Officer Gives His Version of Encounter With Zsa Zsa

Zsa Zsa Gabor is a foul-mouthed, arrogant lawbreaker who tried to knock him off his motorcycle with her Rolls-Royce, a Beverly Hills police officer testified Thursday.

Officer Paul Kramer, the first witness to take the stand in the actress’ Beverly Hills Municipal Court trial, said the Hungarian-born glamour queen cursed him for stopping her Rolls-Royce, slapped him and screamed, “Do you know who I am?”--all over a minor traffic infraction.

“It’s the lady in the white dress,” the uniformed officer replied when Deputy Dist. Atty. Elden Fox asked him if the driver he pulled over was in the courtroom.

“I didn’t realize he (Kramer) was so tall; he is very gorgeous,” Gabor said of the mustachioed officer, who stands 6-feet-4, during a break in testimony.

‘He Lied’

The defendant also claimed outside court that the officer--who on the stand often asked to be allowed to refer to his arrest report--”has to read what he said because he lied.”

“The only good thing that comes out of this is my face cream sells like hot cakes,” said the former Miss Hungary, who now sells a line of cosmetics.

Gabor is charged with misdemeanor battery on a police officer, disobeying an officer’s orders, driving with an expired license and having an open container of alcohol in her car.

Kramer pulled her over on June 14 for having expired registration tags on her $215,000 Rolls-Royce Corniche convertible. As he checked for violations, Gabor allegedly drove off, was stopped again and slapped Kramer’s face.

“She closed the door and she spun around and slapped me on the side of the face. I was very surprised,” Kramer testified.

“She was screaming, ‘Do you know who I am?’ She was cursing and spitting a little bit,” the officer said.

Birth Date Altered

An enlarged copy of Gabor’s driver’s license was displayed to jurors and it showed that the birth date had been altered. The citation issued to Gabor said her birth date is June, 6, 1923. The photocopy of her license, however, read Feb. 6, 1928.

Asked why he did not issue a misdemeanor citation for an altered license, Kramer said, “It was an amateur job of alteration.”

The only agreement during opening statements by prosecutor Fox and defense attorney William Graysen was that the trial is about “arrogance and insolence.”

“The evidence will show this is a case about arrogance, impudence, insolence, disrespect and disregard for law by the defendant on June 14, 1989,” Fox said.

“It’s about the arrogance and insolence of Officer Kramer,” Graysen countered.

‘I’m Not Afraid’

Gabor arrived at court Thursday declaring she was ready to confront Kramer.

“I’m not afraid,” she said. “He’s so macho-macho. But he won’t dare hit me today with so many policemen around.”

But the actress, wearing a cream-colored suit, appeared to be on edge during the officer’s testimony, frequently whispering to her attorney, “That’s not true.”

Fox said that witnesses will prove the officer’s actions were professional throughout the 15-minute episode.

“She spit at the officer, swore at the officer and said she would have his job,” the prosecutor said.

At one point, Kramer testified, he pulled alongside Gabor’s car and yelled for her to stop.

Says She Swerved Car

“She swerved the car at me” and screamed an obscenity, he said.

Graysen said in his statement that Kramer overreacted and Gabor acted in self-defense.

“He did not respond to her in a civil way,” her attorney said.

“Instead, an argument ensued . . . Officer Kramer lost his temper” and uttered profanity at Gabor, he said.

Graysen said his client was manhandled with excessive force, which included tight handcuffs and some kicking.

The defense attorney said Gabor told the officer, “You’re hurting my wrists,” and the officer allegedly replied, “I don’t care if I’m breaking your ------- arms.”