More from Laura’s Deposition | BONUS

**Stephani** (0:05)
Hey, it's Stephani, back with a bonus episode. In episode six, we heard some of Laura's taped deposition. It was recorded in March of 2024, and it hasn't been made public before now. So we wanted to share some more of the jaw-dropping moments from the deposition that didn't make it into the last episode.

**SPEAKER_3** (0:27)
It begins video number one in the video deposition of Laura Michelle Owens.

**Stephani** (0:32)
I want to start at the very beginning, because I think it's telling. Remember, two years before this recording, Laura emailed a judge, accusing Clayton's lawyer, Greg Woodnick, of conspiring to have her raped. In the end, nothing came of that allegation. No police report, no investigation, nothing. When Woodnick sat down to tape Laura's deposition in Clayton's case, he was strikingly patient, thorough and kind. He spends five minutes making sure she understands the deposition process and her rights.

**Greg Woodnick** (1:06)
Laura, we're here for your deposition. And before I start in with questions, I want to make sure you understand the rules of depositions here in Arizona. I'm going to do my best to speak slowly so that our sweet court reporter can transcribe all the words I'm saying. If I go too fast, she'll probably correct me and slow me down. She'll do the same for you. I'll ask you a question and I expect you to answer the question. I will do my best not to talk over you.
And I would ask that you do the same to not talk over me. This is a deposition, which means it's my opportunity as counsel for Mr. Echard to ask you questions and you're under oath. It's like a judicial proceeding. You're expected to testify truthfully. I am not smart enough to ask tricky questions. I'm going to ask real basic questions and ask for basic answers. We're going to be covering some sensitive material today. And none of the words that I'm going to be using bother me, but they may bother you. I will do my best to get through those questions quickly and efficiently. I will also take breaks along the way for bathroom and whatnot. There's a bathroom here. There's one upstairs. There are bagels and water if you need it. Doesn't look like you grabbed a water bottle. We can bring you one. I want you to be comfortable. Let us know what you need. If you need a break, just let me know. And we'll do a quick five minute break. We're scheduled for four hours. My hope is that we get done much quicker. But a lot of that will depend on our process today and how quickly this goes. I want to share with you that I'm going to be asking you questions that may involve the need for you to exercise your Fifth Amendment right. I put this on the record because you always have a right to not answer my question. I'm assuming your attorney told you about this. You could always say to a question that I'm asking you, I'm not answering that based on my Fifth Amendment right, however you want to word it. If that happens a lot during the deposition, you and I can come to a little routine where you go plead the Fifth, and I'll just move on to the next question. I assure you, and Corey will make sure I do this, I will not badger you about the question you plead the Fifth to. I will move on to the next question. If you choose to plead the Fifth, I just literally will finish my question so I make a clear record, and then I'll move on to the next issue. It is not a situation where I'm gonna nag you about the question you did not answer. But you always have the right to plead the Fifth, and I will respect that as I think the court will as well. Let's get into it. Laura, can you give me the full spelling of your name?

**Laura Michelle Owens** (3:28)
Yes, I just had one question about the pleading the Fifth, because we had not discussed that before. I should know what the Fifth means exactly.

**Greg Woodnick** (3:38)
Yes, and actually I'm thanking you, because you did exactly what you were supposed to do. You asked a question, because you didn't understand my comment. So I thank you for that. You have a right to not answer questions on the grounds that it may incriminate you. In any legal proceeding, and Corey will correct me if I'm wrong, you don't have to answer questions. This is what people do when they're worried about criminal consequences for the answers to their questions. You don't have to. This is just a civil proceeding, but even if it were a criminal proceeding, the way the law works is you don't have to answer any question that's incriminating to you. So you can plead the fifth. There may be consequences in family court to deal with. Corey can explain that to you offline. But if I were to ask a question, and you felt that the answer to that question could cause you criminal consequence, all you have to do, and Corey can confirm this, is say Greg or Mr. Woodnick, please call me Greg. I'm going to go ahead and plead the fifth. I will stop, and I will move on to the next question. Does that answer your question?