Recent Postings

People v. Yuksel.  Court properly excluded expert's testimony as to hearsay that formed the basis for his opinion.  "I Swear, I've Never Done This Before."  Posted Aug. 5, 2012.

People v. Wright.  Review has been granted in case finding that a peremptory challenge may not be exercised to remove a female prospective juror in order to obtain a more gender-balanced jury.  "Review Granted in People v. Wright."  Posted July 22, 2012.

Coito v. Superior Court.  Witness statements obtained by an attorney's investigator are protected by the work product privilege, and the identity of witnesses from whom an attorney has taken statements may be entitled to protection depending on the circumstances.  "It's My Work and You Can't Have It."  Posted July 8, 2012.

Tarle v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc.  Upon rehearing, Court refiles original opinion finding forfeiture of claim of error on appeal from failure to oppose objections to evidence submitted on a summary judgment motion, and orders opinion not be published.  "Court 'Unpublishes' Summary Judgment Case."  Posted July 2, 2012. 

People v. Mehserle.  Evidence that the defendant police officer's department changed their taser policy after defendant shot and killed the victim, allegedly thinking that he was using his taser, was properly excluded at trial.  "Better Late Than Never."  Posted June 27, 2012.

Oliveira v. Kiesler.  Judgment against defendants was properly reduced to zero after reduction for amount of settlement with other defendants who committed different torts but who were responsible for the same compensatory damages.  "The High Cost of Settlement."  Posted June 24, 2012.

Juror Number One v. Superior Court.  Court may compel a juror to turn over posts made to the juror's Facebook account during the trial.  "Juror Doesn't 'Like' Court's Order."  Posted June 20, 2012.

Tarle v. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc.  A party who fails to oppose objections made to evidence submitted on a summary judgment motion forfeits any claim on appeal that the court erred in sustaining the objections.  "I Object to Those Objections."  Posted June 17, 2012.

Red Light Camera Cases.  The California Supreme Court has granted review of two cases with opposing views on authentication of red light camera photographs.  "Review Granted in Red Light Cases."  Posted June 11, 2012.

I Swear, I've Never Done This Before

The trial court properly sustained objections to questions designed to elicit hearsay evidence that formed the basis of the expert's testimony, said the Second District Court of Appeal in People v. Yuksel (July 11, 2012, B231571), __ Cal.App.4th __ [2012 DJDAR 9550].

Defendant was charged with meeting a person believed to be a minor for the purpose of engaging in sexual activity.  In his defense he presented a clinical and forensic psychologist who opined that defendant was not a pedophile, that is, a person with an abnormal and persistent sexual interest in prepubescent children.  After testifying that an important consideration was that there was only one incident, the court sustained the prosecutor's objections to questions asking whether the expert was aware of any other incidents involving defendant and minors.

The testimony was properly excluded in the exercise of the court's discretion, said the court of appeal.  The questions attempted to elicit the defendant's hearsay statements to the expert that the offense in this case was an isolated incident, and although an expert may rely on hearsay, the evidence must be reliable and of the type that experts reasonably rely upon in forming their opinions.  The court impliedly found that defendant's statements were unreliable and did not abuse its discretion in concluding that the probative value of the testimony was outweighed by its prejudicial effect.