EMORY DOZIER AND CRETE CARRIER CORPORATION, APPELLANTS,
v.
ISAAC HODGES, APPELLEE
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The appellate court affirmed the trial court's judgment and order awarding attorney's fees and costs.
[1] A presumption of prejudice arising from unrecorded communications between counsel and a juror's spouse may be rebutted by testimony of counsel.
[2] Evidence of a traffic citation paid by mail is inadmissible in a civil proceeding.
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceDefendants appealed an adverse final judgment and an order awarding attorney's fees and costs to the plaintiff. The appeal raised issues regarding the…
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[*1095] GODERICH, Judge.
The defendants, Emory Dozier and Crete Carrier Corporation, appeal from an adverse final judgment and from an order awarding attorney’s fees and costs to the plaintiff, Isaac Hodges. We affirm.
First, the trial court properly denied the defendants’ motion for a mistrial on the basis of unrecorded communications between plaintiffs counsel and a juror’s husband where the presumption of prejudice was rebutted by the testimony of plaintiffs counsel and the insurance adjuster. Rudolph v. Gleason, 339 So. 2d 298 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976), cert. denied, 348 So. 2d 952 (Fla.1977).
Next, the trial court properly prohibited the introduction of evidence that the plaintiff received a traffic citation and paid it by mail. § 318.14(4), Fla. Stat. (1997); Galgano v. Buchanan, 783 So. 2d 302 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001); Turco v. Leon, 559 So. 2d 1199 (Fla. 3d DCA), review denied, 574 So. 2d 141 (Fla.1990). We note that the defendants’ reliance on Figueredo v. Keller Industries, Inc., 583 So. 2d 432 (Fla. 3d DCA), review denied, 595 So. 2d 52 (Fla.1991), is misplaced because in that case the driver had pled guilty by mail to a traffic charge that by statute required a personal appearance.
Further, the trial court properly excluded the police officer’s initial estimate of the speed of the plaintiffs vehicle because although the officer had been qualified as an expert, he had previously testified in his deposition that he took no measurements, made no calculations, and had no factual basis for his opinion. Delta Rent-A-Car, Inc. v. Rihl, 218 So. 2d 469 (Fla. 4th DCA), cert. denied, 225 So. 2d 535 (Fla.1969).
Lastly, the trial court properly denied the defendants’ motion for a new trial based on the allegedly inflammatory and prejudicial comments made during plaintiffs closing argument. A review of the record shows that the trial court sustained all appropriate objections, that the trial court gave curative instructions where appropriate, and that the evidence supported the jury’s verdict. Gatlin v. Jacobs Const. Co., 218 So. 2d 188 (Fla. 4th DCA), cert. denied, 225 So. 2d 529 (Fla.1969).
Affirmed.
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Tanner v. Beck, 907 So. 2d 1190 (Fla. 3d DCA 2005)…in determining the accuracy of the photograph; the complained-of comment was not of such a nature that it deprived the plaintiff of a fair trial; and any potential prejudice was cured by the trial court’s curative instruction. See Dozier v. Hodges, 849 So. 2d 1094, 1095 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003)(finding that the trial court properly denied a motion for new trial when the trial court sustained all appropriate objections, gave curative instructions where appropriate, and that the evidence supported the jury verdict).…
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Carnival Corp. v. Pajares, 972 So. 2d 973 (Fla. 3d DCA 2007)…prejudice needed to vitiate the fairness of this eleven day trial. Engle v. Liggett Group, Inc., 945 So. 2d 1246, 1271 (Fla.2006). The court sustained all appropriate objections, and the evidence fully supports the jury’s verdict. Dozier v. Hodges, 849 So. 2d 1094 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003). The comments here were not so highly prejudicial and inflammatory as to deny Carnival Cruise Line a fair trial. See Engle; Dozier, see also Benjamin v. Diel, 831 So. 2d 1227 (Fla. 4th DCA 2002). Trial courts have traditionally…
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Rodriguez v. State, 906 So. 2d 1082 (Fla. 3d DCA 2004)…ense’s objection to this argument and gave the jury a curative instruction, and where there was overwhelming evidence of guilt, we cannot conclude that this argument deprived the appellant of a fair trial to warrant a reversal. See Dozier v. Hodges, 849 So. 2d 1094, 1095 (Fla. 3d DCA 2003) (finding allegedly inflammatory and prejudicial comments made during plaintiffs closing argument did not warrant a new trial where the trial court sustained objection and gave a curative instruction to jury). VI As his fin…
Previewing 3 of 7 citing cases — full citator treatment, depth of discussion, and citing context are member features.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceAuthorities Cited (11 total)
- Edmor Props., Inc. v. Metro. Dade Cnty., 225 So. 2d 529 (Fla. 1969)
- Vanzant v. Davies, 225 So. 2d 529 (Fla. 1969)
- Eli Gatlin v. Jacobs Constr. Co., 218 So. 2d 188 (Fla. 4th DCA 1969)
- DELTA Rent-A-Dar, Inc. v. Rihl, 218 So. 2d 469 (Fla. 4th DCA 1969)
- Smith v. State, 339 So. 2d 298 (Fla. 1st DCA 1976)
- Figueredo v. Keller Indus., Inc., 583 So. 2d 432 (Fla. 3d DCA 1991)
- Spencer v. State, 783 So. 2d 302 (Fla. 1st DCA 2001)
- Galgano v. Buchanan, 783 So. 2d 302 (Fla. 4th DCA 2001)
- Sloan v. Sloan, 225 So. 2d 535 (Fla. 1969)
- Lear v. Meigs, 225 So. 2d 535 (Fla. 1969)