15. My Testimonies

I don’t have a copy of my own testimony. I suppose I could have got it when I got the other papers, but at the time, and this was a very foolish thing really, I just assumed that I know what I had said and forgot that they could have written anything they wanted to as the statement. However, all things considered, I am sure it didn't make a damned bit of difference.

But if you really want to know what I said, well, I was riding my bike in Warsaw and some jerk tried to hit me with his car. I went to him to ask him why he had done what he did, and when he wouldn't get out of his car, I hit him in the mouth. When there didn't seem to be any connection to what he had done in his consciousness that I could see, I rode my bike over to where the police station was, maybe 200 meters away. There I told the cops what had happened, and I guess when he saw be go to the cops, the driver followed me there. We both came to the station; they locked me up and sent him home.
And you know, this is the truth and always will be.

But if there wan an interesting moment, it came when Zaremba tried to question me. I guess he was looking for some proof of his “black mark” theory. Or maybe he was really into this “was it even possible that” argument, this to go along with the expert opinion that there was a possibility that the damage could be caused by a hand. At any rate, his attempt to ask his lone question was comical. Twardowski was the translator, and this is a word for word recount of the entire questioning:

“Zaremba: Czy pana rower uderzył mój samochód?
Twardowski: Did your bike hit my car?
Goodman: Do you mean when you drove your car in front of me?
Twardowski: Czy ma pan na myśli kiedy wjechał pan przede mnie samochodem?
Zaremba: Tak.
Twardowski: Yes.
Goodman: No, I think I made a clean stop.
Twardowski: Nie, myślę, że to było czyste zatrzymanie.
Zaremba: (do sądu:) Czy mógłbym wykonać pięciominutowy telefon?
Twardowski: May I please be excused for five minutes to make a phone call?”

Now, Tatyana was sitting outside and watched him make this call and huddle with Jablonski and Jucha who were there as his witnesses. I have always assumed that he called Wiesniakowski because as far as the court was concerned, Zaremba had no lawyer. I don’t know if it was the prosecutor who was advising him, but whoever it was, Zaremba must have believed he had let the cat out of the bag. The court though gave him his five minutes, and when he returned, he said he had no further questions.