A St Joseph man was cross-examined by prosecutors after he said he could not recall details of a statement he gave to police, since his memory was “cloudy” because of 30-plus years of smoking marijuana.
On March 11, Justice Lisa Ramsumair-Hinds allowed prosecutor Charmaine Samuel to cross-examine her witness, Gary Farrell, in the trial of Richard McBain. McBain is before the judge and a jury charged with the murder of businessman Stephen Hackshaw on April 16, 2006, in Caparo. Farrell began his testimony by saying he did not want to give evidence.
“I have changed. That was 17 years ago, I am expecting a grand(child), I had a heart attack in 2018, and I am a chronic asthma case. My life just changed from then to now.”
Those were some of the reasons, he said, he did not want to give evidence. “The other is that I fear for my life.” Farrell said his memory was cloudy because of smoking marijuana for 30-something years and also because he got “lash” in his head. He also said, “I lie back in April 2006.”
Though he said he could not recall much, he said he remembered telling the police he did not want to be a witness in any matter. “I gave a statement reluctantly. I can’t recall what the statement was about. My mind was cloudy. I could remember them asking me questions and giving me a pen to sign, but I cannot remember the event. Lots of things I cannot recall,” he said.
Farrell was also given a document to read, but said he could not, because he did not have his glasses and did not understand the handwriting. He insisted he could not read the statement.
“It was not legible then or now.”
Admitting he signed the document, Farrell said he did so because the police gave him a pen.
His testimony had not yet ended when acting DCP Curt Simon was called after the lunch break.
Simon took the statement from Farrell and insisted he did not coerce or threaten the witness. Simon was questioned by McBain’s attorney, public defender Stephen Wilson, about the statement.
He said Farrell read over the document and put his initials on errors he saw in the statement.
After Simon’s testimony, Farrell was recalled and cross-examined by the prosecutor. He insisted he did not read over the statement Simon wrote. To every question she asked, Farrell’s response was, “I cannot remember.”
In his alleged statement, Farrell said Bean bought weed from him, but in his evidence before the jury, he denied that was true.
He also denied telling the police Bean came to his home in April 2006 and wanted to rent a gun because he had a “scene (robbery) to go to...in Caparo.”
Farrell also denied telling the police he heard on the 7 pm newscast, on April 16, 2006, of three murders during that Easter weekend and he “was thinking the one in Caparo was Bean.”
In the statement, he allegedly said he then heard the dog barking outside his home because Bean was there. He also allegedly said Bean started to talk and told him he went to the scene. The statement said Bean told him there were a man and woman, but he only got $100 and a cellp
