## Facts

- On August 1, 1995, Emma Turner (age 60) was crossing Canal Street in New Orleans when she was struck by a New Orleans Police Department vehicle driven by Officer Michael Lyons.
- Turner suffered serious orthopedic injuries (two broken legs and a broken arm) and underwent surgery at Charity Hospital.
- Later that night, Turner suffered a heart attack, and she experienced continuing cardiac complications and repeated hospitalizations in the months that followed.
- Turner filed suit against Lyons and the City of New Orleans (and an alleged insurer identified as “ABC Insurance Company”) seeking damages for injuries from the collision.
- Turner died on May 31, 1996, from heart-related complications after the lawsuit had been filed.
- Turner’s six adult children were substituted as plaintiffs in the survival action and also filed wrongful-death claims, alleging the accident caused Turner’s death.
- At the bench trial, plaintiffs presented Dr. Frank Griffith, an accident-reconstruction witness, who formed opinions using multiple sources, including the accident report and an internal NOPD report, depositions, Lyons’s statements, vehicle specifications, traffic regulations, and reconstruction materials; he also inspected the scene and took measurements and photographs.
- The trial court found the collision was consistent with a frontal impact, found Lyons 100% at fault, and found the accident led to Turner’s death (crediting medical testimony, including cardiologist Dr. William LaCorte).
- The court awarded $400,000 in survival damages and $150,000 to each child for wrongful death.
- Lyons and the City appealed, arguing (among other points) that Griffith’s opinion should not have been considered because it relied on hearsay reports, and challenging liability, comparative fault, and the amounts of damages.

## Issues

1. Whether the trial court erred by considering accident-reconstruction opinion testimony that was based in part on police and internal department reports that defendants claimed were inadmissible hearsay.
2. Whether the trial court manifestly erred in finding Officer Lyons 100% at fault and assigning no comparative fault to Emma Turner.
3. Whether the trial court abused its discretion in awarding $400,000 in survival damages.
4. Whether the trial court abused its discretion in awarding $150,000 in wrongful-death damages to each adult child.

## Decision

- The court affirmed the trial court’s liability findings, including that Lyons was 100% at fault and Turner bore no comparative fault.
- The court rejected the argument that Griffith’s opinion testimony was improper solely because it relied on reports defendants characterized as hearsay, concluding the trial court could consider the opinion and decide what weight to give it.
- The court affirmed the $400,000 survival-damages award.
- The court amended the wrongful-death awards as excessive, reducing them to $50,000 for each of the two children who testified and $20,000 for each of the other four children.

## Legal Principles

- Factual findings on fault, causation, and comparative fault are reviewed under the manifest error/clearly wrong standard.
- Under Louisiana Evidence Code art. 703, an opinion witness may base an opinion on facts or data made known to the witness if they are of a type reasonably relied on in the field; reliance on such materials generally affects weight rather than admissibility.
- The party asserting comparative fault bears the burden of proving it; absent proof, the trier of fact may assign full fault to the defendant.
- General damages, including survival and wrongful-death awards, are reviewed for abuse of discretion; an appellate court may change an award only after finding it exceeds the range a reasonable factfinder could set, and then fixing an amount supported by the record and comparable awards.

## Conclusion

The Louisiana Fourth Circuit held that the trial court could consider the accident-reconstruction opinion even though it relied in part on reports challenged as hearsay, and it affirmed the findings that Officer Lyons was solely at fault and that the accident caused Turner’s death, as well as the $400,000 survival award; however, it reduced the wrongful-death awards to amounts supported by the evidence and Louisiana quantum comparisons.


Turner v. Lyons, 867 So. 2d 13 (2004)