## In the



# U n ited S ta tes Co urt o f Ap p ea ls

F o rth eS e v e n th C ir cu it
N o. 07

- 3137 F R ED ERI CK M OO RE a nd T OM MIE G RADY as Co-Ad m i ni str ato rs and Per sonalRepres entat i ves of the E state of F R ED ERI CK G RADY, P laint if fs -App el lants , v . D ONAL D T ULEJ A, D EM ETRIUS W I L L I A MS ON, J OS EP H P AL MS ONE , an d D EN NIS B OYLE , D efend a nts-A pp ellees

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A pp eal from the United S t ates Di strictC our t fo r the N o rthernDi stricto f Illino is, Eas tern Div isi on. No . 04 C2545

—RubenC astil lo, Judge

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A RG UE D M AY 29, 2008

— D ECI DE D O CT OB ER 6, 2008

Befo re C UDAH Y, P OSNERa nd T INDER, C ircu it Judges . C UDAH Y, Cir cu i tJudg e . On the eve ni ng of A p ri l 8, 20 03, Fr ed er i ck Grady was i nvol ved i n a m aj ortr affi c ac ci dent. A l though Gra dy esc aped w i thout se rious i nj ury, hi s v an ro l l ed ove r on i ts si de and w as seve re l y dam age d. Later th atni g ht, Gr adywas ar r es te d w he n he t r es pas se d on th e2 N o. 07

- 3137 p r i v a t e l o twh e r e h i s da m ag e d v a n wa s b e i n gh e l d

. He wa s t a k e n t o a C h i c a g o p o l i c e s t a t i o n a n d p l a ce d i n a hol ding cel l

. I n the ear l y m or ni ng hour s o fA pri l 9, 20 03, G ra d y w as fou n d u n c on sc iou s a n d u n re sp on siv e in h is cel l

. A tte m pts bypara m edi cs t o re vi ve Grady w er e unsuccess ful, and Gra dy tr agi cal l y die d. A n auto psy co nd ucted by the Coo k County Offi ce of the M edi calExam i ner concl ud ed that Grady had suff er ed a f atalhear t a tta ck. A l though the auto psy co ncl ud ed that G ra dy die d fr om natura l cause s, i nj uri es f ound on Grady’ s bo dy ra i sed suspi ci on i n the m in ds ofhi s f am i l y a nd fri ends. They b elie ve th at G ra d y h ad be en be at en in h is c ell b y jail personnel and that thi s be ati ng pre ci pit ate d the f atal he art attac k. T he plaintiff s, co-ad m inisters of G ra d y ’s es ta t e , b r o u g h tth i s s u i tu n d e r4 2 U. S
. C
. § 1 9 8 3 , c l ai m i ng that the defendant pol i ce o ffi cer s a nd j ai l pers onn el d ep ri ve d Gr adyo fhi s r i g ht s unde r the F o ur tha nd F o urte en thAm en dm en ts b y us i ng ex ce ss i ve f o r ce a nd de ny i ng hi m m edi calcar e. The case w as tr i ed bef or e a j ury. The tr i all ast ed sev en day s; the j ur y he ar d a l l o f the pl aint i ff s’ e vi den ce a nd re turned a ver dictin fav or of the defendants i n j ust o ver anho ur . The pl ai nt if fs made a m o ti o n f o r a ne w tr i alb ut th e d istri ct cou rt de nied the m otion, not ing th at th e j ury’s ver dictwas re aso nabl e in l i ght ofthe “w eakl i abi l i ty case ” pr es en te d b y the pl aint i ff s. The pl aint i ff s no w appe althe denia l o fthei r m oti on f ora new tr i al

. W e A FFIRM .N o. 07

- 3137 3 I. G ra dy w as i nvol ved i n two separ ate caracc i dents o n Apr i l 8 , 2 0 0 3. T he fi r s twa s r e l a t i v e l y mi no r . T he s e c o nd , w h ich oc c u rre d at ro u gh ly 6:3 0 p .m ., w as m or e ser iou s. In th a t a c c i d e n t, Gr a d y ’ s v a n c r o s s e d o u t o f i t s l a n e a nd stru ck an oth er veh icl e, cau sing both veh icl es to fl ip ov er. Of f i c e r An d r e w L u c c a o fth e C h i c a g o P o l i c e D e p a r t me nt re sponded to the scene, as di d param edi cs Renee Sanchez and Joh n Kaveney. Grady was weari ng hi s s eat be l t an d e sc ape d the c r as h wi tho nl y m inor b um ps an d br ui se s. He i ni ti al l y r efus ed m edi ca l t r ea tmenta nd re fused to be taken to the hospit al

. G ra dy, wh o w or ked as a c ar p en te r, told Sa n c h ez th at h e ha d to go ba c k t o ge t h is car pentry tool s out ofh i s van. S anchez w ar ned Grady that he s ho ul d s t a y a wa y f r o m the v a n b e c a us e “ the re was b r o k e n g l a s s a nd s t uf f

. ” De s pi t e the wa r ning, Gr a dy re ached i nto the v an, cutt i ng hi s r i ght ha nd r ath er ser i ousl y i n the proce ss. T he par am edi cs b andaged Gr ady ’ s ha nd

— a f act that they reco rded i n thei r l og

— an d re pla ced the dress i ng o nce m or e a fterG ra dy bl ed thr ough the fi rs t ba nd age . Grady a gai n re fused to be tak en to the h o s pi t a l

. Ins t e a d, h e wa s r e l e a s e d. At 8 : 4 5 p. m. tha t e v e ning, Gr a dy t r e s pa s s e d o n the l ot w here hi s v an was bei n g st or ed i n an at tem pt to r etr i eve h is to ol s. The l ot own ercal l ed the Ch i cago Pol i ce Depar tm en t. Offi ce r s Leo M o r al es a nd Lui s Gar za a r r i ve d a t th e scene and arr est ed Grady. A s Offi cerM or al es pla ced G r a d y in h an d cu ff s, he noticed the ba nd age on Gra d y’s ha nd

. O fficers M orales an d G arza confiscate d Gra d y’s too l s a nd to ok hi m ba c k to the s tat i on. They handcuffed4 N o. 07

- 3137 Grady to a bench i n the pol i ce s tation w hi l e they fi l l ed out the a rr estr ep or t. A t that poi nt, Offi cerGarza not i ced the b a nd a g e a nd a s k e d G r a dy wha t ha d ha pp e ne d. Gr a dy tol d him thathe ha d a caracc i den t but di d not e l abor ate ; Grady al so decl i ned m edi calassi sta nce. The ar re st re port, w hi ch f ocuse d on the f acts sur ro und i ng the al l ege d crim inal trespa ss, d id n ot m en tion th e inj ury to G rad y’s ha nd

. Of fi ce r s M orales a nd Ga r za the n un cuff ed Gr adya nd turned hi m o verto l ock up p er so n n el. T here was a s tr i ct pol i cy aga i nst hand cuff s i n the l ock up , an d Offi cer M o r a l e s s t a t e d tha the to o kth e ha nd c uff s wi th h i m. Gr a dy w as proce sse d by Offi cerDonal d T u l ej a, wh o did a quick m ed ica l c h ec k of G ra d y w h ile h e sa t b eh in d a d es k. H e d id no t o bs er ve any act i ve bl ee di ng, and Gra dy de ni ed tha t he needed m edi calcar e. T h e i ntake r epor t di d not no te th e ban d age on G rad y’s ha nd

. Pa lm son e took G rad y’s photog ra ph; W i l l i am son too k his fi nger pri nts. T he photo

gr aph re veal s that Grady had no i nj uri es to hi s hea d w hen h e e n te re d th e jail. A lth ou gh n eit h er P alm so n e n or W illi am son noticed the b a n d a ge on G rad y’s han d , no fi ng erpr i ntwa s t a k e n o fGr a dy ’ s ri ght ha nd

. Gr a dy wa s a pparentl y c oo perat i ve w i th j ai l per sonnel, wh o al low ed h i m t o ma k e a p h o n e c a l l

. G r a d y c a l l e d h i s l o n g t i me com p an ion, K ath ryn T ierno, an d told her th at he w as “very concerned about hi s t oo ls.” Grady was the n w al ked to hi s ce l l, wh i ch co ntai ned a t oile t, a s i nk and a m eta l bench. Robe rtGonzal es, wh o w as i n the cel l next to G rad y, s aw Gr adyb eingt ak ent o hi s ce l l a nd no ti ce d the b a nd a g e o n hi s h a nd

.N o. 07

- 3137 5 Pe rson ne l at th e j ailm a d e roun d s of th e lockup every fi fte enmin ut es . Gr adywas c al m a nd c o ur te o us . On o ne occa s i o n, Gr a dy a s k e d Wi l l i a mso n a b o uth i s t o o l s. Pal m sone , w ho m ade the m aj or i ty of ro und s, said that Gr a d y s l e p t mo s t o f th e n i g h t
. Go n z a l e s , wh o wa s i n t he ce l l ne xtt o Gr ady, r emem ber ed he ar i ngno th i ngb ut coughi ng and snor i ng co m i ng fro m Grady’ s ce l l

. W hen Pa l mso ne m a de h i s r o un ds a t1 : 3 0 p . m. , h e n o t i c e d G r a dy sitting up on his ben ch

. A p p roxim ately ten m inu te s l ater, G on za les st at ed th at h e h ea rd a “t h u m p ” in G ra d y’s ce ll f ol l owed by si l ence. W hen Pal m sone m ade h i s r ounds at appr o xi m at el y 1 : 45 p. m . , he f o und Gr adyunc o ns ci o us and unresponsi ve on the fl oo r of hi s ce l l

. Pal m sone r an to g etOffi ce r Tul ej a, who c al l ed Serg ea ntDe nni s Bo y l e an d Capt ain Ra y m o nd M i l l er f o r he l p. A l o g r efl ec ts th at the fi r e d e p a r t me n ta n d p a r a me d i c s w e r e c a l l e d a t 1 : 4 5 p . m. Sanchez and Kaveney ar ri ved to fi nd Grady i n a s tat e ofcar diac ar re st on the ce l lfl oo r. They we re u n abl e t o resu scitate h im
. Gra d y w as taken to the h o s p ital, w he re he was prono u n c ed dead. A n auto psy co nd ucted by D r. E u p il C h oi d et er m in ed th at G ra d y h ad d ied n at u ra lly o fa h e a r ta t t a c k

. T he a ut o ps y a l s o r e v e a l e d tha tGr a dy ha d a n um be r o fi nj ur i es t o hi s bo dy, i nc l udi nga ha nd lac er at ion , tw o a b ra sio n s o n h is h e a d a n d sc ra p es on h is wri sta n d n e c k

. S e r g e a n tB o y l e e x a mi n e d th e c e l l a nd f ound no si gns o fst ruggl e; i nvest i gat or s fro m the offi ce o fi nt erna l a ff ai r s ar r i ve d late r a nd a l so e xa m i ne d the cel l

. They t oo f ound no evi dence ofwrongdoi ng. The pla in ti ff s fi l ed thi s a cti on under 4 2 U.S
. C. § 1 983 ac ti o n o n Apr i l 8 , 2 00 4. The y a l l eg ed th at W i l l i amso n a nd Pal m sone used excess i ve f or ce on Grady, that O ffi cer6 N o. 07

- 3137

T he di s t ri c tc our tgr ant ed s um m ar y j udgm en ti n f avor of 1 O ffi c e r s M or ales an d G arz a. Th e p lain tiffs d o n ot a p p eal th is dec i s i on. D u rin g the tria l, the d istrict cou rt gr an ted jud g m en t as a 2 m att er ofl aw as to Cap tai n M il le r. The p lai nti f f s do not appeal th is d ec isi o n . Tul ej a f ai l ed to i nt er ve ne a nd tha t S er g ea ntBo y l e an d C ap tain M il ler d en ied G rad y m ed ical care. Th e plaint iffs al so al l ege d that Offi cer s M or al es and Garza had arr est ed Grady w i thout probabl e ca use. The pl ai nti ff s’ theo rywas 1 th at Gr ady an g er ed Pa l m so ne an d W i l l i amso n by const an tly co m p lain in g a b ou t h is t oo ls. P alm so n e a n d W ill i am s o n ha d fi na l l y “ s na pp e d, ” s t r i k i ngGr a dy

— who th e pla i nti ff s be l i eve was sti l l handcuffed

— wi th a b a t o n . As Grady r ai sed hi s hands t o defe nd hi m sel f, the bato n l ac er at ed hi s ha nd and the f o r ce o fthe b l o w kno ck ed th e ha nd c uff s i nt o Gr a dy ’ s wr i s t s a nd a g a i ns t his h e a d, c a u s in gab r a s io n s . T h e p la in t if fs c la im th a tO ff ic e r T u leja saw the beat ing take p lace b ut fail ed to i nt erven e. Fu rthe r, the y c l a i m t ha tS e r g e a ntBo y l e a nd Ca pt a i n M i l l er del aye d cal l i ng the para m ed ics unti l afterthe defe nd ants had fini shed cl eaning the c el l and conce al i ng ev i dence ofthe use o fexce ssi ve f or ce. The pl ai ntiffs’ c ase f ocuse d 2 al m o ste nt i r el y o n i nfer en ce s ba se d o n the natu re o fthe i nj ur i es f o und on Gr ady ’ s bo dy; the y c l ai m ed th atthe onl y r eas onabl e m edi calco ncl usi on w as that Grady had b ee n st ru c k w ith a b lu n t o b j ec t in h is c ell. The j ur y t r i al l as te d se ve n day s. The j ur y he ar d t es ti m o ny f ro m al m ost al l o fthe i nd i vi du al s who cam e i nto conta ctN o. 07

- 3137 7

W e dec l i ne t o r evi ew the den i al ofthe Rul e 50 ( b) m otio n 3 becaus e the pl a i nt i f f s di d n otfi l e a m ot i onf or di r e c t e d v e r di ct b efo re th e ju ry re tu rn ed its v er d ic t. S ee V an B u m ble v. Wal -M art St o r e s , Inc ., 40 7F .3d 82 3 , 82 7(7t h C ir . 20 0 5 ). w i th Grady that day, i ncl ud i n g O ffi cerM or al es, Offi cer Garza, Offi cer Tulej a, Pal m sone , W i l l i am son an d G onzal es. They al l d eni ed that any wrongdoi ng had ta ken pl ace. Dr. Choi, wh o conducted the o ri gi nal auto psy o fGrady, tes ti fi ed at tr i althathe b el i eve d that Gra dy’s d eath w as natura l

. The p lainti ff s r eta i ned Dr. M i chaelKaufm an to r e e x a mi n e D r . C h o i ’ s wo r kb u t, a f te r c o n d u c t i n gh i s o wn autopsy, Dr. Kaufm an al so concl ud ed that Grady’ s death w as n at u ra l. T h e pla in tiffs ’ c as e w as ba se d alm os t e n tir ely on test i m ony ofD r. B esa nt- M atthew s, w ho d i d not hav e a n o ppo r tu ni tyto e xa m i ne Gr ady ’ s bo dy butr ev i ewe d the m ed ica l ev id en c e in th e c as e. T h e j u ry r et u rn ed a ve rd ict in f avo r ofthe re m ai ni ng defendants i n a l i ttl e m or e than an hour. The pl ai nti ff s m ove d fo r j ud gm ent as a m att ero fl aw unde r Rul e 50 ( b) o r a ne w tr i alunde r Rul e 59 ( a) butthe dist ri ct c ourtdeni ed the m oti ons. T he p l a inti ff s no w appeal the deni alo fthei r post- tr i alm oti ons. 3

II. T h e p lain tiffs arg u e t h at t h e d ist ric t c ou rterr ed in d e n y in g t h eir m ot ion for a n ew tria l un d er Ru le 5 9(a ). See F ED . R. C IV . P RO . 5 9 ( a )
. We r e v i e w the de ni a l o fa mo ti on for a ne w tr ial for ab u se of d isc re tio n . Se eKape l ans kiv. Johns on , 3 90 F
. 3d 52 5, 53 0 ( 7th Ci r . 20 04 )
. “ A par tys ee k i ng to re ver se a di s t r i c tc o ur t ’ s de ni a l o fa mo t i o n f o r a n ew8 N o. 07

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The p lai ntiffs i n si stthatD r. K aufm an violat ed a pre- tr ial 4 r u l i n g w h e n h e s t a t e d th a tG r a d y h a d a s t r e s s fu l d a y . S o me backg round i s in order here. Bef ore t ri al, the plai nti f f s int ended to h av e D r. Besa nt-M atth ew s testify tha t G rad y , w ho carrie d his (co n tin u ed ...) tr i albears a parti cul ar l y heavy burden. ” Sm ith v. N orthe aste r n Il l
. U ni v. , 38 8 F
. 3d 559, 569 (7 th Ci r. 20 04)
. A ve rdi ct wi l l b e se t as i de as c o nt r ar y t o t he m an ifes t wei g hto fthe evi dence onl y i f“no r ati onalj ury” c ou l d have r endered t h e v er d ict
. Se eKi ng v. Har r i ngton , 4 4 7F
. 3 d 5 3 1 , 5 3 4 ( 7th C ir. 20 06 ). Jur y v er d ict s d es er ve p ar tic u lar d efe re n c e in case s w i th “si m ple i ssues but hi ghl y di sputed f acts
. ” L at i no v. Ka iz er, 5 8 F
. 3 d 3 1 0 , 3 1 4 ( 7 th Ci r . 1 9 9 5 )
. We c o nc l ud e th at th er e w as a re as on ab le b as is for th e jur y ’ s v e r d ict in thi s ca se. W e be gi n w i th the co m m on g ro und

. Each of the m edi cal ex per ts tha t te st i fi ed at trial ( Dr
. Cho i, Dr
. Kaufm ana nd D r. Be san t-M atth ew s) diagn osed Gra d y w ith severe val vul arheart dise ase . Dr. Choi and Dr. Kaufm an al so d iag n os ed h im w ith se ve re co ro n ar y a th er os c ler os is. A ll o fthe e xpe r ts a g r ee d tha t th es e co ndi ti o ns had g o ne undi agno se d a nd wer e al r ea d y v er y a dva nc ed. Thu s, the parti es agr ee that Grady suff er ed a f atalhear t a tta ck. T he disp ut ed i ssu e conc erns the trigger forthe h eart att ack. Dr. Kaufm an and Dr. Choi bo th t es tifi ed that Grady di ed a naturaldeat h . G rady al re ady suff er ed f ro m two s er i o us he ar t di se as es tha t wer e hi g hl y a dva nc ed. Any st re ss h e e x p er ien c ed , w h et h er p h ys ica l or em ot ion al, w oul d i ncre ase the l i kel i h oo d of a f atalhear t a tta ck. 4N o. 07

- 3137 9

(
. . . c on t i nu e d) 4 ow n d ru m set to b lue s con certs an d w or k e d l o n g h o u rs as a c ar pen t er, was be t t er able to en dure the st re s s ofanac c i dentan d an arre st than an av era g e p erso n w ou ld b e. Th e d efend an ts m ov e d t o ba r th i s l i ne o fq ue s t i on i ng . Th e di s t r i c tc ou r ta gr e e d, ruli ng that “no one can t es ti fy abo ut w hat was s tr es sful t o M r. G rad y .” Th e essenc e of this ru ling w as tha t, w hile th e exp erts c oul d dis c us s s t re ss i n ge ne ra l , the y c oul d nots pec ul at e about w h et h er G ra d y h a d a p a rt ic u la r r es ist a n ce to str es s. O ur revie w ofthe tr ansc ri pts m akes cl ear that wh en D r. K au fm an testified tha t the ac cid en ts and arre st w ere stressful to G rad y , he m ean t th at suc h ev en ts w ou ld h av e b een stressfu l to anyon e. Indeed, w hen asked by defe nse counsel w hether he was “spec u lati ng that thes e i ss ues c aused st res s to M r. G rady , ” D r. K a u fm a n re sp o n d ed , “A n y o n e, y es .” I nde ed, Gr adyc o ul d ha ve s uff er ed th e he ar t at ta ckwi th o ut an y a p p ar en t t rig ge rin g e ve n t a t a ll. M an y in d i v i d u als w ho s ufferfro m t h is type o fadvanced hear t co nd i ti on si m plydi e i n thei r sl eep. Dr. Kau fm an em phasi zed that Grady w as “l i vi ng on bor ro w ed ti m e” and c oul d h ave sim p ly “d rop p ed de ad sud d en ly an d un ex p ecte d ly. ” D r. Besant- M atthew s, however, te sti fi ed that th e n atur e o f the i nj ur i e s t o Gr a dy

— a h a nd l a c e r a t i o n, t wo h e a d abra

si ons and scr apes o n hi s wri sts

— i ndi ca te d tha t al l ofthe i nj uri es occur re d at t h e sam e t i m e a nd thatGrady had m os t like ly b ee n be at en w ith a b at on by j ail p er so n n el. W e turn first to th e h an d lacera tion. T he p lai nt iffs assert th at thi s i nj ur y was s us ta i ne d whi l e Gr adywas fen di ng off t h e a lleg ed at ta c k i n t h e ce ll. B u t t h ey fac e a n u p h ill b at tle in t h eir at te m p t t o p ro ve th at th er e is n o re as on ab le10 N o. 07

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T he p lain tiffs arg u e tha t G on za les con trad icted him self on this 5 point. Specific all y, they note thatG onzales te st ifie d that he saw the b an d ag e on G rad y ’ s h an d b u t later testified th at G rad y d id notap p ear i nj ur ed. Thi s s em ant i c ar gum en thi nge s onthe m eaning of“i njury. ” The ext ent to wh ic h G onzales was actuall y im peached on thi s point was f or the j ury to deter m ine. ba si s to c o nc l ude o th er wi se . Pa r amedi cs S an ch ez a nd K avene y b oth tes ti fi ed at tr i althattheywere prese nt wh en G ra d y inj u re d h i s h an d rea c h in g in to h is v an an d th eir l o gr efl ec ts tha t th eytr ea te d thi s woun d atthe s ce ne o fthe acci dent. Offi cer s Gar za and M or al es, as wellas fell ow ar rest ee G onzal es, te sti fi ed that they saw the ba nd age o n Grady’ s hand bef or e he enter ed his cel l

. N eve rthel ess , 5 the pl ai nti ff s ar gue that thi s t est i m ony m ay be di sr ega rded b ec au se it is c on tr ar y t o “ in d isp u ta b le” law s o f n at u re . See, e . g. , Kans as Ci ty Pub
. Se r v. Co. v. Shepa rd, 18 4 F
. 2d 945, 94 7 ( 10th Cir
. 1950 )
. They conte nd that Grady cou ld n ot have cut hi m sel f on bro ken gl ass because the a utopsi es r ev ea l ed “b r i dging, ” o r i nt ac t i nt er m edi at e ti ss ue , i n the ha nd l ac er at i o n. Br i dgi ng is a c o m m o n s i g n o fb l unt f o r ce t r au m a, a nd the pl aint i ff s cl ai m th at i t i s funda m en t a l l y i nc o ns i s t e ntwi th the de f e nd a nt s ’ the or y tha tGr a dy cut hi s ha n d o n a shar p obj ect. Contr ar y t o the pl ai nti ff s’ ass er ti ons, however, Sanchez a nd Kaveney nevercl ai m ed to have see n exactl y how Grady’ s hand was “cut. ” S anchez te st ified th at “t h e d oo rs w er e b en t b ec au se of th e a c c ident” and thatGrady “ ei thergr abbed the dooro r gr abbed s om ethi ng o n the sea t a nd c u t h is hand. ” W hen p re ss ed on th is q u es t i o n , S a n c h ez st at ed , “A ll Ikn ow is tha t M r . Gr a dy we nt t o hi s c a r . . . a nd he we nt to re achN o. 07

- 3137 11

The pl ai nt i f f s al s o a rg ue t hatthe l ac k ofcl ot t i ng i n the wound 6 indicat es that i t c ould no t have been s ustai ned seven hours earl i e r . Bu tbo t h Dr
. Ka ufm a n a nd Dr
. Ch oi c on c l ude d that G rad y receiv ed the b a n d ag e at least an ho u r b efore h is death, a n d D r. K aufm an concl ud ed that the inj ury had been su sta in ed at th e sc en e o f th e a cc id en t. for so m et h in g, [an d ] en d ed u p cu tt in g h im se lf.” T h is te st i m o ny i s th us co ns i st en t wi th th at o f Dr
. Kaufm an, w ho te s t i fi e d tha tthe h a nd l a c e r a t i o n c o ul d h a ve re sul ted fro m m ov in g the hand ove r a fi xed, j agg ed obj ect

— l i k e th e b e n tme t a l d o o r o fth e v a n . B e c a u s e we c a nn o td e t e r mi ne e xa c t l y h o w Gr a dy ’ s h a nd wa s l a c e r a t e d, we c an no t sa y S an ch ez ’ s te st i m o ny was c o nt r ar y t o the “in d isp u ta b le” law s of n at u re . T h u s, th er e is a re as on ab le 6 ba sis in the r ec o r d f o r the c o nc l us i o n tha t Gr ady ’ s ha nd w as i nj ured atthe scene ofthe acci dent. W e turn now to the he ad abr asi ons. I t i s undis pu ted that Grady sustai ned these i nj uri es w hi l e he w as i n pol i ce c u st od y; p h ot og ra p h s t ak en w h en G ra d y w as orig in ally proce sse d rev eal ed no v i sibl e inj uri es to hi s hea d. A l l o f th e m ed ical ex p e r ts agreed that the h ead abrasions w ere m i nor : ther e was no evi dence offr ac ture s, tr aum a o r hem or rhag i ng. There w as al so ver y l i ttl e bl eedi ng, wh i ch sugge ste d to al l o fthe expert s that the abr asi ons occur re d ar ound the ti m e o fdeath. Dr. Besant- M atthew s theor i zed that the abra si ons w er e defensi ve w ounds sustained du ri ng the al l ege d b eat i ng. H e cl ai m s that the f or ce o f th e bato n bl ow m us t ha ve kn ocked G rad y ’s han d cu ff s into his hea d

. A s nu m erou s w itness es testifi ed , how ever, Grady was not w ear i ng han d c u ffs a t the ti m e. Offi cer12 N o. 07

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The pl ai nt i f f s c l ai m t hat Dr. Kaufm an c ont ra di c t ed hi m s el fon 7 t hi s poi nt
. I n f act, Dr. Kaufm an or i gi nal l y assum ed tha tGr a dy had rec ei ved the head abras ions du ri ng the c ar ac ci dent. W hen he le ar ne d t hatthe two abr as i ons w er e s us t ai ne d i n the c el l , he w as initially skep tical tha t the y cou ld ha v e resu lted fro m a fall. W h en he lea rn ed tha t there w as a m etal b en ch in the cell, howeve r, Dr. Kaufm an c onc l uded t hat t he tw o abra s i ons cou ld ha v e b een incu rred d u ring on e fall. M orales spe cifi cally rem e m bers takin g his han d cu ff s w ith him , and there w as a strict policy against h an d cu ff s i n the l ock up . Dr. Kaufm an te sti fi ed that Grady had m ost l i kel y fa l l en u nconsci ous and str uck his head

— fi r sto n the c or n er of the m eta l bench and then on the gr ound. T h is 7 tes ti m ony i s con sis tent w i th the te sti m ony ofGonzal es, wh o w as i n the c el l ne xtt o Gr adya nd c l ai m ed th athe ne ve r he ar d a s tr ug g l e i n Gr ady ’ s ce l l, o nl y a l o ud “thum p” f ol l owed by si l ence. Dr. Kaufm an’ s t est i m ony, as c or ro b or at ed by G o n z ale s, p ro vid es a re as on ab le b as is f o r the j ur y t o ha ve con cl ude d tha t th e he ad ab r as i o ns occur re d as Gra dy fel l to the fl oo r afterthe hear t a tta ck. Fin a lly , w e turn to the scra p es on G rad y’s w rists. Dr. Besant- M atthew s co ncl ud ed thatthes e s cra pes were al so susta i n ed d uri ng the al l ege d beating, wh en the bat on b l o w s f o r c e d th e h a n d c u ff s i n t o G r a d y ’ s w r i s t s . As we have al re ady explain ed , however, ther e i s no ev i dence tha ta b e a t i ngt o o kp l a c e a nd n o evi de nc e tha tGr a dy was i n h an dcuff s atthe t i m e. Dr
. Kaufm ant es ti fi ed th atthe scr apes l i kel y o ccurr ed w hi l e Grad y w as hand cuffed to th e b en ch i n the po l i ce s ta ti o n. F o r a l l we k no w, theN o. 07

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scr apes c oul d have been susta i ned du ri ng the caracc i dent. T h is a rg u m en t p ro vid es n o b as is for a n ew tria l. W e do no t o ve r tu r n j ury ver di ct s l i g ht l y . Al l o fthe pl aint i ff s’ e vi den ce was pr es en te d to a j ur y o ve r the c o u r s e o fa s e v e n - d a y t r i a l

. O u rr o l e i s a nar r o w o n e : we m ust s i m plydeter m i ne wh ethera “r eas onabl e ba si s e xi sts i n the re cor d to supp or t the ve rdi ct. ” Trzc i ns kiv. Am e r i ca n Cas. Co. , 9 53 F
. 2d 30 7, 3 15 ( 7th Ci r . 1 99 2)
. The t es ti m o ny giv en by the pol i ce o ffi cer s, j ai l per sonnel, para m edi cs and, m osti m port antl y, hi s fel l ow arr est ee est abl i sh ed th at Gr ady was no t be at en i n hi s ce l l

. Thi s tes ti m o ny w as corroborat ed by tw o m ed ical ex p erts w ho h ad perform ed full autop sies ofGra d y’s bod y , D r . Ch oi an d Dr. K aufm an. Giv en the specul ati ve nature o fthe pla i nti ff s’ theo ryi n thi s ca se, th e re c or d cer tai nl y pr ovi des a re aso nabl e ba si s f o r the j ur y ’ s dec i si o n.

III. The pla i nt i ff s a l s o a r g ue tha tde f e ns e c o un s e l ma de inap p rop riate rem arks at closing a r g u m en t tha t requ ire re ve rs al. W h en ex p lain in g th at th e C ity of C h ica go w ou ld i nd em ni fy the d efendants in the ev ent that they c oul d not pay dam age s, defense counselm ade the f ol l owing sta tem en t: “ The c i tyi s no t a ra ndo m am o r pho us ent i ty
. I t’ s y o u. W e’ re ta l ki ng ab out tax dol l ar s h ere. ” Cl osing r em ar ks th at ap p eal to j urors’ p ecu niary interest s as tax p ayers are, of cou r s e , g en erall y i m p rop er. Cf
. U ni t e d S t at e s v. Sc him m el , 943 F.2d 802 , 806 (7th C ir. 2001). B u t t h e p lain tiffs d id n ot o b j ec t to t h is st at em en t a t t ria l. W hi l e the p l ai n er ro r doctr i ne is oft en app l i ed i n cr i m i nal14 N o. 07

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c as es ; it i s r a re ly a p p lied in c ivil c as es . Se eSt r i nge l v. M ethod is t H osp. of Ind., Inc. , 89 F. 3d 4 15, 421 ( 7th Cir. 1996). Pl ain er ro r i s o nl y a vai l abl e i n c ivi l cas es i fa partycan dem onst ra te that: ( 1) exce pti onalci rcu m sta nces exi st; ( 2) subst anti alr i ghts ar e a ff ecte d; and (3 ) a m i sca rriag e o fj us ti ce wi l l o c c uri fp l a i n e r r o r r e v i e w i s n o ta pp l i e d. Se e, e . g. , E stat es o

f M o relan d v. D ieter, 395 F. 3d 747, 75 6 ( 7th Cir
. 20 05)
. Becau se t h e pl ai nti ff s hav e m ade no att e mpt

— ei th er i n th ei r br i ef s o r at o r ala r g um en t

— to show that th ese el em ents have been sat i sfi ed, we decl i ne to re vie w for p lain err or . See A m m o ns-L ew is v. M e t r o . Wa ter R ec lam ation D is t. , 488 F.3d 739 , 744 (7th C ir. 2007).

I V. Forthe f or ego in g re aso ns, the deci si on o fthe dist ri ct cour t i s A FFI RMED .

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