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Dzhokhar Tsarnaev— Case Archive
personpersonJames FloydJames FloydWatertown resident who lived on Laurel Street with his wife and infant son in April 2013.← All People
Witness

James Floyd

Watertown resident who lived on Laurel Street with his wife and infant son in April 2013.

Appeared2015 Federal Trial
59 lines·3 proceedings·3 mentions

About

James Floyd testified for the prosecution on Day 33 about watching the Watertown confrontation from his Laurel Street home. After hearing loud banging and seeing gunfire, he moved his infant son upstairs and returned to a second-floor window. He described four smaller fuse-lit objects being thrown, remembered two explosions, and then saw a larger object that appeared to be in a bookbag thrown before a much brighter blast.

Under Nadine Pellegrini's questioning, Floyd described a tackle followed by the Mercedes turning and accelerating toward the gathering. He heard a thud and saw the vehicle rise, but could not identify whom it contacted; his belief that it struck everyone was an assumption. He could not distinguish the two individuals, yet affirmed that the larger object's thrower was also the Mercedes driver without identifying that person by name. His descriptions of the vehicle's direction and which lights rose varied without an express resolution. Timothy G. Watkins declined cross-examination.

In closing argument, Aloke Chakravarty used Floyd's account to argue that Dzhokhar Tsarnaev threw the larger explosive and accelerated toward police. William D. Weinreb also invoked Floyd's testimony in rebuttal to argue active participation in Watertown. Those were the prosecutors' interpretations; Floyd's own testimony connected the thrower and driver but did not establish that individual's identity.

Trial Record (3)

2015 Trial2015 Federal TrialJan 5, 2015 – Jun 24, 2015Called by prosecution

James Floyd testified about gunfire, explosions, and the Mercedes departure during the Watertown confrontation. He linked the larger explosive object's thrower to the Mercedes driver, but could not identify that person or whom the vehicle struck.

Day 33

DirectJames Floyd - Direct ExaminationJames FloydNadine Pellegrini4highlightsMentioned59lines spoken

Summary

Floyd described gunfire, explosions, and the Mercedes departure, linking its driver to the larger object's thrower while limiting his identification and contact observations.

Mentioned in this proceeding.

Highlights (4)

testimony highlightFloyd described the individual remaining near the cars throwing a larger object that appeared to be in a bookbag. The explosion made him and his wife duck and knocked pictures from their wall; he then saw that individual enter the Mercedes and accelerate toward the gathering down the street.Open in transcript →
testimony highlightFloyd described a figure tackling the individual in the street, other figures joining, and the Mercedes turning and accelerating toward that area. He heard a thud and saw the vehicle rise, but did not know whom it contacted.Open in transcript →
Quote“No, we didn't know. Our assumption was it made contact with everyone and that it was bad. We didn't think there was any way anyone could have gotten up and moved.”— James FloydSeparates Floyd's assumption about the vehicle's contact from what he actually knew.Open in transcript →
testimony highlightIn response to Pellegrini's question, Floyd unequivocally linked the person who threw the larger explosive object with the person who later drove the Mercedes back down the street.Open in transcript →

Day 43