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Spoken by Judge Leon Seyranian of the Superior Court of the State of California at the conclusion of the trial concerning The God-Men: |
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Mr. Morgan, I’d like to just make one brief comment:
Obviously my decision will be rendered in a written form. However, I would like to commend Mr. Morgan and his staff for having presented what I feel to be competent and reliable evidence. I was quite impressed with the stature of witnesses as presented. They certainly appeared to me to be the kind of people that would be beyond reproach, and it was interesting to hear their testimony in the matter. I feel that in many of these cases the quality of the witnesses that have testified gives import as to what they have to say.
I would also like to state that this is the type of a case where the law affords an opportunity for all sides to be present, for all sides to present whatever testimony that they may have in order that there could be a judicial determination. That’s a system of law that has been afforded in this case. At the time this case was called, all sides, with the exception of the one side that had filed a bankruptcy motion, affording them a stay as to this action. As to the other parties the plaintiffs are proceeding against, (they) had an adequate and opportune time to be present in court and present whatever evidence or refute whatever evidence that had been presented. The fact that they have not seen fit to do this causes me not to conclude or go to conjecture as to what they would have presented, rather, to decide this case on the evidence that was presented to me.
I feel that there was enough evidence here to decide this case irrespective of any cross examination of these witnesses. It would have been helpful, but in view of the fact that the defendants have seen fit not to be present in this trial, in my opinion, it does not alter or affect the final conclusion and decision that will be made, based solely upon the fact that there has been in my opinion substantial, independent, expert testimony with regard to this case.
I feel that had this case simply (and it could have) been submitted in very brief fashion, just enough to justify an award, and I commend the plaintiffs for the fact that they’ve seen fit to present the entire story. And I have been afforded, I feel, a complete opportunity to question and cross examine, as I see fit, these witnesses in order to try to ascertain the truth. And I believe there was nothing that I wished to see, or wanted to see, or that I wanted to ask that I was prevented from doing so, because all the material was made and afforded and made available to me.
So I do hope that at the conclusion and when the opinion is finally written and filed, that it will put an end to this long and protracted litigation. And I hope that the parties will feel that justice has finally been done. Thank you.