Trial Testimony of
DONNA BUCKLEY
(Jay Buckley's sister)
Vol VIII  (#17)    pp. 496 - 514   |   Tues. & Wed., May 21, 22, 1991   |   Charles Rapp           
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Testimony of Donna Buckley on Wednesday May 22, 1991. Donna is another one of Jay's sisters, and was also living at 416 Falconer Street at the time of Kathy Wilson's disappearance.

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DONNA BUCKLEY, called as a witness, was sworn and examined, testified as follows:

DIRECT EXAMINATION

BY MR. MASSA:

Q Please speak up and identify yourself for the Court and jury by stating your name and current address.

A Donna Buckley, 416 Falconer Street, Jamestown.

Q Is it Miss or Mrs. Buckley?


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A Miss.

Q Miss Buckley, please speak up, this is a large courtroom, so that we can hear you, particularly the jury. How old are you?

A Twenty-seven.

Q Single at the present time?

A Yes.

Q Do you have children?

A Yes.

Q You stated that your reside at 416 Falconer Street in Jamestown?

A Yes.

Q Were you living at that address on May 18, 1988?

A Yes.

Q Could you describe for the jury where you were residing in that house?

A Basement apartment.

Q Who were you living with at the time?

A Myself and my girls.

Q Your girls, you mean your children?

A Yes.

Q What were their ages at the time?

A The oldest one was two.

Q The other child?

A She wasn't born yet.


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Q So you just had your two year old child?

A Yes.

Q You're hereunder subpoena; are you not?

A Yes.

Have (sic) I met with you recently to discuss your testimony or to prepare you for your testimony?

A No.

Q Miss Buckley, were any family members other than yourself living in the domicile at 416 Falconer Street on May 18, 1988?

A Karen Camarata.

Q She is your sister?

A Yes.

Q And Jay William Buckley is your brother?

A Yes.

Q You have a rather large family?

A Yes.

Q How many children in your family?

A Eleven.

Q Where do you fit into the eleven?

A I am the youngest.

Q So your considerably younger than your brother,


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Jay, and sister, Karen?

A Yes.

Q Particularly close to your brother, Jay?

A No.

Q Do you clearly remember the events of Wednesday, May 18, 1988?

A Not specifically, not real clearly, but - -

Q Well, you gave a number of statements, did you not, Miss Buckley, to law enforcement officers relative to that particular date?

A Yes.

Q Shortly after the day, in fact?

A Yes.

Q Do yo remember being at home in your basement apartment on May 18, 1988?

A Yes.

Q Anything unusual take place at or during the early afternoon hours?

A My sister came down and wanted me to go upstairs.

Q Your sister who?

A Karen.

Q What was it when she came down to get you?

A I'd say approximately noon, eleven o'clock.

Q You're not certain of the time; is that fair?

A No.


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Q What did Karen say to you when she came down to your basement apartment?

A She wanted me to come upstairs because she thought something was wrong with Billy.

Q Do you remember specifically the words that she used to address that?

A Not exactly.

Q What did you do?

A Went upstairs with her.

Q What did you observe upstairs?

A Billy was in the shower.

Q And did he say anything to you when he came out of the shower?

A Probably hi.

Q Do you recall what he wore when he got out of the shower?

A Blue jeans, a tank top.

Q When Karen came down to get you downstairs, did she say anything to you about your brother acting in a strange and abnormal way?

A She said he seemed upset.

Q Did she say to you that he wanted to kill himself?

A She did mention that, yes.

Q Pardon.

A Yes.


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Q Yes, she told you that Jay is upstairs and wants to kill himself?

A He had something - -

Q Correct?

A Yes.

Q Did she tell you she was afraid fro herself and her own safety?

A No.

Q Did she tell you she wanted you to come upstairs because Jay was upstairs and acting strangely?

A No.

Q She did not say that?

A No.

Q How long did Jay stay at your sister Karen's apartment, if you know?

A I'm just guessing, probably till four, four-thirty.

Q That's a guess on your part; is that correct?

A Yes.

Q Were you with your sister the next day when you went to Michael Brown's house?

A Yes.

Q What time of the day did that take place? This would have been Thursday, I guess, may 19th; right

A It was about 11:00 at night.

Q It was late at night.


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A Yes.

Q Why did you leave your house and go to Mike Brown's?

A Because the detectives were at Karen's looking for Billy.

Q What dd you do with your sister, Karen?

A We knew Michael Brown knew where the camp was, so we asked him to take us up there.

Q Did you speak to your brother that night?

A Not at the campsite, no.

Q Why not?

A We didn't see him up there.

Q But you went there for the purpose of talking to him specifically; is that right?

A Yes.

Q Did you have contact with your brother the following morning, five, five-thirty a.m.?

A Yes.

Q Explain to the jury what happened?

A He came to my door and asked what was going on because all the police and helicopters were up by the campsite and I told him about the Kathy Wilson - -

Q Pardon.

A And I told him about Kathy Wilson.

Q What did you tell him?


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A That there was a lady abducted from Jamestown.

Q What did he say to you?

A They're not going to frame it on me.

Q Did he ask you to change his appearance?

A He did ask me to dye his hair.

Q What did he ask you specifically?

A To dye his hair.

Q Did he ask you if you had the stuff so that you could dye his hair?

A No, he did not.

Q Did he ask you if you would shave off his mustache?

A No, he didn't.

Q Did he tell you that he had wanted to change his appearance?

A No, he asked me to dye his hair.

Q Did he tell you why he wanted you to do that?

A No.

Q Pardon.

A No.

Q What was his frame of mind at that time? How was he behaving?

A Agitated.

Q Did you see your brother that week at all?

A Not that I recall.

Q Did you see your brother in a manner that was - -


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that he behaved in a manner that was unusual for him?

A No.

Q Did you ever see him run away or run out of your apartment?

A Yes.

Q Explain.

A When a police car came up and he saw it out front of the house he came down through my house.

Q What did he do?

A Went out the door.

Q Do you know who came to the house?

A No.

Q When he came to your apartment that early morning hour, did he tell you what he had been doing the night prior?

A No.

Q Didn't tell you that he had been hiding out in the trees?

A Yes.

Q He told you that?

A Yes.

Q Did he tell you there were helicopters all over combing the area looking for him?

A He mentioned one helicopter.

Q Did you ever see a police officer place a parking


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ticket on your car about the 20th or 21st of May while your brother was present?

A Yeah.

Q What was your brother's reaction?

A He jumped up.

Q Did he run out of the apartment?

A I don't remember.

Q Did he hide in your apartment?

A No.

Q Did he jump with such force that he knocked over a fan?

A Yes.

MR. MASSA: I have no further questions.

CROSS EXAMINATION

BY MR. SMITH:

Q You took an oath; right?

A Yes.

Q To tell the truth; right?

A Yes.

Q Don't tell the truth subject to the crime of perjury; right?

A Yes.

Q Not going to tell any lies today?

A No.

Q Not going to commit any crime?


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A No.

Q Not going to come here and lie for Jay Buckley?

A No.

Q You didn't get along with him that well, so you're not going to lie for him; right?

A No.

Q May 18, 1988 you see him when, first, at what time approximately?

A Approximately between 11:30 and 12, I'm not sure of the time.

Q Early afternoon. The last you see him that afternoon is 4:30?

A Yes.

Q So he's at Karen Camarata's house for approximately three hours?

A Yes.

Q You're positive of that?

A Yes.

Q He came to your house later, May 19th; right, later on that night?

A Yes.

Q After you guys went up looking for him?

A Yes.


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Q You tell him about the Kathy Wilson disappearance and you don't know where Kathy Wilson is at that time?

A No.

Q You just say some lady in Jamestown disappeared and the police were her acquiring (sic) about it?

A Yes.

Q Did he tell you, "Gee, I did that."?

A No, he did say he didn't have anything to do with he. (sic)

Q He denied having anything to do with it?

A Yes.

Q Have you talked with your brother since May 18, 1988?

A No, not really.

Q On the phone, correspondence, in person, you haven't really?

A No.

Q Ever told you he had any thing to do with Kathy Wilson?

A No.

Q You have any personal knowledge or evidence to lead this jury or this Court to believe that he did have something to do with Kathy Wilson?

A No.

Q When he asked about dyeing his hair that wasn't the


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same time he came to your house; was it?

A No.

Q So we're talking about another time, we're not talking about the 19th when you tell him they're looking for this disappearing lady?

A Right.

Q Jay lives in Falconer, well at lest from May 18, 1988 all the way up until the time of his arrest a year, year and a half later?

A I think he was in Jamestown.

Q Live in the Jamestown-Falconer area?

A Yes.

Q Didn't leave the state; right?

A Yes.

Q To your knowledge he goes down and makes the statement to the police one or two days later?

A Yes.

Q To your knowledge did he ever change his appearance?

A No.

Q Was it out of the ordinary for Jay Buckley to not exactly to be around when the police arrived for various other reasons?


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A No.

Q You know he'd been in trouble before; right?

A Yes.

Q And he's the bad boy of the family or one of them; right?

A Yes.

Q So he's not one that gets along well with police or likes to have the police interview him and stuff like that' right?

A No.

Q Nevertheless, he did go down in this case and give and interview to the police?

A Yes, he did.

Q You know Joyce Wilson; don't you?

A Yes.

Q You know about Jay's relationship with Joyce?

A Yes.

Q How would you describe it?

A Rocky.

Q What was the problem?

A I wouldn't know personally.

Q Did you ever get the impression that she was just leading him on, breaking off, things like that?

A Yes.

Q She became especially upset with him after she felt


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that or she found out that the police found out he was a suspect in this case?

A Yes, I think so.

Q As far as your knowledge?

A Ad far as - - yes.

Q Jay would get upset and depressed about his relationship with Miss Wilson?

A Yes.

MR. SMITH: No further question, Your Honor.

REDIRECT EXAMINATION

BY MR. MASSA:

Q I just have a few questions. First of all, in regard to Joyce Wilson, did you know whether or not your brother ever did physical damage to aby of Joyce Wilson's property or belongings or person?

MR. SMITH: Objection, irrelevant.

THE COURT: Well, it's obviously irrelevant unless there's something forthcoming.

MR. MASSA: I will withdraw the question.

Q Mr. Smith brought up and he asked you whether your brother was in trouble and had bad contact with the police and so forth. Did you ever see him run and hide before May 18, 1988, run and hide when the police officers came by?

A No.

Q Do you recall giving a statement to Detective Walsh (sic)


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of the Jamestown Police Department at 2:22 a.m. on May 20, 1988, that would have been 2:20 a.m. te evening after that you had gone to the campsite real late at night and you and your sister, Karen, went to the police department; is that correct?

A Yes.

Q You were asked, "Dona, had Jay been acting strangely since May 18, 1988?" Would you read your answer to that, please?

A "He's ben down for the last few days. Yesterday, the 19th of May he came to my apartment and asked me if I would - -" Jay said it this way.

Q Well, would you read it?

A " - - if I would buy some hair dye and dye his hair. I asked him why would you do that and he didn't tell me. I asked him what he was going to do with his mustache and Jay said he would cut his mustache and dye that, too. He then told me that if he had a gun he would kill himself."

Q Now, - -

A That's not my statement.

Q That's not your statement?

A No, it's not.

Q I am going to show your Page Two, is there a signature on that document?

A Yes, it (sic) is.


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Q Whose is that?

A Mine.

Q Did you write your signature on that?

A Yes, I did.

Q Did you read it before you signed it?

A Evidentially not completely.

Q Same statement, "Question, did you see Jay on the 18th of May, 1988?" Would you read your answer, please?

A "Yes, I only saw him for a few minutes at my sister Karen's house, she told me later that he was talking about killing himself and he was crying."

Q "Question, Donna, is it unusual for him to cry about anything?" What was your answer?

A "Yes."

Q First question on Page Two, "Donna, are you afraid of your brother, Jay Buckley?"

MR. SMITH: I object, Your Honor, irrelevant.

MR. MASSA: It's taken May 20, 1988.

THE COURT: Well, that doesn't mean that it's automatically admitted into evidence at time of trial. Sustained.

MR. MASSA: I have no further redirect.

RECROSS EXAMINATION

BY MR. SMITH:

Q Just a couple questions, Donna. Were you upset when you gave this statement of May 20, 1988 to the police?

A Yes.

Q To your knowledge, and if you don't remember just say you don't remember, did you, in fact, read it after they typed it?

A I don't remember reading what was written, I didn't say that.

Q It says here that I only seen him for a few minutes at my sister, Karen's house; is that true?

A More or less, yes, because I was between my apartment and her apartment throughout the day.

Q So you went up and down?

A Yeah.

Q When you first saw him it was at the time you said and when you said the last time it was at the time you said?

A Yes.

Q But the total time that you were with him that afternoon of May 18th was a few minutes?

A Probably maybe an hour altogether I was upstairs maybe two, I don't remember.

Q But you know that at4:30 or approximately there abouts he's there?

A Yes.

Q You're not lying?

A No, I am not.


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MR. SMITH: No further questions.

THE COURT: You may step down. The Court will recess until 1:15.

(Whereupon, Court recessed for lunch at 12:00.)

THE COURT: The Court's apologies, I had to take care of a matter in Chambers and we'll keep moving right along. Mr. Massa.

MR. MASSA: Joyce Wilson.

JOYCE WILSON, called as a witness was sworn and examined, testified as follows:

DIRECT EXAMINATION

BY MR. MASSA:

Q Please speak up and identify yourself by stating your name address (sic) for the jury?

A Joyce Wilson, R.D. 6, Jamestown, New York.

Q Is it Miss or Mrs. Wilson.

A It's Mrs. Wilson.

Q We have a large courtroom, please, speak up so the Court, Counsel, and Reporter, and particularly, the jury can hear you. Your residence is what?

A R.D. 6 Jamestown.

Q Are you a life-long native of Jamestown, New York?

A No.

Q How long have you lived there?

A Eighteen months.


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