 13  forty bag, which meant a bag of marijuana, and I went

 14  upstairs.  Michelle was still upstairs.  I said Michelle

 15  we call the cops.  Why should we?  He's going to attack

 16  Ben right now, I don't know what to do with this kid.  I

 17  want to get him out of here.  She said give him what he

 18  wants.  Grab my own personal bag, my pot on the table,

 19  which probably make a forty bag, I don't know what it

 20  weighed. 

 21  Q.     Is that, that weight or dollar amount?

 22  A.     What he was saying was dollar, a forty bag, forty

 23  dollars.  I went up, grabbed what I had on my table, my

 24  own bag.  I said here's some here.  Walked away by

 25  ourselves.  That was about my dumbest move to this day. 


0215

 01  He could have stabbed me, he could have hit me, stabbed

 02  me, anything.  He smelled it, I'll get your money.  Felt

 03  like, I don't want your money, get out of here.  It was

 04  mine, anyway, I don't sell drugs.  I said it was mine, I

 05  felt like saying, to get him out of here.  Followed him

 06  up.  He said Julie, give me money.  Julie, give me money. 

 07  She goes to open her purse, and she closes it back up. 

 08  He says, Kirby, get in the car.  Why does Kirby need to

 09  get in the car?  Kirby, get in the car.  What are you

 10  doing?  He backs up, and Kirby gets in.  I said what are

 11  you doing?  He keeps backing up.  All right, said that

 12  was it.  Worst mistake, I started getting upset.  I

 13  started crying.  I realized at that point I felt about

 14  this low.  I couldn't protect my home, couldn't protect

 15  my girl friend, my friends in my own home.  Never felt so

 16  scared, so lost.  He was twice the size I was, you could

 17  tell the kind of person he was by looking at him.  My

 18  reaction was to do something about it.  I hopped in my

 19  car.

 20  Q.     They left, and you hadn't been paid?

 21  A.     No.

 22  Q.     Is that right?

 23  A.     Nope.  That was the last thing I was worried about

 24  at that point.  I was mad about, about him breaking into

 25  my home.

0216

 01  Q.     You were mad he broke in your home?

 02  A.     Threatening my girl friend, threatening me. 

 03  Q.     You said you didn't want strangers --

 04  A.     Oh, yeah.

 05  Q.     Followed him going to Springfield?

 06  A.     What happened was I followed him out of there.  I

 07  jumped right in my car, followed him right down to the

 08  middle of Chester, down to Mike Gleason's house, right in

 09  front of Mike Gleason's, and I was right behind him.  My

 10  instant reaction, I wanted to smash my car into this kid,

 11  I wanted to do anything, I need to do something.  I

 12  didn't do anything, but I didn't, I held back.  I've been

 13  in trouble, I know what you're supposed to do.  I held

 14  back.  He turned in this road, turned into driveway, came

 15  back out after me.  That's when I realized I got no shoes

 16  on, I don't have a cell phone, I don't have a weapon, I

 17  have nothing.  What am I going to do?  So I pulled into

 18  Mike's.  That's when I started banging on Mike's door,

 19  screaming and yelling.  I thought they were going to pull

 20  into Mike's, and they didn't.  Mike said, Tristan, calm

 21  down.  I told him the kid had threatened me and my girl

 22  friend and Ben. 

 23  Q.     Tristan, one of the reasons that I'm going to move

 24  you along is we've heard a lot of this, so if it feels

 25  like I'm pushing you a little bit, it's probable because

0217

 01  I am, to some areas that may be more critical.  Did you

 02  go to Springfield? 

 03  A.     Yeah.

 04  Q.     Okay.  And who are you, were you with?

 05  A.     Mike Gleason.

 06  Q.     Anyone else in this vehicle?

 07  A.     No.

 08  Q.     Did another car of your friends go to Springfield

 09  as well?

 10  A.     Yeah, Michelle, Ben, and Jordan went looking for

 11  me when I went down to Mike's.

 12  Q.     Okay.  What happened when you got to Springfield?

 13  A.     I got to Springfield, and everyone had already

 14  followed him up to Julie's house.  There was an

 15  altercation on the back road.  Michelle, and then -- but

 16  you'll find that out.

 17  Q.     You weren't there for that?

 18  A.     I wasn't there for that.  They followed him, found

 19  him on the North Springfield.  They were at Springfield

 20  over Julie Kronberg's house at Summer Street where he was

 21  staying and at his girl friend's house.  I pulled into

 22  Summer Street.  I pulled into a funeral house, which is a

 23  few houses down, so I could park.  I got out of my car,

 24  and I could see probably eight to ten people down there,

 25  grouped up.  I said what is going on?  What's this kid

0218

 01  doing?  And my first instant reaction, grab my little

 02  crowbar, bar this big.  I went running up there because

 03  my girl friend was up there.  I didn't know what was

 04  going on.  I know this kid came into my house, broken

 05  into my house, done this stuff, what he was capable of

 06  was beyond me.  I run up there, I started to get up

 07  to him.  I didn't have it drawn back, I didn't have it,

 08  nothing.  I ran up to him.  I saw he had a blade sticking

 09  out about this high in his hand yelling at everybody,

 10  come at me, come at me.  He saw me.  When he came at me a

 11  little bit, he said come on, come on.  I said I don't

 12  think so.  I ain't going at you, forget it. 

 13               Michelle's brother was up there, Jeremiah

 14  Lachapelle.  Jeremiah is probably twenty-seven, twenty-

 15  eight.  I'm twenty-two.  Jeremiah is protecting his

 16  sister.  He was up in this kid's face.  Mya was from me

 17  to her.  I was standing right here next to Mya.  Mya

 18  said, Tristan, you and me are close, he could have

 19  stabbed us any point in time.  Mya was smoking a cigar,

 20  saying drop that knife right now, you want to go my

 21  sister's house, you got a problem, drop the knife, we'll

 22  settle it.  No, back up, back up.  Mya's still standing

 23  there.  He didn't like it.  He kept telling Mya back up. 

 24  He went to flip at him, went to stab him.  I jumped back,

 25  said he's going to stab you, Mya.  I don't care.  Look at

0219

 01  this, I got scars, my knife wounds, I got wounds

 02  everywhere.  Mya just had surgery, was cut open from here

 03  to here.  Shows him cut from here to here.  Done by a

 04  hospital, not on the street like him, and the kid didn't

 05  like that.  Again he went at Mya a second time.  And I

 06  said, forget this, we need to get out of here, we need to

 07  do something. 

 08               That point Michelle and Jordan and the

 09  other two girls up on the porch.  Julie Kronberg and

 10  Kirby were all yelling at each other, they are on the

 11  street, and they were all here.  Michelle and Jordan

 12  approached halfway up the lawn, and those girls stayed

 13  there.  Michelle and Jordan Ebelt were yelling.  Julie's

 14  mom came running out of the doorway, jumps in Michelle's

 15  face, starts pushing her, pushing her, get the fuck off

 16  my property, leave my property now, Michelle.  Tried for

 17  a second to explain this kid broke in her house, you

 18  know, who you got living in your house, I don't

 19  understand.  The lady wasn't having it, get off my

 20  property.  Michelle had enough, walked away.  Jordan

 21  begins to run away.  Vinny's full speed, five-six, arms

 22  out to here, throws them back, they almost went backward

 23  and fell over.  I came from this way, Mya came from this

 24  way, and Gib was over here making the girls, sure the

 25  girls were okay.  He went at Mya again, Mya's the bigger

0220

 01  one, he's the tough one, he's more worried about him than

 02  me.  He went to stab Mya a third time from what I saw. 

 03  Mya backed up.  We needed to get out of here, something

 04  is going to happen, this kid is going to do something

 05  stupid.  We all started to walk, turnaround and walk

 06  away.  I looked at Gib, was talking to the girls, asking

 07  them are you okay, are you okay, he's looking at them

 08  like this.  I watch Vin over here run full speed, knife

 09  sticking sticking out, punching him right here on the

 10  lip.  Drops a three-hundred-eighty-pound man on the

 11  ground like nothing.  I mean, Gib's three hundred eighty

 12  pounds, big kid.  Hits the ground. 

 13  Q.     So I understand the police are called?

 14  A.     Police are called. 

 15  Q.     Police respond? 

 16  A.     I don't know who called them.  I think Mike said

 17  he did, Gleason.  And police --

 18  Q.     Okay, police, did the police arrive?

 19  A.     Yeah.

 20  Q.     Was anybody arrested?

 21  A.     No.

 22  Q.     Did Gib go to the hospital?

 23  A.     Yep.

 24  Q.     Did you go to the hospital to see him?

 25  A.     Yep.

0221

 01  Q.     Did you end up going home that night?

 02  A.     Yep.

 03  Q.     Okay.  Did, when is the next time that any of the

 04  people you now know heard or had any type of incident

 05  with Vinny?

 06  A.     Later on that morning.

 07  Q.     What happened?

 08  A.     I mean, Sunday morning.

 09  Q.     What did you hear about or learn about?

 10  A.     Went to Alstead later that night to hang out with

 11  some friends, came back to town, got to my house at four-

 12  thirty in the morning.  Ben left my house the, about four

 13  forty-five, got home at five, and left for a ball game at

 14  seven in the morning, Boston Red Sox.  Within those two

 15  hours, they got home between five and seven a.m. in the

 16  morning.  Vinny and them were driving around waiting for

 17  him to get home, slashed the tires on his truck.

 18  Q.     How did you learn that, Ben's truck?

 19  A.     Ben called me in the morning and called Jordan and

 20  texted a bunch of us.

 21  Q.     Did Ben go, end up going to the ball game on

 22  Sunday?

 23  A.     No.

 24  Q.     Eventually did he go to the baseball game?

 25  A.     No, I don't think so.  Ben wasn't at the ball


0222

 01  field.

 02  Q.     Not the softball field; did he go to the --

 03  A.     Oh, yeah, he went to the Red Sox game.  Sorry.

 04  Q.     So he was the lucky one. 

 05  A.     He went to the Red Sox game.  I talked to him

 06  right before he went.  What he said to me, Tristan, I

 07  talked to him this morning, and he said, he called me up,

 08  he said, hey, having a nice day?  Pretty much indicating

 09  that obviously I'm going to have a bad day.  I just got

 10  my tires slashed.

 11  Q.     This is Ben telling you Vinny had called Ben?

 12  A.     Yes, and Vinny ended up telling him, he said word

 13  for word, I'm going to find every person that was up

 14  there that day, and I'm going to find all of them, I'm

 15  going to kill them, and rape their mothers.

 16  Q.     Did you have contact with Vinny Sunday?

 17  A.     After I had heard all that stuff from Ben, I tried

 18  calling his phone.  He hung up.  I tried calling again,

 19  he hung up.  Four times.  I called one more time, he hung

 20  up.

 21  Q.     How are you feeling right now?

 22  A.     Pretty upset, pretty irritated.  My girl friend

 23  wants to move out of my home, and also scared.  My girl

 24  friend wants to move out.  I'll about ready to move out

 25  of my place.  I can't afford it right now because

0223

 01  somebody wants to come from Boston and tear all our lives

 02  up, because that's what he's looking to do, for trouble,

 03  he's looking for, that's what I see, you come breaking in

 04  homes, houses, you pull out knives, you do the things

 05  this kid does, he was looking for it. 

 06  A.     Do you know Kyle Bolaski? 

 07  A.     Yeah.

 08  Q.     How do you know Kyle?

 09  A.     Corey, his younger brother, is in my class in

 10  school, went to school with him my whole life.  Kyle is

 11  only two years older than me.

 12  Q.     So how would you describe your relationship with

 13  Kyle? 

 14  A.     Friends.

 15  Q.     And Corey?

 16  A.     Friends, really good friends.

 17  Q.     Do you know Jerry Ucci?

 18  A.     Yeah.

 19  Q.     How, what's your relationship with Jerry?

 20  A.     I don't know if you'd call us friends.  I only met

 21  Jerry a few times before this, this incident.  He was

 22  friend, a nice kid, I just don't know his background,

 23  enough about him.

 24  Q.     If you know, before Sunday, did Kyle know Vinny?

 25  A.     No.

0224

 01  Q.     Did Corey know Vinny?

 02  A.     No.

 03  Q.     Did Jerry know Vinny?

 04  A.     No.

 05  Q.     Okay.  Kyle, Corey, or Jerry, before Sunday,

 06  before involved in any way in the stuff that was going

 07  on?

 08  A.     As far as I know, I mean, Springfield's a little

 09  town, everyone hears what happens, so I'm sure he heard

 10  what happened, and I knew that they had heard what

 11  happened.  They, they called me that afternoon.

 12  Q.     So who called you?

 13  A.     Kyle.

 14  Q.     And what happened in that conversation?

 15  A.     I had, we had all went to town.  Michelle had to

 16  bring Jordan a change of clothes.  Gib had to go to his

 17  house.  I had to go to my dad's to get mail.  Came back

 18  to the house, Michelle was in the driveway.  Michelle was

 19  in the driveway.  Michelle's car was in the driveway, and

 20  so I knew she was already back.  And they came driving

 21  right by me, right in front of my house on Sunday

 22  afternoon, and screaming, yelling, fuck you, we're going

 23  to get you.  I had called Michelle, I said, lock that

 24  door, they are back.  And I didn't know what to think.  I

 25  followed them down right past my house.  I turned around

0225

 01  right in my driveway and followed them down to Jiffy

 02  Mart.  They pulled in Jiffy Mart gas station, came

 03  around, because it has a roundabout, came behind me.  I

 04  said, forget it, I took off by the post office, went by

 05  the, some back roads.  Also then by the time I got back

 06  to my house, Michelle was outside.  What do we do.  Are

 07  they coming?  I said I don't understand.  I was standing

 08  there, I get a call, Kyle, answered it, I said what's up? 

 09  I was pretty much in tears.  He says what's going on?  I

 10  said this kid's driving by my house, I don't know if you

 11  heard what's going on, Vinny, kid's driving by my house

 12  threatening me and Michelle, I know he's coming back,

 13  we're on Tribow Road in Chester.  And he said he'd be

 14  over, and it's pretty much all he said.  I hung up. 

 15  Q.     When -- in that conversation with Kyle, did he let

 16  you know that he knew that there had been some bad blood?

 17  A.     No, no.

 18  Q.     No.  Did you know that Kyle was going to call you?

 19  A.     No.

 20  Q.     So it was just a call essentially out of blue?

 21  A.     Um-hum.

 22  Q.     Yes?

 23  A.     Um-hum, yes, yes, yes.

 24  Q.     Did Kyle come and pick you up?

 25  A.     Yep.

0226

 01  Q.     In what vehicle?

02  A.     It was Corey who picked me up, actually.  Corey

 03  was driving, Kyle was in the -- Corey was driving, Kyle

 04  was in the passenger seat, and Jerry Ucci was in the back

 05  with Kyle's dog.

 06  Q.     Did you get in the car?

 07  A.     Yep.

 08  Q.     Or the truck?

 09  A.     Yep.

 10  Q.     Whose truck was it?

 11  A.     Corey's.

 12  Q.     All right.  And about what time of day is it?

 13  A.     Early afternoon or mid afternoon, sometime between

 14  eleven and two, I want to say, sometime around there.

15  Q.     Do you then drive around for awhile with those

 16  three other guys?

 17  A.     Yeah.

 18  Q.     Do you discuss with them what is going on?

 19  A.     Oh, yeah, yes.

 20  Q.     Yes?  Do you tell them the details of what is

 21  going on?

 22  A.     Yeah, I told them what had happened.

 23  Q.     Okay.  Could you tell if they had heard anything

 24  about it beforehand?

 25  A.     Yeah, they knew, they had told me they knew what


0227

 01  happened, they had heard of him.

 02  Q.     And had they heard about the Springfield incident

 03  where Gib had been --

 04  A.     That's where most of them heard, most of it from

 05  that incident.

 06  Q.     They had heard about that from --

 07  A.     Because, I mean, Thursday night, only came over,

 08  there is no real problem that night, just met him. 

 09  Saturday was the day everybody heard about. 

 10  Q.     Did you tell them about what had happened to Ben?

 11  A.     Getting his tires slashed, yes, yes.

 12  Q.     Did you tell them what Ben had said, what Vinny

 13  said he was going to do?

 14  A.     Yep.

 15  Q.     Where are you guys driving around?

 16  A.     We went back roads, Tribow Road.

 17  Q.     What else are you doing in the vehicle?

 18  A.     We are driving around.  They had a few beers and a

 19  pint of vodka in the car.  They were taking a few shots,

 20  had a few beers.  I don't know how much they were

 21  drinking that day.  I just got to the car.  We drove

 22  around, back roads, drove to Springfield, and went to

 23  T-Birds, then started going, coming back to Chester.  We

 24  have came back towards Chester.  We had passed a cop on

 25  Chester Road, and Corey got pretty upset, didn't know

0228

 01  what to do. 

 02  Q.     What was he upset about?

 03  A.     Well, they had been drinking a little bit.  I

 04  don't know if he knew whether he'd blow numbers or not. 

 05  I mean, he had open container in the car.  From what I

 06  know, Jerry had pot in the car.  And they wanted to get

 07  out of there.  So we took right, when you get off Chester

 08  Road, there's a dirt road right to your right, Green

 09  Mountain Turnpike Road, I think it's called.  We took

 10  that, went back out by Tribow Road, back out in those

 11  roads to North Springfield.  Decided to go to Gib's house

 12  and call Gib and see if he'd come pick us up so we could

 13  drive the truck there, didn't want to drive around in the

 14  truck anymore.  Obviously we couldn't get ahold of Gib. 

 15  I talked to Jordan, she was at my house with Michelle. 

 16  She said Michelle was really upset, she was scared that

 17  the kid was coming back. 

 18               That point I want to say before we went to

 19  Gib's, Jerry had placed the call to Kirby's phone and

 20  talked to Vinny.  He asked to use my phone, how can I get

 21  ahold of him?  I don't know, he was with Kirby, Kirby has

 22  a cell phone, obviously, let me see, here you go.  Called

 23  up Kirby's phone, and said Kirby, let me talk to Vinny. 

 24  From what I know, she said he's not around, because he

 25  was, like, what do you mean, you guys just drove by

0229

 01  Tristan's house, you were just with him, he's always

 02  with him, let me talk to Vinny, I want to meet him.  And

 03  she's telling him no, and no.  They started yelling a

 04  little bit louder.  Jerry is like, Kirby, don't play

 05  games with me -- he went to school in Chester with Kirby,

 06  we went to school in Springfield.  He told her several

 07  times, don't play games with me, I want to know where he

 08  is, I want to talk to him.  And everything stopped.  Is

 09  this Vinny?  She put him on the phone.  And he had talked

 10  to him, Vinny, and he said I want to talk to you, I want

 11  to meet you, Vinny, I want to meet you, I want to know

 12  why you're pulling out knives on people, why you're

 13  breaking into peoples' houses, why you are stealing

 14  stuff, why you threatening friends, why you slashing

 15  tires, basically why are you doing all this?  And Vinny

 16  was yelling, from what I know, come to me, come to my

 17  house, which is Julie, again, Julie's, come on, Summer

 18  Street.  And Jerry said I'm not going to come to your

 19  house, that's stupid.  And Jerry had already previously

 20  talked to Tim Arbuckle on the phone, one of his friends

 21  which was already down at the ball field because he just

 22  got done playing a softball game, and he had told him

 23  what was going on.  Tim had heard about this Vinny guy

 24  just like everyone.  And Tim's pretty well known as a

 25  fighter.  He's an older guy, I don't know him very well,

0230

 01  but I heard stories, and I guess he said to Jerry, let

 02  him come down here, we got a bunch of people down here at

 03  a ball game, public place, if he wants to come down here

 04  start something, that's his deal, who's stupid enough to

 05  come to a public place and start problems. 

 06  Q.     Tristan, did anyone ask Tim Arbuckle to help in

 07  confronting Vinny?

 08  A.     There was no, let's beat this kid up, let's kill

 09  him, there was no talk of this.

 10  Q.     Was there any offer of money?

 11  A.     No.

 12  Q.     To Tristan?

 13  A.     No.

 14  Q.     I mean to Tim Arbuckle?

 15  A.     No.

 16  Q.     Was it conveyed, told to Vinny to meet at the ball

 17  field?

 18  A.     At this point, when Vinny was telling him to meet

 19  him at his house, Jerry decided, well, ain't going to

 20  meet you at the house, the ball field.

 21  Q.     Tristan, was it conveyed to Vinny to meet at the

 22  ball field?

 23  A.     That's what I just said.  He said, yes, meet me at

 24  the ball field.

 25  Q.     Okay.  Did you at some point change vehicles you

0231

 01  were in, Corey's truck at some point, did you change

 02  vehicles?

 03  A.     Yes.

 04  Q.     When did that happen?

 05  A.     After the phone calls, driving those back roads,

 06  we were at Gib's house and called Gib.  He couldn't pick

 07  us up because we couldn't get ahold of him.  We decided,

 08  I think before we pulled to Gib's, Corey didn't want to

 09  drive anymore, I'm so bored.  I said, all right, I can

 10  drive.  I was already driving at that point to Gib's.  We

 11  left Gib's, I drove the truck back to their house, back

 12  to their apartment building in Chester.  We got to their

 13  apartment building.  The reason we went there is because

 14  the truck was obviously hot, they knew the cops had seen

 15  it and because pretty much out of gas.  We pulled in

 16  there, and they decided to get Kyle's truck.

 17  Q.     I need to interrupt you.  I guess I'm not clear,

 18  what is the concern about the police having seen the

 19  truck?

 20  A.     Because we passed them and speeding. 

 21  Q.     Did you get waved by police?

 22  A.     No, just worried, he braked a little bit, he was

 23  worried that he turned around.  Most cops do.

 24  Q.     So you arrived, then, at the Bolaski residence in

 25  Chester to change vehicles?

0232

 01  A.     Yep.

 02  Q.     And what vehicle do you get in at this point?

 03  A.     Kyle's truck.

 04  Q.     All right.  Now, when you were riding around in

 05  Corey's truck, were there any guns in the car?

 06  A.     Yeah. 

 07  Q.     How many?

 08  A.     One.

 09  Q.     Do you know what kind?

 10  A.     Honestly, I want to say, I want to say .22.  I'm

 11  not honestly entirely sure but --

 12  Q.     When you get to the Bolaski residence, does

 13  someone go and get another gun?

 14  A.     Yeah, there was talk in the car, Corey, he had

 15  said to me, Tristan, you want a gun to bring to your

 16  house?  I said, didn't really give him an answer.  I said

 17  I don't know how to load a gun, I'm not a hunter, I don't

 18  know how to load one.  For me to take one home is pretty

 19  skeptical.  Corey wanted me to have protection in my

 20  house if and when they had dropped me off that afternoon. 

 21  If that had never happened, they had got to my house, he

 22  would have said, Tristan, you want to bring this inside?

 23  That's when I would have decided yes or no.

 24  Q.     So the second gun gets into Kyle's truck, was the

 25  thought that it would be available for you if you wanted

0233

 01  it?

 02  A.     For protection, yeah, at my house, which I

 03  explained to him, I'm not felon, I can go buy a gun, I

 04  don't need yours, Corey.

 05  Q.     Do the four of you again then head to the ball

 06  field?

 07  A.     Yeah, because we were, I was talking to Michelle,

 08  I got in Kyle's truck, Kyle got in.  Jerry got in. 

 09  Talking to Tim, then Corey was walking down with the gun

 10  out of his apartment, and he got in.  That's when we took

 11  off and started coming in the middle of Chester.  They

 12  had wanted some more, they had wanted some more beer, and

 13  they were going to go to the store to buy some more, and

 14  I said that I had some beer at my house, you guys could

 15  have that.  I don't drink.  Michelle drinks, there's

 16  probably twelve-pack there you can have, you guys can

 17  have it.  I again pass my house and pull into Jiffy Mart. 

 18  We were going to turn around.  You can see the house from

 19  Jiffy Mart.  We were getting ready to leave Jiffy Mart. 

 20  He got a call, I want to say it was on Kyle's phone, Kyle

 21  got a call from Mike Gleason, and Vinny had just drove

 22  down to Mike Gleason's house, actually pulled in his

 23  driveway or like in front of his house because Gib's car

 24  was there.  And Jordan was there, as well.  Mike had told

 25  Gib to run in the house.


0234

 01  Q.     Tristan, we're covering some ground that we've

 02  been over.  Did you guys go to the ball field?

 03  A.     Yep.

 04  Q.     Okay.  So who was driving?

 05  A.     Corey driving Kyle's truck.  Yeah. 

 06  Q.     Who was, had Corey been driving Corey's truck

 07  earlier in the day?

 08  A.     Yeah.

 09  Q.     And driving, is it that Corey?

 10  A.     I want to say Corey.  I'm not, I want to say Corey

 11  drove Kyle's truck.  Kyle may have, but I think Corey

 12  did.

 13  Q.     It's Kyle, Corey, Jerry and --

 14  A.     Me.

 15  Q.     You and the dog?

 16  A.     Yep.

 17  Q.     You get to the ball field; where do you park?

 18  A.     Right, there's a parking lot up top, you drive

 19  down on to the side of the ball field, they had a tent

 20  down there with a grill, and then having a barbecue and a

 21  bunch of cars on the field. 

 22  Q.     Does Gib drive to the ball field?

 23  A.     Yep, Gib showed up with Jordan.

 24  Q.     Does he park near you?

 25  A.     He parks down there, yeah.

0235

 01  Q.     When you arrive, what do you do?

 02  A.     Kyle and Jerry got out of the truck, and me and

 03  Corey were sitting there.  I said, sorry, I'm scared, I

 04  don't know what to think right now, this kid is going to

 05  come here and do something.  No one thought he was going

 06  to do, no one thought he was going to do anything.  No

 07  one thought he was as crazy as I knew he was. 

 08  Q.     Other people didn't think he was as crazy as you

 09  thought he was?

 10  A.     Yep, and just, all Corey could say to me, don't

 11  worry, don't worry, he's not going to do anything.

 12  Q.     Corey, Jerry and Vinny haven't had face-to-face

 13  interaction?

 14  A.     Corey, Kyle, Jerry haven't had any interaction

 15  with Vinny yet.

 16  Q.     What did you say?

 17  A.     Just Corey and Jerry.

 18  Q.     Okay, Corey, Kyle and Jerry.  At some point does

 19  another vehicle arrive with Vinny in? 

 20  A.     Yeah.

 21  Q.     How long had you been at the ball field before

 22  that other car arrived?

 23  A.     Oh, five, ten minutes.

 24  Q.     Do you know what Kyle was doing during that five

 25  to ten minutes?

0236

 01  A.     Standing there.  Like all of us. 

 02  Q.     Any alcohol consumed at that point?

 03  A.     No.  Yeah, by all the people down there drinking

 04  the keg. 

 05  Q.     All the softball players?

 06  A.     That gave statements.

 07  Q.     What was Corey doing?

 08  A.     Standing there.

 09  Q.     Jerry?

 10  A.     Standing.

 11  Q.     No one got out the guns? 

 12  A.     The truck was locked.

 13  Q.     Did you see Tim Arbuckle?

 14  A.     Yeah, he was in the softball game.

 15  Q.     Were people talking to Tim?

 16  A.     There was a whole softball, a whole softball game

 17  there.  There was ladies, there was kids there.

 18  Q.     Okay.  What happens after the car pulls in       

 19  in which Vinny is riding?

 20  A.     He gets, he pulled in, up at the parking lot,

 21  which is a little ways up in the field, and he gets out

 22  of the car.  He's let off the stun gun, the Tazer,

 23  lighting it.  And Tim Arbuckle, saw him up there, there

 24  he is, there he is, and telling Tim, and Tim's like,

 25  well, he goes, get me a baseball bat.

0237

 01  Q.     Who said that?

 02  A.     Tim, get me fucking baseball bat.  No one gave him

 03  one.  I don't know why there wasn't one there.  There was

 04  just a call, he can't get one.  He decided I'll go

 05  walking up there.  He looked up at him and saw what a big

 06  boy.  Come here with that, shove that right up your F-ing

 07  ass.

 08  Q.     What happened, what happens next?

 09  A.     Tim kept approaching to go up there, kept walking

 10  up there, and Tim ahead, Kyle and Jerry are behind him,

 11  me and Gib and Jordan are right here.  All the people are

 12  behind us.  They kind of approach here, Tim was ahead,

 13  Kyle was a little behind Tim, then Jerry.  The more they

 14  walked up, the more Tim got closer, the more everyone

 15  else kind of stayed back.  The closer behind Tim was

 16  Kyle, he got right up to the corner of that fence.  He

 17  said it again, pointed right at him.  When I get there,

 18  I'm going to shove the fucking thing up your ass.  When

 19  he said to him, hey, I heard that kid -- what I left out,

 20  when he was in the field, he said, Tristan, I'm going to

 21  fucking kill you.

 22  Q.     This Vinny?

 23  A.     Tim yelled up to him about the Tazer, and they

 24  started walking up there, and he got right there to when

 25  he said that to him, and he reached down on the floor of

0238

 01  that car and pulled out a splitting maul axe and started

 02  running full speed, put the axe behind his back like

 03  this, and he's running, and this kid, two hundred fifty,

 04  three hundred pounds, never seen someone move that fast.

 05  Q.     Where's he headed? 

 06  A.     Headed right after Time, was Tim was quick, he saw

 07  it, quickly turned around.  Tim was the first one to see

 08  it because he's the closest.  By the time I turned

 09  around, started running, Kyle was like, whoa, this guy's

 10  got an axe.  Tim was running by him, so it just left

 11  Kyle, well, the closest one to Vinny was Kyle.  The only

 12  reason I think Vinny excluded Kyle out because he was the

 13  closest.

 14  Q.     What happens?

 15  A.     He started to chase Kyle.  He was chasing all of

 16  us, and me and Gib and a few of us ran to the left. 

 17  People ran over here.  This lady was screaming about her

 18  kids, she said this can't be going on here.  And I just

 19  remember her saying that so perfectly.  I was worried

 20  this kid's down there, everybody, this guy's coming full

 21  speed with an axe.  He runs down there, I ran, there was

 22  a, like a little creek, a little stream that runs down

 23  there.  Some bushes that I hid behind.  I was looking

 24  through the bushes.  When I looked back, Kyle was getting

 25  up off the ground, and that kid was getting ready to

0239

 01  swing that axe.  Kyle got up and started walking around,

 02  started running around the truck.  At that point he swung

 03  the axe once, twice, three times.  I didn't see it break

 04  the window, but I saw him hit three times, that truck. 

 05  He was, put that axe through that truck and pulled it

 06  back out.  You wouldn't believe the hole.  It wasn't

 07  like, like an axe, you put it in something, pull it out. 

 08  No, he was pulling the whole thing in, pulling it back

 09  out.  This was a pencil in this guy's hands and --

 10  Q.     What happened next?

 11  A.     I started running, said forget this, he looks over

 12  at me, he already met me.  And Gib, he knows me, he

 13  doesn't even know Kyle.  He sees me over here by myself. 

 14  He could chase the people he wants, I said I'm running. 

 15  I started returning up the side of the ball field out

 16  towards the road, and that's when I heard the gunshots. 

 17  I can't honestly remember how much I heard, but this was

 18  three, four, two, I heard gunshots. 

 19  Q.     Did the shoots all sound the same to you?

 20  A.     No, you heard the 30-06 first, way louder, then

 21  you heard the .22, sounded said like a BB gun.

 22  Q.     And then any more 30-06?

 23  A.     I don't honestly remember.  I mean it's such --

 24  Q.     Did you actually see --

 25  A.     No.

0240

 01  Q.     -- Vinny get shot?  No? 

 02  A.     No.

 03  Q.     Did you actually see who shot him?

 04  A.     Nope.

 05  Q.     You made a comment earlier that the truck was

 06  locked after you got out of it at the ball field?

 07  A.     As far as I knew, yeah.  Because also when Kyle

 08  was running up to the truck, he was yelling to Corey,

 09  could hear him, unlock the door, yelling to him, so as

 10  far as I knew, the truck was locked unless the passenger

 11  side, unless the driver's side was locked and the

 12  passenger side wasn't.  One locked and one wasn't. 

 13  Q.     So you heard more than one gunshot?

 14  A.     Um.

 15  Q.     The first one was loud?

 16  A.     Yeah.

 17  Q.     You didn't see who shot? 

 18  A.     I was running.

 19  Q.     So what's the last image of the scene that you had

 20  before you take off?

 21  A.     When I turned around and ran back and seeing him

 22  laying there.

 23  Q.     All right.  So before you take off, what's your

 24  last image, the last thing you remember seeing?

 25  A.     Him hitting that truck.


0241

 01  Q.     And you leave at this point?

 02  A.     After he was hitting the truck, I ran up, then I

 03  ran, back saw him laying there.

 04  Q.     When you came back, he's already on the ground?

 05  A.     Um-hum. 

 06  Q.     Where in relation to Kyle's truck is he?

 07  A.     Honestly, up towards the front.  He was on the

 08  ground not too far away from the truck.  I want to say

 09  more towards the front end of it, I want to say the

 10  driver's side, too, but I'm not sure.

 11  Q.     How close?

 12  A.     It was such a quick, I turned around, I saw him

 13  laying there, I said I'm out of here.  I didn't know if

 14  he got, swung the axe, I don't know if somebody shot him.

 15  Q.     Why did you run back?

 16  A.     Because I wanted to know what happened.  I don't

 17  know if he got someone with the axe, and then he shot

 18  them, I wanted, needed to know.  I, all I saw was him

 19  laying there.  I still didn't know if Corey and Kyle were

 20  okay.

 21  Q.     Did you see the axe at any point after you heard

 22  the gunshots?

 23  A.     He had the axe right next to him the whole time.

 24  Q.     After he's on the ground?

 25  A.     It was right there on the ground.

0242

 01  Q.     How much time do you think passed between, between

 02  the two loud gunshots?

 03  A.     You mean --

 04  Q.     The first shot?

 05  A.     From the first one, .22, and then one after?  Like

 06  I said before, I don't remember honestly the one after. 

 07  I remember hearing the gunshots.  I heard the 30-06

 08  first.  It's way louder than the .22.  Then I heard a BB

 09  gun.  I don't honestly remember after that.  I just heard

 10  gunshots. 

 11  Q.     Is it fair to say, then, in terms of where Vinny

 12  was and where Kyle was after Kyle gets the gun, you don't

 13  have, you didn't observe that?

 14  A.     No, I, when I came running back, I even, didn't

 15  even see Kyle or Corey anywhere.

 16  Q.     Okay. 

 17  A.     Kyle, Corey, the only one I saw was Gib.  I kept

 18  yelling to him, what are you doing standing there?  Why

 19  aren't you running? 

 20  Q.     After Vinny was on the ground, did you see anyone

 21  go up to him and hit, kick, do anything?

 22  A.     I heard about it, but I didn't see it.

 23  Q.     So if these folks have questions for you, they

 24  have the opportunity to ask, and I may have some

 25  follow-ups, as well. 

0243

 01  A.     Um-hum.

 02               JUROR:  Were the guns already loaded when

 03  you guys left the house, the apartment? 

 04               THE WITNESS:  They were loaded, but they

 05  were unloaded before we got there.  One of them was, at

 06  least.  Because when they showed up, they were unloaded,

 07  and Kyle loaded it in front of me when Corey asked me if

 08  I wanted to bring it in for protection to my house, Kyle

 09  had showed me how to load it.  I don't know how to load a

 10  gun.  This is how you load it.  Left it loaded.  Corey

 11  said don't need it loaded in the car.  What do you mean? 

 12  If you get pulled over, can't unload it.  At this point,

 13  pretty much at this point we unloaded it in case we got

 14  pulled over.  When we got to the field, the other one

 15  that Corey had at the house, I don't know if it was

 16  loaded.  I'm assuming it was because that's the one Corey

 17  grabbed when he was swinging at him with an axe.  I doubt

 18  he had time to load a gun.  I'm assuming that was loaded. 

 19  The, another one was unloaded. 

 20               JUROR:  When you were running away from

 21  Vince, did you happen to see what became of Jordan? 

 22               THE WITNESS:  Jordan, when he first

 23  started running at us with the axe, he ran after Tim. 

 24  Jordan was standing right there with Gib.  He overheard

 25  him say something.  I didn't hear what he said.  Then he

0244

 01  ran right by her, Jordan.  I don't know where she went. 

 02  I remember she had gotten grabbed because she tried to go

 03  out, Kyle, she tried to stop him from shooting him.  He

 04  tried, it was instant reaction for her to do that,

 05  someone grabbed her.  From what I know, Kristina Morgan's

 06  boyfriend picked her up on the shoulder and pulled her in

 07  the car.

 08               JUROR:  Did you see her, I don't know,

 09  when you were running, did you see, I don't know how to

 10  put it, did you see anything happen to her at all? 

 11               THE WITNESS:  No.

 12               JUROR:  Was there, was there anyone in the

 13  truck when Vinny was hitting it with the axe?

 14               THE WITNESS:  His dog.

 15               JUROR:  Just the dog? 

 16               THE WITNESS:  Yeah, the dog was flipping

 17  out.  Smashed the window first, which I didn't see. 

 18  Because I was running.  When I turned around in the

 19  bushes, already smashed the window.  That's when I saw

 20  him hit the truck three times, put the hole in the door. 

 21  I can remember the dog was flipping out.

 22               JUROR:  How big a dog is it?

 23               THE WITNESS:  Not very big.  Can't

 24  remember what mix it is, but it's only, only about this

 25  big.  It's like, I want to say like a Golden Retriever

0245

 01  and Sheltie.  It's really kind of a dog, not like a pit

 02  bull or Rottweiler.  It's not very big dog, about this

 03  big, full grown.

 04               JUROR:  When Vinny was swinging at the

 05  truck, where was the other two guys that were in the

 06  pickup with you? 

 07               THE WITNESS:  That's the problem, I wasn't

 08  looking at anyone else.  I was looking at him smashing

 09  that truck.  When he was doing that, I decided if he

 10  looks over at me so --

 11               JUROR:  They weren't there.

 12               THE WITNESS:  They weren't there.  Gib and

 13  Jordan and I run this way.  Corey, Kyle, Jerry ran that

 14  way.  He secluded Kyle out of that.  I can't picture

 15  where Corey and Jerry Ucci were.  I remember after I ran

 16  away from the ball field, Jerry was already half way up

 17  the road, so I think he left early.  I think Jerry took

 18  right off when the gunshots were going on.  He was, after

 19  I had already run back and seeing him laying there, and

 20  then came to the road, Jerry was way up the road, head

 21  down, blood on him.  He was walking, what are you going? 

 22  We taking him down to Corey's parents' apartment.

 23               JUROR:  So the plan was to meet up with

 24  this guy, the idea was that it would be better to be

 25  public place, and you would be in public place with a

0246

 01  bunch of people, and you would, you had guns there, and

 02  there were guns in the car?

 03               THE WITNESS:  Yeah, they were in the car.

 04               JUROR:  So you were, you were not going

 05  to -- you thought that this would alleviate violence to

 06  go in a public place? 

 07               THE WITNESS:  Two ways to look at it.  You

 08  could go winging it to come down to a public place, Six

 09  Flags, start shooting stuff, you have stuff happens every

 10  day, high school shootings, or you could say it was

 11  better for six of us met in the middle of woods, and he'd

 12  put us to rest.  There was no one to call the cops, no

 13  one there to do anything.

 14               JUROR:  So you, you, you didn't choose the

 15  public --

 16               THE WITNESS:  I didn't choose it.  Jerry

 17  did.

 18               JUROR:  The idea wasn't to choose a public

 19  place to stop the violence; the idea was that it might,

 20  you would all be a little bit safer? 

 21               THE WITNESS:  We'll be safer if something

 22  was to happen, if this kid did do something that,

 23  something, the cops would be called, someone, someone

 24  safety in numbers, basically, more people there, more

 25  people can do something about it.

0247

 01               JUROR:  Or if it didn't hurt anybody,

 02  maybe other people would be hurt? 

 03               THE WITNESS:  No.

 04               JUROR:  Apart from the group? 

 05               THE WITNESS:  At that, he, at that

 06  point -- I'm not sure, they were looking at safety in

 07  numbers, once again, if you're down there, this kid did

 08  what he did, one calls the cops, once got the cops there,

 09  Jerry said we'll come to your house, right on the front

 10  lawn, or meet us this back road in the middle of nowhere

 11  in the woods.  Had us there and chopped us up with

 12  an axe, would anyone know for a day or two, two, three

 13  days later, probably not, it seems like a safer place to

 14  deal with the situation.  And at that point, there was no

 15  talk from me.  Jerry, Kyle -- let's go get this kid,

 16  let's go fucking kill him -- there was no talk of that. 

 17  Basically the talk was why is this kid doing this?  He

 18  can't be doing this.  We had already heard of other

 19  places he had broken in town.  We already heard of the

 20  disorderly conduct up at Bellows Falls Hospital, all of

 21  the things he'd done.  We looked up his record.  We have

 22  seen what kind of kid this is.  And they looked at it as

 23  smarter place, going to the ball field, be safer in

 24  numbers.

 25               JUROR:  But after knowing what kind of


0248

 01  record he had, you still made the mind up to go down

 02  there anyway?

 03               THE WITNESS:  Now, when I look over

 04  sitting on my couch, and I see someone standing in my

 05  house -- I went down, unlocked the doctor because my

 06  friend was coming over, that's the only reason the door

 07  was unlocked -- you look over, someone breaks in your

 08  house, three times your size, you know, you can't sleep

 09  at night, my girl friend wants to move out of my

 10  apartment, I can't afford another apartment, house, right

 11  now.  We have to think of this every night, morning, we

 12  can hardly sleep after this incident.  We expect

 13  retaliation from family.  I hate to tell you, something

 14  needed to be done.  I'm not happy he's dead, no, but can

 15  I sleep at night?  Yes.  Something was going to happen,

 16  he was coming back.

 17               JUROR:  You don't think the law would help

 18  you? 

 19               THE WITNESS:  The law didn't.  When he

 20  punched Gib out with a knife in his hands. 

 21               I broke a kid's jaw because he had a metal

 22  bat, self-defense, I got off, self-defense because he had

 23  a metal, metal bat in his hand.  He had a metal bat in

 24  his hands, I swung, I broke his jaw.  I got off

 25  self-defense after a year and a half in court. 

0249

 01               That's aggravated assault, at the least

 02  it's simple assault.  I told those cops that day several

 03  times this kid's bleeding from his lip, you could see he

 04  just got punched.  That kid admitted to punching him. 

 05  No, they told us that day, calm down, you guys have had a

 06  rough time, don't fill out the statements tonight, bring

 07  them back tomorrow.  Now in this case they say why didn't

 08  you bring those statements that night?  Well, we would

 09  have if you didn't tell us to bring them in Sunday. 

 10               JUROR:  You feel when you, before you were

 11  riding around at the ball game, you said you weren't

 12  drinking, that's why you were driving, I don't drink a

 13  lot.  Were there some of you doing drugs? 

 14               THE WITNESS:  There was some smoking pot.

 15               JUROR:  Just pot? 

 16               THE WITNESS:  Yeah.  I am on Percocet, as

 17  it is.  I'm on the prescribed to me, but as far as them

 18  smoking pot, they were drinking.  I don't drink.

 19               JUROR:  Tristan, what would you say the

 20  attitude of everyone was as getting into the ball field

 21  and getting out of the vehicle.

 22               THE WITNESS:  I was scared.  Corey seemed

 23  calm and collected like nothing was going to happen.  And

 24  Jerry and Kyle little rowdy.

 25               JUROR:  How about as people are starting

0250

 01  to head up towards the vehicle, they, where Julie and

 02  Kirby were? 

 03               THE WITNESS:  Tim was ready, pretty much,

 04  to fight.

 05               JUROR:  The other people with you guys

 06  that what changed people's attitude? 

 07               THE WITNESS:  Everyone said back when they

 08  saw him up with the Tazer realizing this kid was here to

 09  do something.  Tim, he wanted to approach him.  The was

 10  the tough guy.  And what I had thought that day, I mean,

 11  I wanted it to come to an end.  I wanted fifty people to

 12  walk up in this guy's face, say you can't be doing this,

 13  this is not what can happen, people need to be able to

 14  sleep at nighttime, go back to Boston, for all we care,

 15  do something else other than bother us.  That's not what

 16  was happening.

 17               JUROR:  Thank you.

 18               MR. SAND:  Tristan, thank you very much.

 19               JUROR:  Thank you, Tristan.

 20               THE WITNESS:  Yep.