STATE OF MAINE DISTRICT COURT CUMBERLAND, ss. NINTH DISTRICT Civil Action DIVISION OF SOUTHERN CUMBERLAND Docket No. FM-08-510 Igor Malenko versus Lori M. Handrahan VOLUME IIT BEFORE: The Honorable Jeffrey Moscowitz, Judge of the District Court, at the Ninth District Court, Portland, Maine, on Tuesday, December 9, 2008. APPEARANCES: Michael J. Waxman, Esq. For the Plaintiff Kenneth P. Altshuler, Esq. For the Defendant Elizabeth Stout, Esq. Guardian ad Litem OFFICIAL TRANSCRIPT Prepared by the Electronic Recording Division, COPYWITNESSES Sabine McElrath (by Mr, Altshuler) (by Mr. Waxman (by Ms. Stout) Theodore Sargent (by Mr, Altshuler) (by Mx, Waxman) Stephanie Bisol (by Mr, Altshuler) (by Mr. Waxman) (by Ms. Stout) Lorie M. Handrahan (by Mr. Altshuler) INDEX OF WITNESSES DIRECT 16 29 68 CROSS 12 15 21 46 61 REDIRECT RECROSS10 ca 12 13, 14 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 VOLUME IIT - CONTINUED FROM VOLUME II HEARING RESUMED - December 9, 2008 COURT: Good morning. MR. ALTSHULER: Good morning, your Honor. MR. WAXMAN: Good morning, your Honor. COURT: All right. We left off with Dr. Handrahan on the witness stand, just beginning the testimony. Is there anything to take up before we resume that testimony? MR. ALTSHULER: Your Honor, the other parties have graciously agreed that I could take two very short rebuttal witnesses out of order, and a witness out of order, because of time constraints, if it's okay with the Court? couRT: Sure. MR. ALTSHULER: Okay. COURT: Sure. MR. ALTSHULER: Other than that, I don't-- MR. WAXMAN: Your Honor, one housekeeping matter. Do we have the exhibits that were admitted into evidence? Have they been brought down here from the-- COURT: I kept them with the file. MR. WAXMAN: --okay. COURT: Let me tell you what I have. MR. WAXMAN: All right.10 rT 12 13, 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 COURT: I have Plaintiff's 1-- MR. WAXMAN: Right. Fine. COURT: --Plaintiff's 2. MR. WAXMAN: Yeah. COURT: Plaintiff's 62, 63, 64, the three disks. MR. WAXMAN: Right. COURT: And I have Guardian's 2, which is Dr. Kabakoff's report. MR. WAXMAN: Okay. MS. STOUT: Your Honor, you don't have a copy of Guardian's 1, her Cv? cour: 1 I--oh, I do have that. Bear with me. I do have that. I'm certain I have that. I just can't locate it right now. But I have seen it. I have it vight here, Guardian's 1. And I also have Plaintiff's 65. MR. WAXMAN: And what was that, your Honor? COURT: That was a witness statement from Dr. Handrahan to the South Portland Police Department. MR, WAXMAN: Right. couRT: All right. (PAUSE) cour: All right. Now, does that conclude the housekeeping matters? MR. ALTSHULER: One other thing, your Honor, Just10 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 in case I forget, Hesper has to leave be--about a quarter till twelve. I wanted you to know that's why she was leaving, if she leaves during the proceeding. COURT: Oh, sure. No. No. That's- MR. ALTSHULER: Just wanted you to know. COURT: --that's fine. Thank you. All right. We are going to take up, you say, two rebuttal witnesses-- MR. ALTSHULER: Two rebuttal witnesses-- COURT: --counsel? MR. ALTSHULER: --and a very short additional witness that's not rebuttal, but a case in chief. COURT: Fine. Who would you like to call first? MR. ALTSHULER: Sabine McElrath, And that, your Honor, is S-a-b-i-n-e, last name is M-c-E-1-r-a-t-h. COURT: All right. MR. WAXMAN: Your Honor, do I assume correctly that any rebuttal witnesses would be counted on Attorney Altshuler's time, his five hours? COURT: Yeah. Oh, of course. MR. WAXMAN: Okay. Thank you. COURT: Yeah. COURT OFFICER: Please remain standing and face the judge. COURT: And, actually, the- COURT OFFICER: And raise your right hand.10 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 25 COURT: --as a practical matter--Ms. McElrath, I'll be right with you, I'm sorry. WITNESS: Sure. couRT: As a practical matter, the only evidence left to be admitted, I take it, is the defendant's evidence, as well as Miss Stout's cross-examination. So--and we have all day for all of that, so-- MR. WAXMAN: I believe, also, her testimony, if she did--gives any--oh, cross-examination of her? Correct. That's-- COURT: Right. And--right. All right. Is that correct? MR. ALTSHULER: And I'll talk as fast as I can. COURT: Well, that's okay. I--but we have all--we have literally all day for this, so we should be fine. So, Ms. McElrath, would you raise your right hand, please? Do you swear or affirm that the testimony you will give in court today will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? WITNESS: Yes, I do. COURT: Thank you very much. Please have a seat. MR. ALTSHULER: Thank you, your Honor. COURT: Mr. Altshuler? SABINE MCELRATH, HAVING BEEN DULY SWORN, TESTIFIED AS FOLLOWS, DIRECT EXAMINATION10 u 12 13, 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 BY MR. ALTSHULER Please state your name for the record. Sabine McElrath. Okay. This microphone does not amplify your voice. It simply records it, so just kinda speak up loud, and we'll only keep you a couple minutes. How do you know the parties, Lori and Igor? I met them--I was a real estate broker, and they had called me back in late summer of 2006 to show--have me show them a home in Portland. Okay. What agent do you work for? I currently work for Maine State Realty. At the time, I had my own business. It was Blue Current [sic]. Who first made contact with you about purchasing the home? The first phone call was from Lori. Okay. And what did she say to you in that phone call? To--paraphrase. Well, it was about a half hour phone call. It had felt like I had talked to an old friend that I had never met before. She was just explaining that she wanted to relocate to the Portland area. I believe she was living in Sorrento at the time. They were looking for a home in--near or in the10 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 2 23 24 25 city. So, I showed them a home right in Portland on the peninsula. They--to go to the end, they eventually purchased this home? They did not purchase that home. No. They eventually purchased a home through you? Yes, they did. Okay. What I want you to focus on is discussions you had with Mr. Malenko about the purchase of this home in particular, or any other home. Did you ever have communication, not through Lori, but directly with Mr. Malenko, about the purchase of any house, for example? Yes, I did. I believe without--I showed them quite a few properties, and I--he was always present. So, he was very interested. I'm interested in architecture. He was very interested in that, so he was very engaged in whether a home needed significant renovations. We discussed a lot of possible solutions, so, yes, I did speak with him. Now, I want to make sure I distinguish between him just being there, passively listening, and him actually engaging in the conversation. I would--10 1 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 How would you describe it? --I would characterize it as being very engaged in the process. Compared to Lori, were they--was one more engaged than the other, was it equal, how would you describe it? I would say it was equal. ves. Did he--you talked to him about architecture? Well, about renovations. There was one property in particular that they both really liked the location, but it did need a lot of renovation and updating. And we talked in detail about some potential scenarios that could be done, I mean, significant changes. But, he described--to me, he described a tool that he used, a Google sketch-up. And, so, I investigated that later and used it. But, to--it's a tool that can be used to manipulate three-dimensional space, and planning tools (indiscernible). The house that they eventually bought, do you recall communications Mr. Malenko had with you about that particular house? I would desc--compared to a lot of the properties we had seen before, this one really didn't require--it was really a turn-key, you know,10 rn 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 solution. So, there wasn't a lot of discussion about what needed to be improved, because it had been extensively renovated over the years. Q Did Mr. Malenko talk to you about his interest in purchasing that house, him individually? A I believe they were--I didn't--they were-- (cough) --excuse me. We spoke together. I never had one-on-one conversations without Lori being there. No, I don't remember. Q Did Mr. Malenko ever express to you--and I'm talking about the house that they eventually purchased, a reluctancy about purchasing the house? A Never. Q No reluctancy at all? A No. Q Did you discuss that he believed that the price of the house was too high? MR. WAXMAN: I'm going to object to the leading nature of the questions. MR, ALTSHULER: Okay. I can rephrase, your Honor. COURT: Okay. Go ahead. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR, ALTSHULER Q Did he discuss with you any concerns about the cost of the house?10 ul 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 I believe the house was listed for higher than-- when we talked about presenting an offer, we certainly tried to pay less for the house, obviously. So--but I don't believe those discussions were uniquely between Mr. Malenko and myself. I mean, all three of us were involved in those discussions. Well, when you got to the final price that you guys agreed that was going to be offered to them, did Mr. Malenko ever express to you any concern about whether or not they could meet those financial requirements? No. Not at all? No. Did Mr. Malenko ever communicate with you other than verbally about this house or any other house, through emails, through letters, anything like that? No. Okay. Did Mr. Malenko ever communicate anything negative to you at all about any aspect of the house purchase? Of that particular home? Any house? a10 il 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 A Of the--no, not about the house purchase process. No. Individual properties, he had issues with. Q Okay. In any communication he had with you about any house purchase, did he indicate to you any lack of desire to have a house purchased in this area? A No. Not at all. Q Any concern about the financial aspect of purchasing a house at all? A No. MR, ALTSHULER: I have nothing further, your Honor. COURT: Okay. Thank you. Mr. Waxman? MR. WAXMAN: Thank you, your Honor. CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. WAXMAN Q Good morning, ma'am. A Good morning. Q I'm Michael Waxman. I'm Igor's--Malenko's attorney in this case. We haven't met, have we? A No. Q You said Lori was the one that first contacted you about buying a house, right? A Yes. Q And are you awa--did you become aware at some point in the process that it was only Lori who was 1210 un 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 2 23 24 25 going to be on the deed, and only Lori on the mortgage? Not until the--not until we made the offer on the Franklin Street house. No. It was--that was the first time I became aware that the financial aspects were going to be more on Lori's side than Igor's side. And is it fair to say that the financial discussions that were had, you assume were had between Igor and Lori and the mortgage broker you recommended they see? I'm sorry. I don't understand your question. You were asked questions about whether or not Igor spoke with you about financial concerns, and I think your answer was no. Mmmm. My question to you is wouldn't you have expected any financial discussions to have been had between Lori--the buyers and the mortgage broker? Yes. Okay. And you referred them to a mortgage broker, right? They--I did, but the beginning of the process was through a bank Lori already had a relationship with, so-- 1310 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 Okay. But you're not the financial person in this process? --no. You're just--you're a mortgage broker--I'm sorry. You're a real estate broker. Yes. Were you the listing agent or the selling agent? No. I was not the listing agent. The listing agent was the owner of the home. She was also a broker. Oh, okay. And, so, you took, what, a three percent commission? I believe it was two percent. Okay. And this house was--the sale price was what, five hundred thousand? Five ten. Five ten? So, effectively, Ms. Handrahan paid you ten thousand two hundred dollars? Actually, no. Anne Lindquist, the owner, did. I see. Okay. But that's what you made from the sale of this house-- Yes. --to Lori, correct? Yes. And, by the way, when she first contacted you 1410 ul 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 about purchasing a house in this area, am I correct that she was looking for houses in the two hundred thousand dollar range? A ‘The first house I showed them was approximately that price range. Yes. Q Okay. Thank you. COURT: Miss Stout? MS. STOUT: dust very briefly. CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MS. STOUT Q Good morning. And I--do you recall when the house went under contract? (PAUSE) Q You're just referring to your notes? A Yes. I'm looking at the contract. It looks like March 22", Q Thank you. And that's 2007, correct? A Yes. Q Thank you very much. A You're welcome. COURT: Okay. Any redirect, Mr. Altshuler? MR. ALTSHULER: No, your Honor. COURT: Okay. MR. ALTSHULER: May the witness be excused finally, your Honor? COURT: Absolutely. Ms. McElrath, thank you very 1510 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 much. McElrath. I'm sorry. WITNESS: McElrath. Yes. COURT: Thank you very much. MR, ALTSHULER: Thank you for coming. I'm calling Officer Theodore Sargent, your Honor. COURT: Okay. (PAUSE) COURT: Good morning, Officer. WITNESS: Good morning. COURT: Is your last name spelled S-a-r-g-e-n-t? WITNESS: Yes, it is. COURT: Thank you. Officer, would you raise your right hand, please? Officer, do you swear or affirm that the testimony you will give in court today will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? WITNESS: I do. COURT: Thank you very mich. Please have a seat. THEODORE J. SARGENT, HAVING BEEN DULY SWORN, TESTIFIED AS FOLLOWS, DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Good morning, Officer. Could you state for the record your name? A ‘Theodore J. Sargent. Q And you work for the South Portland Police Department? 1610 i 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 Yes, I do. And how long have you worked for the South Portland Police Department? Be twenty years August. I assume in the course of your work, you've been involved in situations of domestic disputes? Yes. You're here under subpoena, are you not, sir? Yes, I am. I mean Officer, you're under subpoena? Thank you for coming. I know yesterday was your day--one of your days off, and I appreciate you taking this time. I'm going to call your attention to an incident that happened in April of 2007. and before I do that, before that time, did you know either Lori Handrahan or Mr. Malenko? No. Okay. Were you involved in an incident that happened in South Portland on, I believe, April 254, 20077 Yes. Okay. Could you please describe for the Court your involvement in that situation? My involvement was that I received a radio dispatch to a domestic--to--I believe it's 56 ay10 u 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 Willard Street in South Portland. Me and Officer Webster--Officer Webster was the primary officer. Iwas his back up. It was reported, my recollection, that the subject ran across the street to have the neighbor call, which happened to be a lieutenant in the South Portland Police Department. Was the subject Ms. Handrahan or Mr. Malenko? It was Miss Handrahan. Okay. And she went across the street to what happened to be another police officer's-- That was my understanding. Yes. --and called dispatch? Right. Okay. And you appeared on the scene pursuant to that call? Yes. Okay. And were you involved with either Miss Handrahan or Mr. Malenko when you arrived on the scene? I was--if I remember correctly, I was the first--I arrived just a little before Officer Webster. And I think I--I was interviewing Mr. Malenko. Okay. So, you were the officer that primarily spoke directly with Mr. Malenko? 1810 u 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 prt 22 23 24 25 Right. And that was at the scene when this happened? At the scene. Yes. Could you, to the best of your recollection, recite what the--what that conversation was with Mr. Malenko? Basically, I was trying to find out his version of what had happened. And, then, in the course of the interview, he admitted to throwing a--like a-- it was in my report, a plastic bottle, a peanut butter bottle at Mrs. (Indiscernible). Okay. Now, this is very important. All right. We're talking very important. There's a difference between throwing a jar of peanut butter, and throwing the jar of peanut butter at someone or at something. Can you recall, to the best of your ability, what he said specifically about what he did--what the direction of the peanut butter jar was? Tt was at her. And he said he threw it at her? Yeah. And that's what I passed on to Officer Webster. Okay. Did you have any discussions with Mr. 1910 IL 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 Malenko after that? I transported him to the County Jail, and that was it. No particular incidents or nothing like that. Was Mr. Malenko cooperative with you? Yes Did he seem agitated? No. Seemed calm? Yeah, calm. Maybe a little bit shaky, you know, wondering what to expect, what the process and all. But other than that, he was calm. Of course, I assume you know Mr. Malenko is from another country? Yes. Do you--did he appear to have any misunderstanding communicating with you in English? Did he seem to have any problem grasping what you were saying to him? No. No. Did you have any conversations with Ms. Handrahan that night? No, I didn't. Officer Webster spoke with her. Did you see Miss Handrahan physically during that call to the scene? Briefly. 2010 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 Q Okay. Could you recall any description of how she appeared to be? A She was shaky, just, you know, shaky, a little scared looking. MR. ALTSHULER: I have nothing further, your Honor. COURT: Thank you. Mr. Waxman? MR, WAXMAN: Thank you, your Honor. CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. WAXMAN Q Good morning, Officer. A Morning. Q We've not met, have we? A What--yes. We've met before. Q We have? A Yeah. Q I don't remember that. A oh. Q 9 I'm sorry. A I was on this end again. MR. ALTSHULER: And he got acquitted. MR. WAXMAN: Too many trials. Q You've been with the department for some time, I think you said, correct? Q And what's your--are you a patrolman, or what is 2210 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 your duty, generally, as a-- I'm a patrol officer. --all right. And this happened on April 2", 2007, about a year and a half ago, right? True? That's what the report says. I can't-- Okay. And, in fact, the report is written by the primary officer, Officer Webster, correct? --yes. And there's nothing written here by you, correct? No. All right. And you've probably had more than one call since April 2, 2007 that you've responded to, correct? Probably--how many? Tens, scores of domestic violence calls since that time? Oh, I can't gi--quite a few. Quite a few? It's hard to remember some of the details? I was working in plain clothes for a while, too, so, I didn't have that many domest--I was working in plain clothes for a little after that. It's hard to remember, now, but I have had quite a few calls. All right. Is it fair to say that, without 2210 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 looking at notes from an incident that took place over a year and a half ago, it's hard to remember the details? Yes. It is fair to say. That's why I have to rely mostly on reports. And that's the way it is generally when you testify, correct? You look at your report to refresh your memory? Yes. Is that right? Right. So, you looked at this report in order to refresh your memory, right? Mobmm. You have to say yes or no. Yes. You've done this before, right? Yes, I have. Okay. So, when you knew that you were being subpoenaed for this case, and you were going to have to testify about this incident-- Yes. I went right to the computer system. 1 had to dig out everything I could find on it. --okay. Because you didn't have any independent recollection, did you? 2310 u 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 Oh, I had some recollection of it just because, like, it was right across from, you know, 55 Willard Street, which, you know, I know the person that lives there. I have a recollection of, you know, the conversation. I remember--I can tell you--and correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you tell me that you were a lifeguard? MR. MALENKO: Swinming teacher. Yeah. So, I remember stuff like that. Okay. Little trivia stuff. You know, to me, it was one of those domestics where there's no serious injury that I could see. So, it was like I was a transport officer. Okay. Just back to that one comment you just made. $0, you did have a chance to see Miss Handrahan and the place where she claimed to have been injured? I didn't know where she--I seen her briefly. I seen that she was scared enough. She was scared. All right. Officer Webster could testify better to how she really was. Well, you reviewed the report to refresh your recollection, and you know that part of the report 2410 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 Bat 2 23 24 25 says that there was no injury, correct? Correct. All right. Now, do you remember, at one point, Mr. Malenko took you back into the house to show you what took place? Oh, God. (PAUSE) Probably showed me the kitchen table, maybe. Okay. Fair enough. And when he showed you the kitchen table, did he show you also the bottle or can or whatever it was that had been propelled? I don't remember that. No. No. All right. Do you recall him--do you recall finding the plastic peanut butter bottle? I didn't--I don't recall even seeing the plastic peanut butter, because in the report, the report, I see prescription bottle. Right. And I see plastic bottle. Peanut butter bottle was told to me. But, he says, "I threw a peanut butter--plastic peanut butter jar at her." Okay. That's your memory. But, you don't recall him--do you recall being brought back into the house and him showing you the kitchen table, but that's about as much as you remember? 2510 u 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 A I remember talking to him inside the house. Q Okay. Do you remember him showing you that the bottle, prescription bottle or otherwise, had been on the kitchen table, and he got up and he swept it away? A I don't remember that. Q You don't? Okay. Do you remember him showing you where the bottle went? A No. Q Do you remember reaching down to the floor and picking the bottle up? A Me picking it up? Q Yes. A No. @ Do you remember him reaching down and picking the bottle up? A No, I don't. Q Do you recall seeing the bottle at all? A No, I don't. MR. ALTSHULER: Your Honor, I think he's been pretty clear, He doesn't recall anything happening. This is just Mr. Waxman testifying. COURT: Well, I think Mr. Waxman is entitled to ask him the specifics of what happened. Go right ahead. 2610 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 25 CROSS-EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. WAXMAN So, you do remember being back in the house, and you do recall having a discussion with Mr. Malenko, yes? Right. But, fair to say you don't remember all the details? I--I definitely don't remember bending down and picking up and looking at a bottle. No. Okay. So, your testimony here today that he threw the bottle at her is based exclusively on xeviewing this particular report, right? Based on what he told me, what I told Officer Webster, and then Officer Webster put it in his report. He was the primary. He made the basis of probable cause to make the arrest. Right. And the report says, with regard to what you say, "Officer Sargent spoke to Igor. Officer Sargent told me, Webster, that Igor admitted to throwing a plastic bottle of peanut butter at his wife because he was upset at her not letting him watch their daughter," right? That's what it says? Yeah. That's what you reviewed before testifying today? 2710 iW 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 2 2 23 28 A ‘That's all I had, was--all these pieces of paper is what I had to review. Q Right. You had no notes you'd written? A No. Q All right. So, your testimony here today in front of this Court that he threw it at her is based on paragraph six of the details part of this report filled out by the primary officer, Officer Webster, right? A Yes. Q = Thank you. COURT: Miss Stout, do you have any-- MS. STOUT: I do not, your Honor. COURT: --questions? Okay. Any redirect? MR. ALTSHULER: No. May he be excused finally, your Honor? COURT: Absolutely. Thank you, Officer Sargent. MR. ALTSHULER: Thank you for coming. Your Honor, I'm gonna--by agreement of the parties, I'm going to call a very--hopefully, a brief witness, Stephanie Bisol-- COURT: sure. MR. ALTSHULER: --which is B-i-s-o-1. cour’ Thank you. MR. ALTSHULER: And Stephanie is S-t-e-p-h-a-n-i-e 2810 1 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 COURT: Thank you. Good morning, Miss Bisol. WITNESS: Good morning. COURT: Miss Bisol, do you swear or affirm that the testimony you will give in court today will be the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth? WITNESS: I do. COURT: Thank you very much. Please have a seat. WITNESS: Thank you. STEPHANIE BISOL, HAVING BEEN DULY SWORN, TESTIFIED AS FOLLOWS, DIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR, ALTSHULER Q Did I spell your name correctly? A Yes. But it's Bisol. Q Oh, I'm sorry. Bisol? A Bisol. Q I apologize. A That's okay. No problem. Q Where do you currently reside? What city do you reside in? A Gray, Maine. @ And do you know Lori Handrahan and Igor Malenko? A Ido. Yes. @ And how do you know them? A I was their nanny for Mila. Q Do you--did you have some training as being a 2910 un 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 25 nanny? Well, I was a teacher for years, but I went through a nanny service, so I didn't get like, you know, training, if you will. And where were you a teacher? At the Reach School, as well as an in-home support teacher for children with autism. Okay. How did either one of them first contact you about being a nanny? I was with an agency, and the president called me and said that a woman named Lori wanted me to be in touch with her about being her nanny. And then I spoke directly to Lori. We had phone calls back and forth. Okay. And about what period of time are we talking about? When was this? I believe it was the first week or the second week of November. Okay. Had Mila been born yet? Yes. Okay. And what did Lori say to you was she--what she was looking for? Just a nanny, whatever hours I could work, and pretty much eight to three, or eight to twelve, whatever hours I could be there. 3010 i 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 Did she describe Mila to you? She did, a little bit. Yeah. Did she mention in that conversation Mr. Malenko-- Yeah. --when she first called-- Well, she said she had a husband. --okay. Did she say anything about her and her husband at all? No. Nothing. When did you first meet either Lori or Mr. Malenko? I don't actually know the exact date, but it was in November, the first or second week when I-- How did you meet them? --I came to their home, and Lori was there first. Okay. And Igor and Mila were out for a walk. Okay. And, then--oh, sorry. I'm sorry. No. You're more important than I am. Go ahead. Okay. And, then, Mila came inside, and, then, Mila and I were able to engage. When you first met Lori, did she-- ‘Mmmm. 3110 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 --do you remember anything she said to you at the first meeting you had together? That I was--that I had a good personality, and that she was excited that Mila could have a friend, and someone to be with and build with and interact with, and kind of engage with, pretty much just-- Did she tell you why she wanted a nanny at all at that time? --no, Just she was working at home. Okay. When Mr.--when you first met Mr. Malenko, he was out taking a walk with Mila? Yeah. Yeah. When he came back, did you engage in conversation with him? I said hello to him, shook his hand, and-- Did he say anything to you? --oh, just, "Hello, I'm Igor." Did he appear to know who you were and what you were doing there? I believe so. Yeah. He didn't ask--he didn't look confused, or he didn't ask Lori, you know, “Who is this person?" He didn't say, “Who are you? What are you doing here?" 3210 ul 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 No. No. Okay. Were you eventually hired by either one of them to be a nanny for Mila? Yes. When did you first begin working? It was about that second week. Okay. And you worked for them from then until when? Until June 20%-- So-- --was my actual employment time. -s0, about six--am I counting right, about six months? Mmbmm. Okay. And by the way, you--for the microphone, you have to answer-- oh, sorry. yes or no. No. Okay. You don't have to speak into it. Okay. But instead of sounds like--we would know what you mean, but the recorder doesn't get the--you have to kind of say whole words, okay? All right. Thank you. 3310 W 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 Okay. Let's talk about the times--were you there at times that both Lori and Mr. Malenko were present, as well? Yes. Okay. Let's talk first about your observations about the care either one of them provided for Mila when you were there. Yes. You're the nanny. You're primarily responsible for providing care of Camilla, correct? Yes. Did you observe either Lori or Mr. Malenko provide care for Mila while you were there? More so Lori. And what do you mean by that? Lori was upstairs working, and I had--in the beginning, the first couple months, it was just basically Lori. I saw Igor maybe once or twice, a couple times. This is about December or January. And, then, he would come down and sometimes make lunch, or go back upstairs, and-- Well, how--when you said you didn't see Mr. Malenko, was he out of the house or was he in the house? no. He was in the home. 3410 WW 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 Well, if he was in the home, why didn't you see him? I believe he was sleeping or upstairs. aAnd-- We--I was asked by Lori to kind of--I'm a very boisterous person, and I like to engage with the child. And I was told--you know, I was asked to be a little bit quiet, because Igor was sleeping, and-- --okay. Lori said to you, "Be quiet, because Igor's sleeping." -yes. For how long a period of time was this? I don't know exact dates. I'm not sure, because, then, Igor had gotten a job. And, so, he was sleeping ‘cause he had a night job. So, I'm not really sure of the exact dates. Before he started working: Mmhmm. --what time did he usually come down to where you were? Sometimes it wasn't at all, and sometimes it was maybe for a couple minutes, and then it was back upstairs, ‘cause then I would put Mila down for a nap. In the beginning, I was there for a longer 3510 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 pat 2 23 24 25 period of time, so Lori would come down, and we'd engage. And she'd sometimes, you know, be on a conference call and say, "Hey, do you mind putting Mila down?" And, "Sure. I'11 go put her down And we'd sleep. I'd clean up the room, and then Lori would say, "All right. It's okay. You can go now." So, then I would go. So, let me make sure I understand that. Sure. Both of them were in the house at this time? Yes. But you're mainly seeing Lori and not Mr. Malenko? Yes. When--in terms of interaction with Mila during this time that they both were in the hous: Yes. -and you were there, how did they divide time to spend with Mila during that period of time? During the time I was there? Correct. Well, it was--see, there's a bunch of chunks of time. I don't know if I can-- Do the best you can. -oh, sure. In the beginning, it was Lori, and, then, when I was told that Igor had a job at 3610 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 night, sometimes it would be when I had to leave at noon, ‘cause I had a separate job, Igor would come down and then take Mila, or Lori would come and take Mila and bring her up to her nap. and, then, toward the end, it was--I was told Igor had a day job, so it was six to four, so I never saw him during that time. Did--based on your observations, did Mila-- (Sneeze). Excuse me. I'm sorry. --no problem. Do you need a Kleenex? I have one. Thank you. Okay. Did Mila seem comfortable with Lori? Yes. Loving and affectionate with Lori? Yes. She'd stand at the bottom of the stairs, and screaming for her. Okay. And how about with Mr. Malenko? Did Mila seem to love her father, and be comfortable with her father? She did. When he came down, she'd yell, "Papa. Papa," and she'd run to him, and, you know, same as Lori, so-- I want to ask you a few questions about the structure of the house-- -sure. 3710 cre 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 --okay? Did either party tell you (indiscernible) kind of rules of what you were supposed to do, what you could or could not do with Mila? Do you know what I'm saying? I do. Okay. Yes and no. I was pretty much told that I was the nanny, by Lori. You know, I was the nanny, and that if there were questions I had, or anything I needed to know about food or feeding, you know, Lori would come down at the times that she knew Mila was hungry or when she was screaming, There were--I was there during the winter, so I was told that I wasn't able to go outside with Mila. Well, why could you not go outside with Mila during winter? I just was told that--I was just indicated that, you know-~ By both of them? --well, it kind of came to light towards the spring, when I--Mila and I were both a little bit cabin fever, and we were both pretty much pulling our hair out, ‘cause we'd watched so many Elmo tapes, that I was pretty much all finished with Elmo at the time. 3810 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 Q I think all the parents can relate to that. I could only watch Bert and Ernie for so long. So, I had asked Lori, I said, " 0 you mind if T please take Mila out for a walk? We're right by the beach. Please, I'm about ready to just lose it.” And what did Lori say to you? And Lori said, "Well, I'm not really sure. I need to ask Igor." And-- She said she had to ask Igor before answering your question? -yes. Yes. Did she say why she had to ask Igor? She just said, "I don't think that he'd like having somebody--you know, having somebody else take Mila out of the house." And I had done in- home support before, so, I understand that whatever the parents' wishes is is what--and--but at this point, I kinda was like, "Are you sure? Is it really okay? Can we really go outside? You know, we have a stroller. I know the area." And she said, "Well, let me call Igor, I really need to make a phone call." So, they stood in kitchen, and Mila and I were playing. And she spoke with Igor, and Lori said, "Well, I understand that you 3910 ul 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 don't--you know, you don't approve and you don't want me to do this--"-- Hold on a second. You're not hearing Igor's--on the phone? --no. So, you're assuming that she was speaking to Igor? Yes. And all you heard was what she was saying to him? Yes. Okay. So, what did you hear her say to-- I heard her say, you know, "Stephanie would like to take Milo out. It's a beautiful day if we bundle her up, you know, we'll get her hat, mittens, coat, everything on, and Stephanie walk her down for thirty minutes," or, you know, a certain amount of time. "Is it all right if Stephanie takes her out?" And, then, I also heard Lori say, "Well, she won't do that. She won't do that. She won't put her on the playground. she won't--you know, she won't do that." And Lori's looking at me as Mila's, you know, yelling, “Outside. Outside. Outside." And I said, "All right, Honey." You know, we're trying to entertain this child, so, then I was told--then, I heard Lori say, "Well, we can--you know, we can 4010 iW 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 4 25 discuss this when you get home. I'm going to let Stephanie take Mila outside. And we can discuss this at home--when you come home." And I remember Lori hanging up the phone, and she put it on the counter and she said, "I- just take her outside. Go ahead. Take her in the carriage. And I said, "All right." So, we bundled her up, and yay, we went outside. Did you have a nice time with her outside? We did. It was great. Did you have any conversations with Mr. Malenko after that time about concerns about going outside, or what you were expected to do outside with Mila? There was a time when Lori went away to Atlanta, ‘cause she had just gotten her new job. And I had--Igor was working, but he was going in late to kind of acclimate Mila to the longer days with me there. And I was given, you know, a lot of--a lot of, “Are you sure you're not going to let her step on a rusty nail? Are you sure you're not going to let her climb the playground, or, you know, pick up a piece of glass, or go near the dogs, or get bitten. And if she does, do you--you know, call me right away. And I need to know." And T kept 4110 i 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 saying, "Yes. Don't worry. It's all right. I'll--you know, I'll--we can do it. Don't worry. I never--I won't take her shoes off. It's you know, I'm sorry I don't remember if it April or May. And, "I--don't worry. I'm not gonna take my shoes off. I would never let her take her shoes off." And, "Don't let her climb the playground without touching her--you know, with being behind her. And don't let her get by the dogs. If a dog comes, please pick her up right away and make sure she doesn't get bit." and, "All right. I'm sure," you know. And, "I'm sure." And I believe I said, "Well, do you want me to just hang outside in with her? You know, it's a little kind of cloudy out. Do you want me to just hang out inside?" And, "No. No. It's all right. Just make sure that, you know, all-- you don't--you know, she's not hurt or steps on a nail or anything." So, I said, "Okay." How long--when you'd have these conversations, did this happen more than one time? Yes. Like--on a--every time you wanted to go out, how often would Mr. Malenko kinda give you these instructions? 4210 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 Well, see, that was only a week that--when Lori was away and I was there, also, you know, working the six to four kind of with Mila. And it was probably every day that I was-- And how long would Mr. Malenko take giving you these instructions? --you know, twenty minutes, maybe, I'm--I'm-- Twenty minutes of instructions? --yes. And Lori--I would be getting--you know, I would get, you know, "Bundle her up. Don't forget--you know, she doesn't like her mitten: Don't forget to put ‘em back on." And Mila and T would have our little fights about sticking her little mitten back on, but, you know, it was just--it seemed--it made me very nervous then to take Mila out during-- Because of what Lori said? --no. No. Because of what Mr. Malenko said? Right. Because I felt so afraid that if she did accidentally fall down, or if I--you know, children are so fragile that a second she fell down, I was just very worried that--I don't know. Iwas just very scared that Mila--I would get in trouble or somehow not be able to work with Mila 4310 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 because she accidentally fell down, you know, or scraped her arm or-- Did you know of anything that had happened to Mila through the present--through that time, that would warrant this kind of concern by Mr. Malenko? =-no. No. Did anything happen to Mila while you were caring for her in those six months? She got a little scratch once on her arm, but-- And how did that happen? --I don't know. And other than that, everything was okay? Yes. Why did your employment end with Lori and Mr. Malenko? I got a summer full-time job at the school that I was working at part-time. I was a summer camp coordinator. And it was kind of bittersweet between Lori and I, We had talked about it and indicated that, you know, it was--she wanted to have Mila interact more with little children, and that it was Fifi's time to go. So, I went, and-- That was your nickname, Fifi? --I'm sorry. Yeah. My nickname was Fifi, so-- In the times that you saw Lori and Mr. Malenko 4410 ul 12 13, 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 interact with each other-- A Yes. Q --did you observe anything unusual--and I know that's a broad word, but-- A Mmbmm, Q -in their interactions in terms of if one party was more dominating or intimidating or controlling? MR. WAXMAN: I'm going to object to the leading nature of the question. MR. ALTSHULER: Well, I'm trying to be kind of vague about it, your Honor. I'm not--well, let me just stop-- DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q --did you see anything unusual in the dynamics between Mr. Malenko and Lori, how they related to each other? A No. They--it was almost as if they were passing, you know, in passing. Sometimes I'd see them both. They'd, "Hi, how are you?", or, you know, they'd pass each other, or, you know, if Mila were erying, and they would both come down, or--but it was very rare. Q That you saw them interact with each other? A Yes. Yes. 4510 ul 12 13 14 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 And did you observe anything about Lori's parenting that caused you any kind of concerns whatsoever? No. Anything about Mr. Malenko's parenting that caused you concerns? No. MR. ALTSHULER: Nothing further, your Honor. COURT: Thank you. Mr. Waxman? MR. WAXMAN: Thank you, your Honor. CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MR. WAXMAN Good morning, Miss Bisol. Good morning. I'm Michael Waxman. You've heard that already. Yes. I'm Igor's lawyer. ‘Mmmm. When did you work at the Reach School? I worked there from February until now, until present. Of--oh, I see. That's a recent employment? It is. Yes. Oh, I see. Your employment began by Lori calling you and asking if you were available, correct? Yes. 4610 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 pat 22 23 24 25 Was that through Portland Nannies? It was. So, who hired you, Lori? Yes. Well, Eliza--I mean, Elizabeth at Portland Nannies hired me, and then it's betw--she's like the contact person between the parents. Okay. And, then, who paid you? Lori. All right. I think you said you were working basically between the hours of eight and eleven at first, correct? No. What were the hours? I was eight to three in the beginning. Yeah. And, then, I would work eight to eleven-thirty when I started my Reach School job. At some point, you became aware that Mr. Malenko was working a third shift, right? Mobo. Is that a yes? Yes. sorry. Okay. And I think you said that, oftentimes, he was sleeping, and you were asked to remain somewhat quiet? 4710 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 au 22 23 24 25 Yes. And that's because he was working the third shift, right? Well, in the beginning, it wasn't. In the end, I just kind of--Lori had said, you know, Igor was working the third shift, and then he was going to school, so-- Okay. What's the basis for your information that he wasn't working when you first got there? --I was told that Lori was working at home, and Igor was upstairs sleeping. Lori told you that? Yes. Okay. Lori also told you that he was mentally ill, correct? No, she did not. She never told you that? It wasn't until Mother's Day. Okay. When did--that's the first time she told you he was mentally ill? She told me that there were issues going on between them. She did not tell me he was mentally ill on that day. Well, what did she tell you about Mr. Malenko? She--from the Mother's Day conversation? 4810 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 Yes. She called me. It was about noontime. I was at home with my parents. And I got a message, “Stephanie, this is Lori. I want to let you know that we probably won't need you until Wednesday. We're driving up to Sorrento, Mila and I. There was an incident in the house--"--I believe she said--"--with Igor, and we're going to spend a couple days up in Sorrento. And if it's all right with you, I'11 call you when we need you, you know, to come help What did she say to you about what had happened, or about anything about Igor? Well, I didn't ask. I understand. Yeah. Okay. I just--that's not my place. Did she share with you anything else, though, besides what you've already told us? She did. And what did she share with you? Yeah. She shared what happened that day in the incident, and-- What was that incident? --well, the incident that Igor and her had a conversation outside, and there was a discussion, 4910 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 and that the police were called. And the police indicated that it would probably be best that they go separate ways. And, so, she decided to take Mila up to Sorrento. Okay. So, she told you that her decision to go to Sorrento was made after the incident with the police that day? Yes. She didn't tell you that she had planned to go to Sorrento before? No. She didn't tell you that the reason the police were called was because Mr, Malenko was so upset that she decided to go all by herself, with the child, to Sorrento? No. I did not hear any of that. You didn't hear that? Okay. What else did she tell you about Igor? That was it for that. What else did she tell you at any time about Igor? Well--and, then, towards the end of the week, when I was asked to come back to nanny for Mila, I was told that Igor was not coming back, and that, as everything further progressed, she did tell me one morning that Igor had filed for divorce. And, 5010 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 then, from then on, it was all the court and everything else that I had been involved with. Okay. Did she ever talk with you about Igor's mental illness? She did, a little bit. Do you recall what she said about that? I'm not sure. She did say that there were things that were going on from his past, and that were things that she was concerned about, and situations--she did indicate situations from the past, and she opened up about Budapest, and, you know, the reason for coming back from that. What was the reason for coming back? Well, she just said there was an incident in Budapest where her friend had to come--fly over and help her and Mila come back to the states. And I'm sorry to have to ask you about-- That's all right. --conversations that are now some time ago- Mimhmm. --but, it's important to understand what she was describing to you. Oh, I understand. Okay. Yes. 5110 i 12 13 4 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 So, what did she describe to you about Budapest and the reason that she came back? Well, she just said there was an incident with her and Igor. Did she tell you what the incident was? No, she did not. It wasn't until later, after the trial and--I mean, the first one. I don't xemember back when that was. I'm sorry. That's okay. When I was called by the judge, and there were oth--you know, other conversations. And then I was told about pretty much everything that was happening. That was the protection from abuse hearing, correct? I believe so. Yes. And the judge called you--I think I was actually in the room. Mabmm. The judge called you-- Mmmm. --and you spoke to the judge for a few minutes, correct? I did. yes. And the judge asked you if you would be 5210 i 12 13 14 15 16 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 comfortable doing some more care for Mila, correct? I believe so. I--yeah. And you said you were not comfortable, isn't that right? Doing care for Mila? Yeah. I said I wasn't comfortable doing care for Mila if it was overnight if Igor was in the home. That's what I said. And--okay. And that's because of what Lori had told you about Igor, right? No. It was because I didn't know him very well. All right. And what little you did know about him-- Mako. --was based on limited observations of him-- Mmmm. --and then on Lori's characterizations? No. It was me knowing that when two--when parents split up, I am not either going to--I didn't know if it was in Igor's home, if it was in Lori's home. I don't feel comfortable. I'ma nanny. I don't feel comfortable taking care of a child in a situation that's not my situation, that I don't 5310 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 know all the details, T don't know what's going on. I don't feel comfortable being with somebody that I don't know. Okay. I don't feel comfortable. Fair enough. But you were comfortable with Lori? Yes, I was. Okay. You weren't comfortable with Igor--I think your testimony was because you hadn't had much interaction with him? Correct. All right. Had he ever said anything negative, by the way, about Lori? No. To you? No. I heard you testify about some requirements and rules that Igor had-- Mabon. --for you taking the child outside, right? Yes. And, to you, those seemed somewhat extensive, fair? Yes. All right. You're not familiar with Macedonian 5410 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 2 23 24 25 culture, are you? I am not. All right. If you learned that, in Macedonia, the parents are almost always responsible for the care of the children, and that they generally are very careful, and the first forty days or so after birth, not to allow their child to have any outside contact. Might that explain a bit of why he had some of these rules? A little bit. But this was a year and a half later. All right. Well, did you also come to learn at some point that Lori would not permit her child to be innoculized [sic]--that may be the wrong word--immunized? Did you know that? I did, but only because I asked if there were any--whenever I start with a family, I ask if there's any allergies, so I'm not just feeding a child peanuts-- Right. --and they blow up. So, I asked her-- Good idea. ~-you know, I mean--right. Any sane person would do that, I guess. But, I asked, and I--you know, and, "No, but there are no immunizations." But, 5510 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 that, to me, whatever, Okay. I work with children with autism. They don't--a lot of parents choose not to immunize their children because they feel that that indic--you know, that will increase, if you will, their autism or whatever. Q Putting aside the unanswered-- A Yeah. Q --perhaps, question of whether or not immunizations can cause autism-- A Yes. Q --can we agree that if a child does not have any inoculations, that child is at a higher risk of getting certain illnesses? A Yes. Q For instance, if a child does not have a tetanus shot, and then rubs against a rusty nail, that child can get a very serious illness, right? MR. ALTSHULER: Your Honor, I'm going to object. The--I do think this is medical test--I mean, arguably, medical testimony. I mean, I--we all know that if (indiscernible) tetanus, but-- MR. WAXMAN: Well, I'll do the foundation if you want, your Honor, I mean-- MR. ALTSHULER: --well, no. He's not a doctor. 5610 u 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 He can't do a foundation. And she's not a doctor, either. COURT: Well, let--well, wait a minute. Let's not argue about this point, okay? Mr. Altshuler, time is of the essence. Let's not argue about this point. Why don't we just move on, Mr. Waxman? MR. WAXMAN: All right. CROSS-EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. WAXMAN Q Well, you've worked with children for some time now, correct? A Correct. Q Do you behave differently when a child doesn't have any immunizations, as far as taking care of the child? MR. ALTSHULER: Objection, your Honor. That's an incredibly general statement. What do you mean, do they--do you behave differently? MR. WAXMAN: TI could ask a more leading question, if you'd like. MR. ALTSHULER: Well, I don't want-- COURT: Well, what wa--he didn't get the entire question out. What was the question, Mr. Waxman? CROSS-EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR, WAXMAN Q Do you behave differently when caring for children who don't have any immunizations? 8710 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 COURT: We'll allow the answer. WITNESS: No. I don't behave any differently. CROSS-EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. WAXMAN So, you don't get concerned that there may be visks to that a child that a child who has immunizations might not get? When I'm with a child, there's a lot of other safety concerns that I'm trying to think about and deal with. Will she fall off the couch? Will he hit his head? Will--you know, if they're running, will they trip on the socks or the pants that are too long? I'm not thinking there's twenty-six vaccines that this child has not had, let's not let them touch the doorknob. I'm sorry. That's not running through my mind as I'm playing with a child. Have you cared for Mila at any time since May of 2008? I have. All right. Are you still doing that on a regular basis? Not on a regular basis. Every now and then? Now and then. Do you take care of her when Lori goes on trips? 5810 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 It hasn't been since June or July that I have done that. What does she pay you, by the way, on an hourly basis? She pays me fourteen an hour. So, in June or July, when you took care of the child on an overnight basis, how long was that overnight? Was it just a weekend, just a night? It was a couple days. How much were you paid for that couple days? I don't get paid for overnights. So, you're paid by the hour just during waking hours? Mmbmm. Yes? Because if the child's sleeping, I should not-- yes. And that's my choice. By the way, I think you said that there was a time when you weren't caring for Mila-- Minhmm. --and the parties were still together, when Lori went to Atlanta? How long was she in Atlanta? She was in Atlanta for--I want to say--I'm sorry. 5910 u 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 25 Let me think. Four, three or four days, four days. Okay. And you had care for Mila during the day, is that right? Correct. And I stayed in one overnight. 1 was going to stay the whole four days. Right. And, then, on the other overnights that you were not caring for Mila-- Mimbo. --was she left in the care of her father, all by himself? Yes. He cared for this child all by himself? Yes, he did. When you saw the child after that, was she damaged in any way? No. Did you have any concerns about Igor taking care of his own daughter overnight during that time frame? No. Have you ever had any concerns about Igor mistreating his child in any way, shape or form? Not during the time that I was there. And if you do now, it's only because of what 6010 uw 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 you've learned from Lori, correct? No, not from Lori. From this trial. All right. So, as far as you know, you may be called upon by Lori to take care of this child again, is that right? Yes. And you'll be paid fourteen fifty [sic] an hour for that? It's only fourteen, but eleven if it's--it depends. When I was a nanny, it was fourteen. But, sometimes, I decided to go to eleven. Thank you. You're welcome. COURT: Miss Stout? MS. STOUT: Just very briefly. CROSS-EXAMINATION BY MS. STOUT When was the Atlanta trip? I'm not sure. I'm sorry. Does that--does March or April of 2008 sound right? I want to say it was March or April. Yes. Okay. And, so--and your work was November, '07 to dune, ‘08? Yes. Thank you. 6110 aT 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 MS. STOUT: That's all I have. WITNESS: Mmhmm. MR. ALTSHULTER: Your Honor, I just want--I have one question. I'd like to-- courT: Redirect? MR. ALTSHULER: --thank you, your Honor. COURT: sure. MR, ALTSHULER: It's actually not redirect [sic]. REDIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. ALTSHULER Q You're here under subpoena, correct? A I'm sorry. Q You're here--you were served with a subpoena to appear today? A Yes, I was. Q dust to get (indiscernible) established for the record-- A Okay. Q --you didn't come voluntarily? 1 A No. Q --required you to come? A Yes. Q Okay. MR. ALTSHULER: Nothing further, your Honor. COURT: All right. Thank you. Ms. Bisol, thank you very much. 6210 u 12 13, 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 MR. WAXMAN: Your Honor, I'm not sure I'm done. That question just gave rise to another question. COURT: Oh, I'm sorry. MR. WAXMAN: Sorry. RECROSS EXAMINATION BY MR. WAXMAN Q You're not here voluntarily, but you went ahead and drafted a three or four-page, single-spaced letter for Lori in this case, right? A Yes. I was asked to by Lori's lawyer. Q = Thank you. A Mmbm. FURTHER REDIRECT EXAMINATION BY MR. ALTSHULER Q And just to clarify, that's her prior attorney, not me, correct? A Correct. Q Okay. COURT: Okay. Thank you, Miss Bisol. WITNESS: Thank you. COURT: Mr. Altshuler. MR. ALTSHULER: I appreciate counsel and the Court letting me call those out of order. Thank you. COURT: No. No. That's perfectly fine. MR. ALTSHULER: I'm ready to put Dr. Handrahan back on the stand. COURT: Okay. 6310 i 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 (INAUDIBLE CONVERSATION) COURT: Miss Handrahan, you're still under oath. There's no need to reswear you. MR. ALTSHULER: Your Honor-- COURT: Excuse me. Dr. Handrahan. WITNESS: Thank you. MR. ALTSHULER: --your Honor, as a preliminary matter, I have six exhibits, and I--both couns--the guardian ad litem and opposing counsel have received a copy of, and I haven't heard an objection to it, so I'd just-- MR. WAXMAN: Which ones do you--all of them? MR. ALTSHULER: --well, yes. As I--real quick, I'll show you--him again. (ATTORNEYS CONFER) MR. ALTSHULER: Okay. I guess I'd like to give it to you, and he's objected to Leslie Devoe's report. She's coming in later. She'll validate Leslie Devoe's report, which is on his exhibit list. So, I guess I don't object to him introducing that report. I have Ms. Handrahan's financial statement. I assume-- MR. WAXMAN: No objection. MR. ALTSHULER: --I have the deeds to the Sorrento property-- MR. WAXMAN: No objection. 6410 i 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 25 MR. ALTSHULER: --deed to the South Portland property-- MR. WAXMAN: No objection. MR. ALTSHULER: --and the DVD I submitted to the Court that's the subject matter of the--the DVD that was (indiscernible) . MR. WAXMAN: No objection. I do object to both-- COURT: Right. And that--on that DvD, I--you still have that, Mr. Altshuler, is that right? MR. ALTSHULER: Well, it went into the court file, your Honor. We did produce it. COURT: It is? MR. ALTSHULER: Well, it should have been. Yes. I have--I have plenty of copies for you, if you want another one. COURT: Okay. I--I don't know that it made the file. Now, that doesn't mean the clerks don't have it downstairs. I'll have to double-check that. MR. ALTSHULER: That--it was actually also included in Ms. Devoe's report as an attachment to that. So, I know it's in the court file, but, I'll be happy to give you another copy (indiscernible). couRT: All right. MR. WAXMAN: --I--yeah. I just want the record 6510 i 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 clear, I am objecting to Miss Devoe's report. It's hearsay. COURT: Okay. MR, ALTSHULER: Okay. So-- COURT: Mr. Altshuler? MR. ALTSHULER: --well, everything that's--her report--she'll be here to testify. I'm not expecting the Court to at it until she gets here. She'll be here to testify today. She'll testify to as much of the report as she has to. She'll testify that she relied on all the attachments to the report in coming to the conclusions she reached. So, it's not being offered for the truth of the matter asserted. It's the basis of her conclusions in the report. COURT: That's kind of novel. I haven't heard that before. MR. ALTSHULER: I haven't--well, I think I heard it yesterday (indiscernible). CouRT: Well, I don't--I think I'm going to sustain the objection. I don't know that a report is admissible, because it is hearsay. If she's going to testify it, as a practical matter, it doesn't really matter, does it? MR. ALTSHULER: Sure. Because she--there's no possible way she can--if she has to testify to 6610 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 everything in her extremely lengthy report, she's not going to be able to do it today. I mean, that's going-- COURT: Well, you may have to be lawerly and be surgical and get the evidence in that you need to get in. MR. ALTSHULER: --but, clearly, that report of an expert witness is admissible in support of her testimony. MR. WAXMAN: Clearly, I disagree with that contention. COURT: I'm--what authority do you have, Mr. Altshuler, that that's the case? MR. ALTSHULER: Well, if nothing else, it's a--it would be a business record that all--routinely in family law cases, we put in reports of that (indiscernible) . COURT: A business record? MR. ALTSHULER: Yeah. I've actually done (indiscernible) . COURT: Okay. I'm going to sustain the objection. MR. ALTSHULER: Your Honor, I'm just going to say for the record that there is no possible way that Miss Devoe can outline everything in the report in the time available to-- 6710 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 25 COURT: Well, again, I think you're--we have all day today. It's only nine thirty-five right now. The only limitation you have is the cross-examination of Ms. Stout. That's the only limitation that you have with respect to your time. We--you knew how much time you had as of yesterday morning. We will close business today at four, understanding, of course, that Ms. Stout has to be cross-examined. She's used an hour and a half of her time. She has an hour left of her time, based on the ground rules we established yesterday. That leaves the rest of the day, minus an hour--minus an hour for you. So, use it accordingly. You may begin your examination of Ms. Handrahan. MR. ALTSHULER: Yeah. I wouldn't wa--well, okay. I just -just as long as my comment is clear that it's a due process argument. And I understand what the Court's parameters are. COURT: I understand. MR. ALTSHULER: But I can't effectively present Ms. Handrahan's case in the time-- COURT: We're wasting time as we speak. LORI M. HANDRAHAN, HAVING BEEN RECALLED AND PREVIOUSLY SWORN, TESTIFIED AS FOLLOWS, DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q — --let's go over a little background, Lori. I 6810 i 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 don't want you to repeat things that you said yesterday. I just want to kind of pick up where we left off. First of all, you heard your husband testify about your personality, correct? Yes. He's described you as being intimidating. Yes. Do you view yourself as an intimidating person? No. Do you view Mr. Malenko as an intimidating person? When he's in a rage attack, he's terrifying. Absolutely. And in the course of your marriage with him--and how long have you been married to him? Less than two years--well, before the PFA, it was less than two years. Now-- And you've been separated for quite some time? ~-yes. Okay. How long--between when you met him and between when the PFA effectively separated you, how long of a period was that? Just over two and a half years. Okay. In that period of time, how many times did he have rage attacks against you? Well, they started right after we got married. 6910 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 And there were many. I don't know. Hight, nine, ten, twelve? I can't count. It was on a regular basis. Okay. Other than that, that's the only time that you would describe him as intimidating to you? (Inaudible response). Yes? Yes. Okay. Remember, you've got to-- Yes. --answer the question, okay? and I think, yesterday, you--I asked you for some of your flaws. Yes. And you said bossy was one? Yes. And I forget the second one. You: Condescending. --condescending? Can you--do you view your bossiness as being intimidating to people? Would you describe it as that? No. And I think I've-- MR. WAXMAN: I object. -lowered my bar-- ‘MR. WAXMAN: 7010 u 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 22 23 25 A --80 low-- COURT: Hang on, Ms. Handrahan--Dr. Handrahan. There's an objection that's being made. MR. WAXMAN: --yeah. I don't know that that-- that's speculation as to whether or not other people are perceiving her in a particular way. MR. ALTSHULER: I asked her if she thought it was (indiscernible) . MR. WAXMAN: Yeah. COURT: What was the question, Mr. Altshuler, again? MR. ALTSHULER: I asked her if she viewed her bossiness as being potentially intimidating to people. COURT: We'll allow the answer. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Go ahead. A No. Q Thank you. I'm going to go a little out of order, because I have to have you address some of the things that your husband said about you. So, I'm kind of taking it a little out of sequence. Mr. Malenko said that you would frequently give him demands, that, "You need to do these things before coming to the house, or staying married," or all sorts of things. Did you ever kinda present him 210 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 those kind of lists of demands? A Yes. The therapist told me that Igor couldn't handle adult responsibility-- MR. WAXMAN: Objection. Hearsay. WITNESS: nd that he needed--he needed clarity. COURT: Excuse me, Dr. Handrahan. That's sustained. MR. ALTSHULER: Okay. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Let me back up-- A ‘Unfortunately, the-- Q =+hold on. Hold on a minute. COURT: Dr. Handrahan, just listen to the question, please, and just-- DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q --first of all, the quest--answer is yes, you have given him demands? A --ye: Q Okay. Now, I'm going to ask you-- A (Indiscernible). Q --why did you give him these lists of demands? A Numerous therapists said that that would be-- MR. WAXMAN: Objection. COURT: Sustained. MR. ALTSHULER: It goes to the--why she gave him 7210 iB 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 demands, your Honor. I mean, there's a quantitative duty-- COURT: The answer--then, the answer would be, "I did it based on things that were told to me by others," not the specifics about what were said. The specifics about what were said is hearsay. She's entitled to say, "I received information from others, and I acted on that information. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q What is the reason why you gave him-- A I received other--I received information from other experts who informed me that that would be a helpful thing to do-- MR. WAXMAN: Objection. WITNESS: -- (indiscernible). MR. WAXMAN: Hearsay. COURT: Okay. That's sustained. Next question. Let's move on, please. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Mr, Malenko describes you as always making the decisions when it came to Mila. Is--in your opinion, is that a fair description of you? A You just heard my nanny-- MR. WAXMAN: Objection. WITNESS: --testify otherwise. 7310 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 MR. WAXMAN: Objection. That mischaracterizes the evidence. It's an unfair question. COURT: Again, the question? MR. ALTSHULER: Mr. Malenko described Lori as always making the decisions about what to do with Mila, always being in charge. Is that an accurate description? COURT: We'll take the answer. WITNESS: My answer was you just heard the nanny testify otherwise. And I would say, no. He always used violence to control (indiscernible). DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Would you view your parental decision making as a cooperative effort? A ‘There was almost no cooperation with Igor. Q There's been some testimony that you have said that your husband has post traumatic stress disorder. A Yes. Q Is this based on anything Mr. Malenko said to you? A He was diagnosed by Miles Simmons in the GLA [sic] report with PTSD. Q How do you feel that--do you feel personally--I know you're not diagnosing, but do you feel that events from his past has impacted your 7410 Ww R 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 relationship? Well, there's a couple of different parts to that answer, because what I've learned since the PFA has been put in place, and I hired a lawyer in Macedonia to get the military records, is very different than the story that he told me. On our very first date in Macedonia, he approached me. He told me this long, long story about--with a lot of details. He was at university in the fall of 1991 in Zolgrave Technical University, studying biotech. He was--went home for fall break. He was recruited at gunpoint. He was given ten minutes to pack his bag, and he was forcibly recruited by the Yugoslav National Army, the JNA [sic], to go fight an unjust war. He knew that I was a humanitarian. He knew that my work and my expertise focuses on human rights, and unjust wars, and conflict and sexual and gender based violence during conflicts. And I felt awful for him, And I also felt that he was incredibly brave. Very few men stand up in the face of such military pressure, very few men. Most men go off and fight. And I thought I'd met the man of my dreams. I thought I'd met this incredible person who would be tortured for his beliefs. He told me 1510 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 he was severely tortured. He gave me many details, that he had run. He has deep scarring on his back. So, I believed this story. I now got the military records, and I hope that the Court will allow these to be admitted-- MR. WAXMAN: Okay. I'm going to object at this point to the narrative-- WITNESS: --which proves that he-- COURT: Miss--Miss--Dr. Hand-- WITNESS: --didn't go in-- COURT: --Dr. Handvahan, please. When--when-- excuse me. When counsel stands up and raises an objection, it means that you have to stop talking. WITNESS: --I'm sorry. COURT: We--it's okay. I understand you're--it's a difficult time to be on the stand. WITNESS: It's very difficult-- COURT: Don't apologize, Ms.--Dr. Handrahan. I know it's difficult. But--I certainly know that. But, we need to make sure we pay attention to the rules of-- that we abide by in court. And the rules basically are that when opposing counsel stands up to object, it's kind of the time to stop talking so that we can sort through the issue. And chen we'll resume right after that. But, Mr. Waxman, you have interposed an 7610 1 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 objection. MR. WAXMAN: Yeah. The objection was simply to the narrative-- COURT: Yeah. And I understand that she-- MR. WAXMAN: =-form-- COURT: --Dr. Handrahan hasn't said anything yet that's objectionable, but I understand you anticipate she may. MR. WAXMAN: --well, my objection is to the narrative form of the response, which does not permit me to object in a timely fashion. couRT: All right. And that's a valid objection, as well. Mr. Altshuler, I know that it's probably easier to take a narrative response, and I think I'm going to allow some of that to happen, just in the interest of time, because time is of the essence, and I think it tends to make things go a little faster. But, I do understand your issue, Mr. Waxman. And, Mr. Altshuler, if you could try to tailor things so that they're less narrative-- MR. ALTSHULER: I would, your Honor. COURT: ~--although I understand the narrative needs to occur, to some degree. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Let's move on to the protection from abuse case. 1710 i 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 2 2 24 25 objection. MR. WAXMAN: Yeah. The objection was simply to the narrative-- COURT: Yeah. And I understand that she-- MR. WAXMAN: --form-~ COURT: --Dr. Handrahan hasn't said anything yet that's objectionable, but I understand you anticipate she may. MR. WAXMAN: --well, my objection is to the narrative form of the response, which does not permit me to object in a timely fashion. COURT: All right. And that's a valid objection, as well. Mr. Altshuler, I know that it's probably easier to take a narrative response, and I think I'm going to allow some of that to happen, just in the interest of time, because time is of the essence, and I think it tends to make things go a little faster. But, I do understand your issue, Mr. Waxman, And, Mr. Altshuler, if you could try to tailor things so that they're less narrative-- MR. ALTSHULER: I would, your Honor. COURT: --although I understand the narrative needs to occur, to some degree. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Let's move on to the protection from abuse case. 1710 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 That issue came, the PFA, in Mr. Malenko's testimony. My first question is did you file the protection from abuse action because your husband filed for divorce against you? No. Why did you file the protection from abuse action? Because I thought he was gonna kill me, or harm me seriously, or the baby. He threatened me again like he had done many times before. Please talk about just the cause of that--what was the threat he made to you surrounding that protective order? As you and, I'm sure, the judge knows, and the court knows, when you look at domestic violence, you don't look at one individual threat taken out of context. You look at an entire pattern of behavior, And the definition of domestic violence is physical violence only needs to happen once. He threw that jar at my head. Threw the jar at my head. He never needed to do anything again. He could threaten to that. He threatened to snap my neck. He threatened to kill me, in graphic detail, three times in Budapest. He has lied to absolutely everybody about everything. There are four incidences on record of domestic violence, 7810 1 12 13, 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 and that's just the tip of the iceberg. The rest is underground. It's very hard for me to sit here and listen to all these lies being told about me in court-- MR. WAXMAN: I've got to object-- MR. ALTSHULER: Okay. (Indiscernible). MR. WAXMAN: --at this point. And I--I need to just say, the question, as I understood it-- COURT: Yes. MR. WAXMAN: --was what brought on the PFA case? And she was responding to a question about threats. I want to know the time frame of when these threats were made. COURT: Okay. That's a valid objection, Mr. Altshuler. MR. ALTSHULER: I agree. COURT: And I under--I'm afraid I'm going to have to sustain those kinds of objections. You understand that? MR. ALTSHULER: I do. COURT: Okay. MR. ALTSHULER: And--and-- COURT: So-- DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q --and, Lori, let me explain to you. If your 7910 ul 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 answer is--I--it's not just one incident, it's the whole contents, then I'll ask you the next question about the contents-- A --okay. Q --okay? So, just try and take it in pieces, and we'll get through it. A ‘I'm under significant time pressure, so, I feel-- Q Well, I understand that. COURT: Ms.--Dr. Handrahan, let your attorney worry about the time pressures. That's not your concern. WITNESS: Okay. COURT: I hope that helps sort this--the way this works from here on in out. It's your attorney's worry about time pressures, not yours. Just listen to his questions and answer them, and I think things will go fine. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q And, maybe, rather than continuing on this PFA, let's go back to your testimony yesterday about abuse incidents, and we'll get to the protection from abuse, okay? Okay. Do you need a glass of water? A (Inaudible response) . Q I£ you need a minute, just take a minute you need, 8010 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 okay? All (Inaudible response). All right. Yesterday, you talked about the--I think I asked you about what Igor said to you about the incident when he was sixteen when he injured another boy. Did I ask you that question? I don't recall. Okay. Well, why don't you very briefly say just what he told you happened when he was sixteen? He had told me that he had been in a fight on the playground with another boy, and they were both fighting. And it was a fair fight, and he happened to knock the other kid down. It could have been him. He hit his head on a rock, the other boy, and that he went into a coma. Did he describe for you anything more detailed about what--any affirmative action he took in striking the boy? No. Okay. He described it just the way you said? (Inaudible response). Okay. And that's all he'd ever said to you about it? Yes. Okay. Have you ever heard him say--and I'm saying 8110 1 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 what he said to anybody else during your marriage a different version than that? No. In terms of--I think we talked about when he threw the food at you. So, I don't think we have to go through that again. You testified to that yesterday. Yes. Okay. And you talked about an incident that happened right after you gave birth to Mila. Yes. Okay. And I think you testified to that. You've said everything there is to say about that, correct? (Indiscernible) . Okay. I don't think we've talked about the sweater incident, right? I don't recall. Okay. So, why don't you tell us what happened-- and if you could tell us when this happened? I'm trying to do this somewhat chronological [sic]. So, if I understand right, we have the incident when he was sixteen. Then we have the food incident--was that before Mila was born? Yes. 8210 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 I think you said you were pregnant? Then we had the incident in the hospital when she was born? Yes. Okay. Is the next incident--and we'll get to (indiscernible) allegations in a--was the next incident the sweater incident? No. Okay. What was the next incident? Every week after Mila was born, he came at me in a rage attack once a week. I said that yesterday. And, in between, he'd be lovely and wonderful. He was cooking gourmet field--food, he was taking care of me, and delighted to be a father, and I didn't get out of bed for the first two weeks. But, every week, he'd come at me in a rage attack. And-- And how many--describe briefly what these rage attacks generally were like. --they were completely out of the blue. It would be an absolute normal conversation, and he'd switch. I've described this many times to many people. It seemed like he was in The Incredible Hulk. His face would get contorted and red, veins would pop up, and he'd come physically at me and 8310 ul 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 Mila. Every rage attack, Mila was there in my arms. I was either lying in bed, breast feeding-- I couldn't have been in a more vulnerable position--lying in bed, breast feeding ny daughter, and he'd come at me in a rage attack. And it was always the same verbal--it was all this--it seemed to me--I--that's why I kept thinking it was flashbacks from his so-called abuse in the army, which now I've found out is a lie. "You dirty fucking whore, I'm going to fuck you up the ass. I'm gonna shove shit up your nose. You're a fucking dumb bitch." And, then, he'd cry afterward and he'd beg for help. and he said he didn't know what was going on in his brain, and he wanted to fix it. And he wanted to be a good father, and please, please, you know, work with him, and please get him help. And, so, I would try, and-- How often would these what you've described as rage attacks happen? --I said every week. They were happening every week after the birth. And they were escalating. once a week, once every two weeks? Once a week. Twice a week? 8410 an 12 4 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 A once a we And escalating in intensity up until the jar. Q Are the rage attacks the reason why you would seek out the many services-- MR. WAXMAN, Objection to the leading nature of the question. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q --what was the reason why you sought out what Mr. Malenko described as interventions and medication for Mr. Malenko? A ‘I didn't want my husband to be violent to me and my daughter. I didn't want her to grow up in a home of abuse like I had grown up in. I thought I had chosen an incredible man to marry and raise a child with. I didn't want him deported, and I wanted to fix the problem. And I believed that it was a problem that we could fix. I believed that he had been tortured in the war. I believed that he loved me and the child, and that he wanted to get help. Q Now, getting past the rage attacks for now, I think I asked you what the next incident--other than rage attacks, what was the next incident that happened that you consider to be-- A ‘They were rage attacks. It's just that they 8510 ul 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 started escalating. So, first, it was just verbally coming physically at me and Mila. And then he started throwing things. And I kept saying to the people that we sought out, "He's gonna--he's gonna--it's getting worse. Help. I need help. There's a small child here. I need to do something. I need help." So, what was the next-- Then he threw a sweater. --okay. Let's talk about the sweater. What did he--what--what--where were you? I was lying in bed, breast feeding my daughter. And how old was Mila at this time, do you know? This was all in the first three-month period of her life. And you just--you were in bed, breast feeding her? In bed, breast feeding. What was Mr. Malenko doing? A very intimidating position, I'm sure. What was Mr. Malenko doing at this time? I think--I can't remember correctly if--but I think the sweater incident was about real estate, or it may have--that may have been the hand- slapping incident. I can't remember which was 8610 un 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 which, but, he came at me. We were having a normal conversation. He blew into his rage, as he often did, and he took a sweater off of the bed and violently threw it. You say, "Okay. It's just a sweater." It hit Mila and me. She was terrified during all of these rage attacks. she'd start screaming and crying. And I begged the people were seeing--I said, "Next time, it's going to be a coffee cup. Somebody help me. It could hit the child. Can't somebody help me?" okay. We'll get--you don't have to say what you said to other people. We all know you said those things. I'1l--what you need to limit it to is what happened, okay? When Mr. Malenko threw the sweater at you--and you said it's just a sweater-- why was the--why did that--why was that of concern to you? Because it was the nearest thing to him. He was standing at the edge of the bed. I was lying in bed, breast feeding. And there was a sweater draped over the end of the bed frame. And it just happened to be the thing that he grabbed and threw. Did you have any talk--discussion with him after that about that incident? 8710 1 12 13 14 15 16 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 What I would always do. And at that point, it was easier, ‘cause I could put Mila to sleep, ‘cause a newborn sleeps many hours of the day. I would put her to sleep to remove her from the scene, and I would go and try to talk to him. And I always said, "You can't do this. Violence is not acceptable. I'm not gonna live like this, I'm not gonna have my child be like this." I just had a child with this man, and he's totally changed. He's completely changed. And he cried, and he'd say he loved me, and he loved the baby, and he wanted help, and he wanted to work on it. So, I-- unfortunately, I believed him. Okay. When--was the peanut butter jar the next incident in the sequence? No. The next one was the hand-slapping. As I said, it was escalating. As I was telling everybody it was escalating, and nobody was helping. okay. What was the next--we'll talk about the hand-slapping. How soon after the sweater incident-- I don't recall, but it would have been probably the next week. It was happening on a regular basis.10 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 --so, what happened with the hand-slapping incident? Where were you-- I believe I was again lying in bed, breast feeding. 1 believe the hand-slapping was about-- we were talking about where we wanted to live. And we had looked at another house, one of the houses that Sabine had mentioned. And Igor felt that that house was too small, and he wanted me to buy a bigger house. And we were having a discussion-- Hold--hold on a second, now. I hate to interrupt you, but we did have some discussion about that he didn't want you to buy a house at all because of finances. --that's not true. Okay. So-- He was (indiscernible) -- --he said he wanted a smaller house, not--he wanted a bigger (indiscernible)? --he wanted a bigger house, and I was saying, "I don't think we can afford that. I don't know what we can afford. I'm not going to do anything but a thirty-year fixed mortgage. I'm not going to do an adjustable rate. We'll have to see." He didn't like that house. He thought it was too 8910 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 au 2 23 24 25 small, We were having a normal discussion, and he went into the rage attack. And he came at me- was lying--Mila was--she favored this breast compared to the other one. And you're talking at about your level, I assume? Yes. So, I was lying on the bed as this [sic]. He was standing there. The doorway's here. Yeah. Wait. Hold on a second. The recorder can't record gestures, so I have to describe for the record what you're doing. You said you were breast feeding on your left side? I was on the edge of the bed. Mila was in my arms, breast feeding on the left side. The door was here. The entryway--he was standing in the-- On the right side? --on the right side. He was standing at the foot of the bed like that last time, came at me in the rage attack, screaming, "Dirty fucking whore," which was a favorite thing, and all the other things. And he came physically at me. I'm trying to protect my child, and I raise my hand like that. And I said, "You have to stop. You have to stop." Okay. Hold on. Stop. Stop. Because when you say you raised your hand like that, the recorder 9010 ul 2 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 can't-- I raised my arm to protect my child. --okay. But, hold on. You're showing you're raising your arm like in front of your face? Yes. Okay. And go on. But not in front of my face. My child is here. raised it to protect my child. Well, I guess-- I raised the arm in an L-shaped fashion, pointing left, to protect my child from any blows that might be deflected upon her. =-I apologi--and--but we've got to put the things down in the record, okay? Okay. What did Mr. Malenko do in response to that? He slapped my han--my arm hard twice, very hard. And then what did he do? And he walked out of the room. And what did you do? I cried. And then what? What do you think I did? Well, I don't know. I'm asking you. What were you doing after that? I cried. 91 I10 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 Okay. Did you talk to Mr. Malenko about it? I put Mila again to sleep. And I went to talk to him. And then I called the people that we were seeing, and I--we had an emergency session the next day. I said, "This is what's happened." He was on the phone. We both called these people, and we went in for an emergency session because he had-- Don't say what happened at the session. But you went in to see your therapists? Together, because of the violence that he had committed. Yes. Okay. After that incident, was the peanut butter incident-- No. There were more attacks. The next physical attack was the peanut butter jar. --so, the--what you (indiscernible) attacks continued to happen once a week? And, then, what was the next incident where something was thrown at you? The peanut butter jar. About how soon after the slapping of the hand was the peanut butter jar? I don't know. It's all a blur. I was the only 9210 i 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 one working. He was fired from his job at the YMCA for (indiscernible) behavior. He-- Okay. Hold on. MR. WAXMAN: Objection. WITNESS: He was-- MR. WAXMAN: Objection. WITNESS: --he was in huge-- COURT: Sustained. Next question. WITNESS: --he was unemployed. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER (indiscernible) --Lori, the question was how soon after the-- I don't know. --okay. Do you think it was weeks, days, any idea at all? It was all within the first three to four months of her life, so-- Okay. --the peanut butter jar was at the beginning of April. I guess the hand-slapping--you would have the records. I haven't looked at the records. Okay. And what happened with the peanut butter jar incident? Igor had gone off to see a therapist, a different one. He'd gone out for coffee. He came home. We 9310 cr 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 were in the kitchen, having lunch. I had been working and taking care of Mila. He was gone far longer than normal to be gone out for coffee, although he said he never was even allowed to go out for coffee yesterday. And he came into the kitchen, and we were discussing normal husband/wife thing. "What's going on? What's the schedule this week?" And I said, "You know, the nanny is going to come tomorrow. Here's her resume." We had been in therapy, discussing we would hire a nanny. It's on these lists and everything. And there was no--it was a normal discussion. There was no argument. There was no yelling. Okay. Fine. Mila was in my arms. There was a little stroller to my right. I had just put her in that, and I turned like this away from putting her down. And I saw that his fist was raised towards my head, and I ducked, and I got the jar in the back of my head. Okay. Now, you--I'm going to remind you you're under oath. That doesn't mean I don't believe you're telling the truth, but you're saying under oath that he threw the peanut jar and it hit you in the head? Absolutely. 9410 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 Not that it matters, but did it hurt you? It did. I did not go to the hospital because I was worried he would be deported. and I still believed that he loved me and loved our daughter, and I still believed that he would get help, and we would be a good family. So, I did--purposely did not go to the hospital. My friends were worried that I had a concussion. I had a bump, and I purposely did not go so that he would not get into trouble. What did you do? Iwas terrified. I thought he was having a flashback from his so-called war trauma. I grabbed the baby. I didn't know what was happening. If you've ever had something like that happen to you, you-- So, would you-- --and I ran out of the house, screaming, "Somebody help me." It was raining. I was standing in the middle of the street, absolutely terrified. The neighbor's son happened to be outside, and he ran to help me. And he pulled me into his Dad's house, who is the lieutenant police officer, who called the police. Did you talk to the police officers when they came 9510 ul 12 13 14 15 16 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 that to the scene? I did. And did you fill out a report for them? I dia. Okay. And did--a criminal prosecution resulted from that, correct? No, because I hired a lawyer for four thousand dollars to get a filing to get him off so he wouldn't be deported for his green card. Oh, I'm sorry. In fact, there was charges brought against him? He pled guilty. Okay. And-- MR. WAXMAN: Excuse me. Excuse me. I don't think this witness can testify about that. COURT: All right. It's--the objection as to what occurred is sustained. I think we all know what occurred procedurally, anyway. §So, go ahead. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER What I'm asking is, in the course of the criminal action, did--were you consulted about what consequences would you-- I --hold on. I've got to ask the question, Lori. --sorry. 9610 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 What you wanted to have happen for that proceeding? Did the District Attorney call you and say-- Yes. --okay. And what did you say to the District Attorney you wanted to have--the result of that prosecution to be? Well, I begged the police officer not to arrest him, like a typical abused woman, crying. And thank God the State of Maine has changed the law so that doesn't happen. I begged the D.A. not to file charges. I begged everybody, because T believed that he was gonna get help. I believed in our family, in our marriage, and a father for--I wanted a family. You agreed with the filing of that complaint? I dia. Okay. I asked for it. Okay. There was some testimony about something that--the tape we heard from Budapest-- Mmbom. --okay? You have to answer yes or no. Yes. Okay. We heard what was said. Was that tape 9710 i 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 recording the complete-- Absolutely not. --I haven't asked the question yet. I'm sorry. The complete conversation, the complete incident that happened in Budapest around that recording? No. Were there things that happened before that recording? Yes. Please describe to the Court what happened before that recording that you think is pertinent to this hearing. It's interesting that Igor doesn't record himself when he's threatening to kill me three times, by snapping my neck. Okay. So, are you saying that he threatened to kill you before the tape recording? Yes. Please tell the judge what Igor said to you. Igor said he was gonna drag me in front of the Gender Institute and show them what he did to feminists, and he was gonna snap my neck, over and over and over again. Is that the first time he's threatened to kill10 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 you? A Yeah, those three times. Although, in therapy, twice. Once he said, "If I wanted to finish you off, I would." And another time, he said he hoped that I would die so he could have my money and the baby all to himself. COURT: Excuse me. Was that-- WITNESS: So, there's five-- MR. ALTSHULER: Hold on. COURT: --was--were those statements made during therapy? WITNESS: --yes. There were five--three direct threats to kill, and two implied. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q The first three statements were made in Budapest-- A ‘The first-- Q --not in counseling? A --the most severe attacks were in Budapest, and they were all long, twenty or thirty minute rage attacks of detailed descriptions of how he was going to snap my neck. It was always about snapping my neck. Q And none of that was recorded? A Conveniently not. Q Was that the conversation that happened right 9910 uu 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 before the tape recording we heard? No, not right before. How long--how soon-- I can't remember exactly, but it was about a week, ‘cause, once again, delusional that I was, I reached out to the mental health community, thinking that I would get help, that somebody who was threatening to kill somebody would be seen as--and I didn't get help. And T.left when that therapist had come and said we should separate. Igor refused to leave, although he claims he wanted to. I left the next morning, checked into a hotel, and I called my godmother, Lou Ivy. I called my mother. My mother said she would pray for me. I said, "“Igor's having a breakdown. He's threatening to kill me." Let's not get off track. My godmother flew out the next day immediately. And we stayed in hotel. We went back to the apartment once again to try to talk with Igor. I said, "The problem is I always have Mila, so I have to protect her, and I can't have a conversation with him, because she's not a little baby any more. I can't put her in the crib and put her to sleep. She's an active toddler." So, 10010 1 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 I--it's always me there, holding her, and I can't confront him. I can't have a conversation. I can't try to reach him. So, Lou Ivy was there (indiscernible)? So, Lou Ivy came. And she said she was gonna babysit Mila while I tried to have a conversation with Igor. I thought, wrongly, that his father might help intervene, because he'd been severely abused as a child me, which he told me, he told a lot of other people. And his father, like many people, have--keeping the silence around the abuse, and his father-- Focus on what happened. Miss Ivy was there to take care of Mila while you talked to him? --while I tried to talk with Igor. Was--was--did you have Ms. Ivy there to take away Mila? She wasn't--we didn't--I--in a normal relationship, in a normal marriage that had just gone bad, you'd say, “Lou, why don't you take Mila to the playground? There are so many gorgeous playgrounds in Budapest. Go off and have fun with her for the day. Let me and Igor discuss this But you didn't do that? She went just to the other room, because I knew he 10110 art 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 never would have let her out of the apartment. So, you had a discussion with Ig--Mr. Malenko. We've listened to the tape. Was there any conversation after the tape ended? Yes. That's when he started screaming at us, and I--Lou is very slow. She's southern, and she was slowly putting on the coats. And Igor was getting increasingly worked up into the rage attacks that I know very well. And I said, "Lou, run. Run, Lou. For God's sake, forget the coats and run. And that's all--I mean, it was-- Okay. So, that's your version of what happened in Budapest? --what I remember. Okay. There was testimony--there's been some testimony about this--the Macedonian philosophy of parents being--well, do you know what Macedonian culture is? Well, I did. I lived there for a year, and I would like the Court not to accept Macedonian cultural testimony unless we have a cultural expert. But-- Well, let me ask you-- --since I'm probably the expert in the room-- --well, let me ask you: 10210 ul 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 --having been there for a year--yes? --were you involved with families in Macedonia? I still have very many good friends there. Are you--you've had discussions with Mr. Malenko about Macedonian culture? Yes. I think he testified--or maybe you've told me about it, your discussions about what happens at forty days? Mobo. What is it that Mr. Malenko has said to you is, from his perception, the custom about caring for a child in the first forty days? May I preface that? sure. I find it very concerning that there's been all this Macedonian culture-- I don't want you to preface with that. I want you to testify to the judge what Mr. Malenko said to you, and what you observed, yourself, in Macedonia? --it's not just Macedonia. Former Eastern Europe, former Soviet Union, there's an old tradition that you--that a child doesn't go out of the house for forty days with the mother. This was a long time 10310 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 ago, when there used to be lots of diseases and who knows what. It's now--it's like a honeymoon sort of thing. We have a tradition--it's no longer based--we don't follow that exact tradition. There is some basis, so, now, for instance, in former Soviet Union, at the forty-day mark, you have a big party. So, it's just something to celebrate. It--the forty days is a cycle. Also for death, you have a memory day on forty days. Forty days is a significant time. Did Mr. Malenko say to you that he observes this forty-day-- No. That's what I'm saying. He's Dutch. He's a Dutch citizen. He presented himself to me as a Dutch citizen. He'd been in Holland for fifteen years. He told me he had nothing to do with Macedonian culture. He had never been home except for twice before he met me, so the whole Macedonian cultural thing is a red herring. But, he did not let us out of the house. And, then, he brought up-- That's what I'm asking. --and invoked this forty-day tradition. Mmhmm. What rules did he impose upon you and Mil--in terms of caring for Mila? 10410 i 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 Everything. Well, no. Be specific. Tell the judge specifically what were some of the rules? Nobody was allowed in the house. Nobody was allowed to take care of Mila. And, meanwhile, he wasn't doing any care taking. So, I was working and taking care of my child. How about going outside? No. Walks, you could do walks as long as he and I were there, but those were always a source of deep panic. He was terrified she was gonna catch a cold, she was gonna get cold, something was gonna happen to her. I--finally, at--it was--the first couple months, I was so exhausted and in such shock that my husband had changed so radically, and trying to work and take care of my baby, I didn't care if I didn't go out, because I couldn't focus. My entire social system is in Washington, D. C. My home is Washington, D. Cc. I'm (indiscernible) in Maine, so I had no friends around. I was incredibly isolated, no family members around that are supportive. And I finally said, after I'd turned in a contract, " tm taking her to Mother Goose Reading Time at the Cape Elizabeth Library." And I said, "I'm doing it. 10510 M1 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 That's it. You can't keep us locked in the house." I think she was two and a half months old at this point, maybe three, with--and he started screaming at me, "If she dies, it's on your shoulders." He was screaming from the porch, "You can't do it. You can't let her drive alone in the back. There's gotta be a law. A child can't be alone in the back of the car." And I called one of the therapists we were working with, and I-- Don't say what the therapist said. --I didn't. I said to the therapist, "This is not normal behavior. Going to the Cape Elizabeth Mother Goose reading time with my toddler is a source of extreme anxiety. He thinks the child is gonna die. He's not letting us out of the house. I need help. Did this change at some point? Did he become more relaxed about Mila at some point? No. He never became more relaxed. And you heard the testimony of Stephanie, talking about when she'd go for a walk, and the rules he'd go over. Did he behave similarly when you wanted to take her out of the house? Absolutely. She fell--one day he came home from work, when he finally had a job, and she fell--she 10610 1 12 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 had fallen and skinned her knee during the day, and screaming at me, "How could you? What kind of lousy, shitty mother are you? How could you let her skin your [sic] knee? What did she do? What went wrong?" One time, she tripped over my ankle. I had gone to grab her, and I didn't get her correctly, and she tripped, and she fell--she didn't--couldn't catch her hand, so she cut her lip. Oh, that was like massive rage attack at me. "You dumb fucking stupid bitch. What kind of mother are you?" At this point, Mila was starting to talk, and that's when I started--I said, "This is it. I mean, I've been through this with you for over a year and a half. I don't want my daughter growing up, thinking her mother is a lousy fucking dirty whore. I don't want my daughter hearing those things. I don't want her repeating those things. I don't want her growing up in this environment. I've begged everybody for help. I've begged you for help. I've done everything that anybody could be expected to do to save this marriage, and to keep the family together, and I'm not going to put up with it any more." Okay. Let's talk about--because there's 10710 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 (indiscernible) about the immunizations, which is--seems to be an issue. What is your view on the immunizations? Well, since I was raised a Christian Scientist, my mother didn't vaccinate either me or my sister. Igor had no problems with this. And we have a doctor who's testified to this, our pediatrician. Unfortunately, we can't get her in. Igor went willingly for these homeopathic vaccines. He was terrified of vaccines. He didn't want her vaccinated. The hospital records also state this. He didn't want the vitamin K. There was no Objection to her reference-- WITNESS: It suddenly became a problem-- MR. WAXMAN: --to what the records show. COURT: Dr.--Dr. Handrahan, again-- WITNESS: --I'm sorry. COURT: --remember the rule. WITNESS: I'm sorry. It's hard to remember. COURT: No. That's okay. WITNESS: I'm--I do--I apologize. COURT: I understand. WITNESS: I apologize. COURT: And--no, No. Don't apologize. What's-- 10810 u 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 MR. ALTSHULER: Let me rephrase, your Honor. COURT: --sure. Go ahead. MR. ALTSHULER: Just because she referred to what the hospital said. WITNESS: I'm sorry. It's very hard-- DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q That's okay, Lori. dust listen to the questions. What is your view on immunizations? AI believe that the immunizations--that there is a credible and established link between immunizations and autism. I believe that the medical and pharmaceutical companies have been (indiscernible), and they knew they were putting lead--unhealthy levels of lead into those immunizations for quite a long time. I have read the research, like I do everything. I'ma researcher. That's what I do for work. So, I research everything very well, and I consider it very thoughtfully and carefully. Igor and I researched this together. We made a long and conscious decision. We consulted with different pediatricians. We consulted with the research. Q Okay. A He only raised an objection once the PFA was filed. 10910 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 Okay. And we'll get into that. Up to a certain point, did he verbally agree with your view on immunizations? He did. At one point, he thought he wanted to get tetanus. That was the one thing that he was concerned about, and what I said to him was, "I don't want to do it. I would never stop you from doing it. If you want to immunize her with tetanus, you need to take her in. I'm not gonna take her for those shots." He refused to take her in. Without talking about what your doctor said to you, did you and Igor together discuss this with your pediatrician? Yes. Okay. And did you follow the advice of your pediatrician? Yes. Okay. Did your pediatrician--did you not do anything that your pediatrician advised you to do? The pediatricians--because of the concern and link with autism, would never--they may--it's your decision. No pediatrician is going to say you must or you must not. They can't do it. I mean, there's just too many legal issues. No. 11010 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 Pediatricians both said, "You--here are the risks." MR. WAXMAN: Object. Don't say what the pediatrician said. Okay. Sorry. I just want to know if you followed- I'm sorry. --the advice of your pediatrician. Yes. That's a yes? Yes. Okay. And up to the point of the divorce and the PFA, did Mr. Malenko ever contest that with you? No. Part of his concerns when Mila went outside, all the things he went through about it, did he ever 'm concerned about all these safety things say, because she hasn't been immunized." Never. Did he ever express any concern before this proceeding about the immunizations? Never. I want to get back to the protection from abuse, because I said I would do this after we went through--there were no other overt physical acts 1110 cre 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 that involved physical altercations other than the ones you've described. And not about the rage attacks, but the peanut butter, the hand-slapping, the sweater. Did you cover all those? Were there any additional ones? There was. The line between what becomes physical is very thin. Or whatever you considered to be physical abuse. Well, there's a--yes. One--the two times--my fear threshold is quite high. I'm not a normal person. I worked in conflict zones, and I went off to Mongolia at twenty-four. I went to live in Kurdestan at twenty-six. I served in Chad Darfur. I don't scare easily. The two times that I was absolutely terrified, that I was sure that he was going to do something fatal, one, I called my friend, Lou Ivy, my so-called godmother. And that was in that first three months, the four month period aft--when Milo was born. And why did you call her? What happened? I don't remember what provoked this rage attack, but all I remember was being up in the bedroom in the corner with Mila, both of us crying, terrified. He had come at us in a rage. He had gone downstairs--his typical pattern was he'd come 11210 i 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 at you, and then he'd walk away. And he'd walk away, screaming the whole time, "Fucking dirty goddamned fucking whore," whatever he was screaming. And then he'd come back at you twice as mad. He always came back to you, always came back, just like that soccer incident. He'd come back to you. And I had the phone, and I called--1 didn't want to tell anybody in the beginning what was going on. TI was so ashamed. I was so embarrassed. I was so upset, I didn't want to believe it. I didn't want to share with my friends this is what was happening to my marriage. I'm a brand new mom. I waited so -long to have a child-- MR. WAXMAN: Excuse me. Q So what did you do? MR. WAXMAN: Excuse me. WITNESS: I called Lou Ivy-- MR. WAXMAN: May I make the objection first? Excuse me. COURT: Yes. MR. WAXMAN: The question was what physical--other physical incidents--I'm waiting to hear that. COURT: Okay. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER 11310 ul 12 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 Okay. So, get to the two incidences-- =-I called--and I called Lou Ivy. And he came back at me in the rage, storming up the stairs. And I held out the phone like this, and I said, “Lou Ivy can hear everything." And he stopped instantly, and he turned around and he went downstairs. --okay. That's one. What was the second one? You said there were two things that, in your view, crossed-- Then the PFA was--the day I filed the PFA, I was absolutely terrified. --did you file the PFA because he had filed a divorce against you? No. Why did you file the PFA? He came in, It looked like he hadn't slept all night. He looked like he was in one of his moods. He forced the door open. I had--I couldn't even lock the bedroom door, I had a tiny little door-- plastic door stopper. He forced this open, and he has this on recording. And I--you know-- Okay. So, what happened? --okay. And he started threatening me. He crouched over--the mattress was on the floor, and 11410 u 12 13 14 15, 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 I co-slept with her on the floor. We didn't have a bed. It was just a mattress on the floor, so she couldn't roll out. And, again, the door-- there's Igor and then there's Mila, and there's me. So, she was in between us. And he crouched down low over the bed, made himself very threatening and menacing. As he did, his face was all contorted. And he said, in a very controlled voice--he wasn't yet in this kind of rage--he said, "Don't you ever take my child from me again. Don't you ever take her. You'd better be here when I get home. You'd better be here when I get home. Do you promise me?" And I kept saying, as I was told to do by experts, in a low, quiet voice, the same message, to ratchet down the level of energy, I kept saying, "Please don't wake Mila. Please don't wake Mila." He said, "I'm gonna give her a kiss. I want to give my child a kiss. I'm allowed to give my child a kiss." And I kept saying, "Please don't wake her. Please--"--and T knew if I had said to him, "Get out of this room. Don't talk to me like that. Don't threaten me," he would have leapt across. He was just ready, and I really felt that I would have been strangled, and Mila was right there in the middle. 11510 car 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 I had no way to protect her. And what happens in these situations, Ken, is that you appease to protect your child. MR. WAXMAN: Objection. MR. ALTSHULER: (Indiscernible). MR. WAXMAN: Let's stay with the situation, not what happens in these situations. COURT: No. That's overruled. We'll take that statement. Next question, please. MR. ALTSHULER: Okay. WITNESS: What I did, often, was appease-- MR. ALTSHULER: Hold--hold WITNESS: --to protect my child. MR. ALTSHULER: --okay. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER Q Eventually, you and Mr. Malenko agreed to an--what we call an order by consent without a finding of abuse. A Mmhmm., Yes, I wanted to find abuse. Q Okay. And why did you agree to that order? A My attorney at the time told me not to file a protection on behalf of my daughter, and she told me to agree to do a consent decree-- MR. WAXMAN: I guess I'm going to object to the invocation of the attorney/client communications. 11610 1 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 25 MR. ALTSHULER: Okay. I'll move (indiscernible). COURT: Okay. Move on. DIRECT EXAMINATION CONTINUED BY MR. ALTSHULER I want to--and I'm going to ask you a couple specific questions, but I do want to get you done, here. And I think I asked you this yesterday. In terms of traditional care taking--I'm talking about the time between Mila being born and you getting the protection from abuse, which is when you two separated for good. Minh. Okay. That period of time, all my questions are about that. Sharing of parental responsibilities. First of all, on a scale of a hundred percent, zero to a hundred, what percentage would you say you did, and what percentage would you say Mr. Malenko did? I did eighty to ninety percent. And he did ten to twenty percent, on an average? On an average. Okay. Is there anything that you felt or feel he is not capable of doing as a parent, feeding, clothing, anything like that, that he just doesn't have the requisite skills for? He doesn't have the capacity to be responsible in 11710 ul 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 2 23 24 25 any way. Well, what do you mean by that? He can't be responsible for a long period of time, particularly, he can't handle crying, which is why he was--there were experts who told- Don't tell us what the experts say. --mmhmn Why do you--how did he respond with Mila cries for a long period? He panicked. He'd panic. Let's talk about specifics. Feeding, who was-- during the period of time we're talking about-- I did. I did. --okay. Did Mr. Malenko ever-- Yes. -- (indiscernible)? Yes. He'd have good--when he was in a good day, he was wonderful. He'd be delightful. He'd--and he gave us a beautiful Christmas. He made a gorgeous Thanksgiving. He would cook. He would be very happy, so he'd have four or five days, maybe a week, when he was in--he was delightful and charming. And, then, he'd go down. Okay. Percentage-wise, zero to a hundred-- He did almost nothing. That's why these lists 11810 u 12 13 14 15 16 7 18 19 20 21 2 23 24 25 were made up, to schedule times, because he wasn't able to cope with normal responsibilities of raising a child. --well, I want to know, percentage-wise-- I said--1 said-- --zero to a hundred percent-- --I said I did about eighty to ninety percent. --of feeding? Yes. Okay. How about buying clothing for Mila? We always did that together. So, fifty/fifty? Yeah. We'd go together to one toy store and buy some--or clothes store and buy some clothes. In terms of getting her dressed in the morning-- I did--the entire-- -=-who did-- --daily routine was my full responsibility, always. The naps, the morning nap, the afternoon nap, I was breast feeding on demand to keep her quiet, often. I breast fed her all night long so she wouldn't cry in the night, and he wouldn't come in and start screaming at us, as he did on a regular basis during the nighttime. I did everything. I kept the whole routine going. 11910 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 When you say you were responsible for the whole routine, is that because you insisted on doing everything? That's why I made these lists, as I was instructed to do, so he would start to share the responsibility with me. And he claimed he wanted to be the house husband, and he wanted to be the stay at home dad, and he wanted to do all this. And he wasn't doing any of it. So, you wanted him to do more? I--definitely. You didn't want to control--you didn't want control over all those things? What mother, working full-time, and the only earner in the house, wouldn't want more child care help? And why did you--I mean, assuming when you went to Atlanta, you heard the testimony of Stephanie, he was there for four days, and spent three nights alone. Why was that not proof to you that he could handle this responsibility? And you heard Stephanie say that, originally, she was scheduled to be there the entire nighttime, but he disallowed it. so, I went with my heart in my throat, and I was pretty scared, but I knew I 12010 iW 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 23 24 25 had to go, because I needed this job, because, at this point, we had very little money left, because he'd been unemployed for so long. And I was ready to come back on a moment's notice. He wasn't in a mania when I left. He was in a good mood. He was in a good space. I had to cancel a trip to D.C. because he was in a rage attack. I canceled my business trip. That was the Mother's Day. And then I rescheduled and I went later. In terms of bedtime-- Mako. --who was responsible put--getting Mila into bed? I did everything. He liked to take baths with her. He took very long baths, but he would never read, put her pajamas, put her to sleep. He never put her to sleep. He couldn't handle her crying. Kids cry when they go to sleep. It's part of being a parent. You keep saying he can't handle crying. How would he respond when Mila would ery? He panicked, He'd get angry. He'd start screaming at me. I was a bad mother. Why was she crying? What was wrong with her? Did you try to explain to him that it's normal for babies to cry? 12110 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 I did what I was instructed to do. I kept saying, in a low quiet voice, the exact same thing. "Igor, please leave the room. You're making her more upset. Please leave the room. You're making her more upset. Please leave the room. You're making her more upset," ‘cause you can imagine that a child gets upset when somebody comes in and starts screaming. So, T have a screaming child I'm trying to take care of, and then I have a husband coming in, making the situation worse. He eventually would leave when I kept repeating over and over again, "Please leave the room. You're making the child upset." You have concerns about the safety of Mila if she has unsupervised contact with her father? Significant. Okay. Very briefly, not saying what other people say to you, why are you concerned about Mila's safety when she's with her father? There are two reasons. One, he has impulsive rage attacks where he loses control before he knows it. He just loses control before he's even aware that he's angry. So, anything could happen. And she's tiny. She's just a tiny, tiny child. If he loses control like he's done with me, and I'm not there 12210 uu 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 2 22 23 24 25 to protect her, anything can happen. If he throws a peanut butter jar at her head, it could be fatal. The other is just the ongoing pattern of abuse. So, one time, for instance, we were taking--I mean, this is daily stuff--taking a walk. She didn't want to hold his hand. And he says, "What are you, ashamed to hold your father's hand?" So, there's the ongoing kind of consistent link between abuse and child abuse that concerns me. But the main thing that I'm very concerned about is impulsive rage. And then I guess I would add to that, when we started this whole proceeding, I still hoped that he would admit to the violence, that he would get help, that he would be a responsible parent, and he would say, "I want to be there for my daughter. And I'm going to do what it takes to be a good parent." And, instead, it's gotten worse this whole thing-- this whole court proceeding. He's lied, he's lied to everybody, he's gotten people to believe his lies, he's gotten people on his side who should know better, and, so, it makes me more scared. And I found out he lied about his military record. I found out he lied about the record when he was sixteen. So, since the PFA was filed, I'm much 12310 u 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 22 23 24 25 more scared for her safety than I was even before I filed the PFA. Q I need to ask you some questions about the guardian ad litem, okay? And listen to my questions and just answer my questions. COURT: Excuse me, Mr. Altshuler. I hate to interrupt you at this time, but I intend to take a brief recess this morning. MR. ALTSHULER: A perfect time. COURT: Is that okay? MR. ALTSHULER: Absolutely. COURT: I--I hope I didn't interrupt you at a crucial time. MR. ALTSHULER: No. In fact, it's a perf--it's a great break. COURT: Great. We'll take about a ten-minute breaks to allow folks to take a rest. And we'll be back in ten minutes. COURT OFFICER: All rise, please. HEARING RECESSED CONTINUED TO VOLUME IV 12410 rer 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 a 2 24 25 CERTIFICATION I HEREBY CERTIFY that the foregoing, Pages 3 through 125, is a true and accurate transcript of Cassette #1077, Index #s 800-4309, as recorded by Lauri Cataldi, on December 9, 2008, at the Ninth District Court, Portland, Maine, in the matter entitled Igor Malenko versus Lori M. Handrahan Co a DATED: March 10, 2009 ew aha & CELT Gasn) Marsha F. Boutilier Transcriber A TRUE COPY, dated at Bangor, Maine, this 10‘ day of March, A. D., 2009. DPorohor Sa, DLend Notary 125