Palo Alto Murder Suspect Takes Stand For 2nd Day
SAN JOSE (BCN) -- Even under intense cross-examination, Bulos "Paul" Zumot did not waver in his testimony Friday, claiming repeatedly that he loved the woman he is accused of strangling in 2009.
Zumot, 37, took the stand for a second day to testify in his own defense and was grilled by prosecutor Chuck Gillingham.
The owner of Da Hookah Spot faces a maximum of 33 years to life in prison for charges of murder and arson in connection with the death of 29-year-old real estate agent Jennifer Schipsi, whose body he allegedly set ablaze to hide evidence.
Prosecutors claim the couple had a history of domestic abuse, and that Zumot killed Schipsi and then set their Addison Avenue home on fire with her body inside on Oct. 15, 2009.
During the cross examination, Gillingham attempted to portray Zumot as a violent and temperamental man, asking him several times how angry he felt after every fight the couple had.
"I'm an easygoing person," Zumot said. "I hardly get angry."
"Were you easygoing when you called her a bitch?" Gillingham replied.
He asked Zumot about fights the couple had in which he had thrown out her things in the hallway, screamed curse words at her, kicked her car, spit at her, stalked her, and text messaged and called her to the point of harassment.
"Maybe you could say it was not normal, it was dysfunctional," Zumot said. "We were okay with it. We accepted it."
When attorney Tina Glandian, who is part of Mark Geragos' defense team, asked him if he had ever physically harmed Schipsi, Zumot replied, "Never."
Gillingham accused Zumot of withholding information from his testimony that would make him look bad.
Much of the case thus far has centered on a fight the couple had on the night of Oct. 14 following Zumot's birthday celebration with friends at DishDash restaurant in Sunnyvale.
Zumot downplayed the fight and said it was more of a "disagreement," saying that afterward, "We smoked, we talked, we had a great time."
He said they even had sex and that they had recorded it on Schipsi's cell phone.
Zumot said he woke up shortly before 11 a.m. on Oct. 15 after receiving a call from the Palo Alto Police Department notifying him that a report he had filed against Hisham Ghanma, a man he claims had threatened to kill both him and Schipsi, was ready.
He said that as he was leaving, Schipsi asked him for a hug and he ignored her. She also asked for a latte, and he said although he was running late, he picked it up for her anyway.
"She deserved better treatment... I was short in my apology" the night before, he said.
Zumot set the coffee next to Schipsi on the nightstand, had a brief chat with her about her plans for that day, and then left the house, he said.
He claims that was the last time he saw Schipsi alive.
His plans that day included a stop at the Police Department to pick up the report, as well as another stop at the hookah lounge to prepare for the evening and write an inventory of items he needed to buy before leaving for his trip to Palm Desert with Schipsi and another couple that weekend.
He said he had planned to propose to Schipsi that weekend.
After a stop at a gas station, he said he got on the highway and headed to San Jose, first to pick up something from his cousin's house, and then to shop for the hookah lounge at Restaurant Depot.
He said that as it neared 4 p.m., he decided to leave without purchasing the items because he didn't want to be late for his weekly domestic violence class.
Zumot said he made sure to always arrive early and had never missed a class.
He said he was in class until about 5:55 p.m. that day and then went to the hookah lounge afterward.
Throughout the day, he said he text messaged and called Schipsi, but she had not answered, and he assumed she was in the hospital visiting her best friend, Roy, who had just had liposuction.
He said he noticed the time on his phone was 6:32 p.m. when he arrived in front of the hookah lounge. By the time he parked and went inside, it was 6:39 p.m., Zumot said.
As he was checking his e-mail in his office, Zumot said he heard a fire truck pass, and everyone went outside to look at it because it was so loud.
He said he returned to the hookah lounge and began smoking and drinking tea. Then the phone rang, and when he answered, it was Zumot's landlord John Eckland telling him his cottage was on fire.
Zumot said he dropped the phone and went home and saw police and firefighters. He said he wondered where Schipsi was and hoped she was out running, as she usually did in the afternoon or evening.
He said they asked him to give a report at the Police Department and he complied.
"I wanted to help out," he said.
When asked what his emotions were at that time, Zumot said he was "in shock, stressed and frustrated, speechless at times."
His interview with detectives lasted nearly three hours, and then he was asked to give them the items in his pockets and take photos.
Detectives asked him why he had deleted some of Schipsi's text messages, and he told them they were mainly about Schipsi asking him for money. He explained that earlier that day in class he had deleted the messages he thought were "negative," which his class had taught him to do.
Zumot said he also consented to a search of his home and businesses and gave police his clothes for inspection.
And then on the night of Oct. 19, he said police showed up at the hookah lounge, pointed guns at him and told him he was under arrest.
Zumot will resume his testimony on Monday morning.
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