It was a full day of cross examination for one of the defendants in the Bridgegate trial.
NEWARK -- Bill Baroni, accused by federal prosecutors of having a key role in the George Washington Bridge lane closure scandal, spent an entire day on the witness stand Tuesday under cross examination.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Lee Cortes questioned the former Gov. Chris Christie top appointee to the Port Authority for about five hours. It was sometimes confrontational.
The prosecutors aggressively pushed back against Bill Baroni's claim he was just following David Wildstein's orders when access lanes to the George Washington Bridge were shut down, and that his only fault in the political revenge scheme was to trust the former Republican operative.
Instead, prosecutors painted a picture for jurors of Gov. Chris Christie's top appointee to the Port Authority as someone close to the governor who, at times, acted as his attack dog.
Wildstein, who pleaded guilty to federal crimes for his role in the lane closures and is the prosecution's star witness, admitted he orchestrated the lane closures as a form of political retribution against the mayor of Fort Lee for not endorsing the governor for re-election.
Baroni, along with former Christie aide Bridget Kelly, is on trial in federal court facing nine counts in connection with the case.
Prosecutors portray Baroni as attack dog
Here are three such exchanges from Baroni's time on the stand:
1. Cortes asks the questions
Prosecutors aggressively pushed back against Baroni's claim he was just following Wildstein's orders when access lanes to the bridge were shut down, and that his only fault in the political revenge scheme was to trust the former Republican operative.
Instead, the painted a picture of Baroni as the administration's attack dog.
Cortes' questions to Baroni were, at times, combative. Here's an example of one such exchange after the prosecutor asked Baroni whether he was called to Washington D.C. in 2011 to testify about toll increases:
Cortes: "You get that the answer to my question was a 'yes,' right?"
Baroni: "I'm sorry, sir, I was just trying to explain what I was going down there for."
Cortes, in a scolding tone: "When, Mr. Baroni, if I want an explanation, I'll ask. Ok?"
2. What's faster, an ambulance or a runner?
Cortes' cross examination was also peppered with moments of condescension from the assistant U.S. attorney.
The latter was apparent when Cortes pressed Baroni on how the gridlock in Fort Lee could have endangered the safety of its residents when first responders were trying to respond to emergency calls.
Cortes: "In a health emergency, you want an ambulance to get there as fast as possible, right?"
Bill Baroni in federal court. Baroni: "You would, yes."
Then, Cortes explained for jurors that on the first day of the traffic jams, Fort Lee ambulance attendants were forced to ditch their vehicle and respond on foot because of the massive gridlock.
Cortes: "Responding on foot means getting out and walking, and, or, running, right?"
Baroni: "I assume so."
Cortes: "You agree with me, Mr. Baroni, that driving in an ambulance has the potential to be faster than walking or running, right?"
Baroni: "I guess so."
3. The judge weighs in
Cortes accused Baroni, a skilled politician who holds a law degree from the University of Virginia, on several occasions of evading questions and not giving simple answers to "yes" or "no" questions.
At one point, Judge Susan Wigenton weighed in.
Wigenton to Baroni: "It's a 'yes' or 'no' question. That's why we're having the problem. The question is being asked but you're not saying 'yes' or 'no.'
Matt Arco may be reached at marco@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @MatthewArco or on Facebook. Follow NJ.com Politics on Facebook.
Ted Sherman may be reached at tsherman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @TedShermanSL. Facebook: @TedSherman.reporter.