SOMERVILLE, N.J. (AP) Three witnesses in the Jayson Williams manslaughter trial testified Wednesday that the retired NBA star ordered his guests not to talk to police about a fatal shooting at his mansion until his lawyer arrived.

The testimony could bolster prosecution efforts to show that Williams tried to arrange a cover-up, and weaken the defense contention that he was in a state of panic after hired driver Costas ``Gus'' Christofi was killed. The defense also maintains Williams fired the shotgun by accident.

Two state troopers and a Williams acquaintance, John W. Gordnick, said they heard Williams make the statements while in the dining room, where police had put all the adults after responding to the shooting early Feb. 14, 2002.

Trooper Robert Wronski, who said he noticed the smell of alcohol when he entered the foyer, said he went into the adjacent dining room and saw Williams sitting at the table.

Williams said, ``No one (expletive) talks until the lawyer gets here,'' Wronski said. ``He seemed pretty upset.''

After recording license plates, Wronski said he returned to the dining room and heard Williams say, ``Be quiet. Don't talk to the police. Let the attorney take care of it.''

A similar statement was noted by trooper Nicholas Giarnieri. ``He stood up and said, 'nobody makes any statements until the lawyer gets here.' He repeated it and sat down,'' Giarnieri said.

Gordnick, who was among the men detained in the living room, said he heard Williams say, ``Don't say anything until Sal gets here.'' Gordnick said he later learned Sal was Sal DiFazio, Williams' lawyer and agent.

It was the second day on the stand for Gordnick, who testified Tuesday he hid clothing after the former NBA star ran up to him naked following the fatal shooting and put the clothes in his hands.

The defense on Wednesday tried to show that Gordnick, who has pleaded guilty to evidence tampering, was under pressure to make a deal with prosecutors that would let him avoid prison in exchange for his testimony.

Gordnick testified that prosecutors told him at one point they were considering seeking a guardian for his children, but that was dropped when he began cooperating.

Before that, authorities went to his children's school in an attempt to interview them.

``That upset you, didn't it?'' asked defense lawyer Billy Martin.

``Very much,'' Gordnick replied.

The two boys were in the house at the time of the shooting, playing basketball on an indoor court. Christofi was shot in the master bedroom upstairs.

Gordnick also agreed when Martin asked if Kent Culuko, another Williams friend, was the one who was telling people what to do, not Williams.

The cover story was to be that all the guest were downstairs when Christofi shot himself, witnesses have said.

Gordnick, 46, said he confronted Culuko, who he had known for 20 years, slapped him and put him against a wall and told him, ``You got a zero percent chance of pulling this off.''

But when questioned again by the prosecution, Gordnick said that Williams told the group, ``Just stick with the story.''

Gordnick, of Rochelle Park, faces probation, as does Culuko, who pleaded guilty to evidence and witness tampering.

Prosecutors also displayed the clothes that Gordnick said he had stashed at a Route 17 underpass before giving them to his then-lawyer, Kevin C. Corriston.

State police Detective Frank Monte testified that Corriston gave him the plastic garbage bag of clothes on March 1, 2002. The bag and contents were shown, including the blue Armani pants and blue sweater that witnesses say Williams was wearing, along with a leather belt, black socks, gym shorts, a green towel and black shoes _ size 15, Monte read on the sole.

Also Wednesday, State Superior Court Judge Edward M. Coleman rejected, for the third time, a defense motion to sever the charges against Williams.

Defense lawyer Joseph A. Hayden Jr. said the jury would not be able to separately consider the shooting and post-shooting charges. The judge said, ``I've always found that jurors are able to focus on each individual count.''

Williams is accused of trying to make the shooting look like a suicide and persuading others to lie about where they were. Several witnesses have said Williams and Culuko wiped down the shotgun, and that Williams placed it in Christofi's hands as he bled to death.

The trial resumes Monday.

The shooting came at the end of an outing to a Harlem Globetrotters game in Bethlehem, Pa., that witnesses said was organized by Culuko.

At the game, Culuko called a livery service to transport some of the players, who were friends with Williams and Culuko, to join the group for dinner at the Mountain View Chalet, near the Williams estate, according to testimony. Christofi was dispatched. After dinner, all went to the mansion.

Williams, 36, faces eight charges, including aggravated manslaughter and witness tampering, that could carry up to 55 years in prison. The least of the charges carries a penalty of up to 18 months in prison, but would likely result in probation.

Williams retired from the Nets in 2000 after a decade in the NBA, unable to overcome a broken leg suffered a year earlier in a collision with a teammate. He was suspended from his job as an NBA analyst for NBC after the shooting.