DIRECT EXAMINATION by Mr. Schmidt:
Q
I think I asked you something to the effect of: "What did Dan White
tell
you in that respect, in regards to carrying a weapon?"
A
He stated that he occasionally carried the gun to some of his Board
meetings at
City Hall. . . .He
explained-he stated that certain radical
groups had threatened him, and he felt threatened in their presence, in
his
committee meetings, and that the degree of potential for harm to him
was so
great that he carried the weapon as protection to himself.
He was very
specific, and he mentioned one group
in particular.
Q
And what group was that?
A
The White Panther Party.
Q
And that is a local group here in San Francisco?
A
Yes. Apparently they had been petitioning
his committee to close off some streets, and from what I remembered, he
refused
the petition, or something, and they threatened him, or something like
that. He was aware of their stand on the
Second Amendment to the Constitution regarding their right to bear
arms. He
felt that potential was there for them, to come to him, in the company
of his
meetings, being armed,
Q
The White Panthers had a shoot-out with the police, had they not?
A
Yes, they had.
...
Q
Did you ever see him be particularly erratic or impulsive, anything
such as
that?
A
Yes, I did.
Q
Describe for me the circumstances of that.
A
Dan had a habit, or I guess not a habit, that is the wrong word, but he
would
radically change his life style from a Spartan existence to a lavish
existence,
and then back from a lavish existence to a Spartan existence, and this
is over
a series of years.
Now, to be
specific, Dan was living on a boat,
small sailboat in Sausalito when he was a fireman.
At the time
he had no car, and was living on the
boat, which was only a twenty-foot boat, and you couldn't stand up
inside the
thing, and he had a sleeping bag inside, and a bare light bulb he read
by, and
that was the extent of his possessions. His clothing, apparently, he kept at
the firehouse, and he rode his bicycle over the bridge to the
firehouse, when
he had to work.
I also had a
boat, and one day I stopped at
Dan's boat, to say hello. I was off on a sailing trip with some
friends, and
that was on a Monday.
The
following Friday, which is five days later,
I was at my apartment in San Francisco, and he knocked on the
door, and I went
to the door, and here is Dan. Dan wants me to come down to the street
and see a
brand-new Porsche that he just bought, a $15,000 car he purchased, and
he said,
"Come on, take a ride, jump in the car, and ride around the block." He said, "I moved out to Lake
Merced, have a new apartment, bought all new furniture,” and he went on
and on.
It was such
a radical change. I just couldn't-in
a five-day time span-he seemed happy on the boat on Monday, content
with his
life, was saving his money for a trip around the world, and five days
later here
he is, he has gone out and. spent $15,000 on toys.
Q
You had visited him on this boat, went sailing with him one time or
another?
A
Oh, yes, I went sailing many times, and I taught him to sail.
Q
Did you ever see him under a stressful situation while you were sailing?
A
Yes, I have.
Q
What was that situation?
A
One time, we were out about two or three miles west of the Golden Gate
Bridge,
in the area of the Potato Patch, which is notoriously rough, and
through a
fault of my own, my own stupidity,
I
was knocked overboard, and luckily, the main sheet lines for the
mainsail
wrapped around my wrist.
The boat was
planing through the water, and Dan
reached way over the back of the boat and pulled me in, held on to me
until the
boat came to a luff position, came up to the wind, and stopped.
I was able
to climb, and had Dan not done that,
I am sure that a few seconds later I would have slipped into the water,
and
without any life preserver, and considering the rough water, and
considering the
fact that at the time I was the only experienced sailor on the boat, I
don't
think I would have been able to reach the boat.
I guess what
I am trying to say is that he saved
my life.
Q
Mr. Shine, knowing Dan White as you have through the years, and knowing
that he
shot and killed George Moscone and Harvey Milk, let me ask you: Was
there
anything in his background ever that indicated he was capable of that
type of
act?
A
No, nothing. I was really shocked and surprised.
CROSS-EXAMINATION
by Mr. Norman:
Q
. . .I think that you told us that he had indicated to you he carried a
gun
occasionally, and there was some mention that you made about some
reference
made by him to the Second Amendment.
Did he
discuss the Second Amendment of the
Federal Constitution with you often?
A
No, I threw that in as to the Second Amendment. I know the Second
Amendment
covers the right to bear arms, and that was my comment.
Q
Did he have any strong feelings which he expressed to you about the
right of
people to carry arms?
A
No, he didn't.
Q
In connection with that, unfortunate accident, on the boat, in the
Potato Patch
area outside of the Gate, you truly regard yourself as grateful, no
doubt, that
he saved your life?
A
That is correct.
Q
Could I say; Officer Shine, that given your feelings of close
friendship to
Daniel White, that you would like to see Daniel White dealt with at
least less
harshly as possible in connection with these proceedings?
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