Opinion ID: 168353
Heading Depth: 4
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Evidence from Investigating Officer

Text: 104 The district court also limited the investigating officer's accident report as well as his testimony relating to Sims's cause of death. 16 The court relied on Gabus v. Harvey, 678 P.2d 253, 257 (Okla.1984), to exclude this evidence. In that case, the court emphasized the capability of the jury in assessing certain facts: 105 [The evidence] concerned facts that could be readily appreciated by any person who drives an automobile or crosses streets. No special skill or knowledge was needed to understand these facts and draw a conclusion from them. In such a case as this, where the normal experiences and qualifications of laymen jurors permit them to draw proper conclusions from the facts and circumstances, expert conclusions or opinions are inadmissible. The expert conclusion here was not helpful and should not have been admitted.... It was not useful since the jury was just as capable of drawing a proper conclusion from those facts as was the officer. 106 Id. at 256-57; see Maben v. Lee, 260 P.2d 1064 (Okla.1953) (holding that an investigating officer without personal knowledge cannot offer an opinion as to causation at trial when the jury is as capable of doing so as is the officer); see also Diaz v. State, 728 P.2d 503, 514 (Okla.Crim.App.1986) (It is only where the fact of death and its cause is beyond the understanding of the average layman that expert testimony may be necessary.) (quotation omitted). 107 Based on this language, we believe that the Oklahoma rule precluding a police officer's opinion about causation is a procedural rule concerned solely with accuracy and economy in the courtroom. Therefore, the district court should not have grounded its conclusion in Oklahoma procedural law, but instead should have relied exclusively on the appropriate Federal Rule of Evidence to guide its admissibility determination. 108 Nonetheless, we find no error in the exclusion of this evidence. The holding from the Gabus court relied extensively on Oklahoma Rules of Evidence § 2403 and § 2702. Gabus, 678 P.2d at 254-55; see Okla. Stat. tit. 12, § 2403 (Although relevant, evidence may be excluded if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the danger of unfair prejudice, confusion of the issues, misleading the jury, undue delay, needless presentation of cumulative evidence, or unfair and harmful surprise.); id. § 2702 (If scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training or education may testify in the form of an opinion or otherwise.). These rules are identical to Federal Rules of Evidence 403 and 702. Under the Federal Rules, statements by investigating officers as to accident causation are generally not admitted unless (1) perceived by the witness and helpful to a determination of a fact in issue, see Fed.R.Evid. 701, or (2) in the case of an expert, necessary to aid the jury in the interpretation of scientific, technical, or other specialized facts, see id. 702. Neither of these conditions are met here. As we stated earlier, the jury was fully capable of concluding whether or not Sims committed suicide. See Dazey, 403 F.3d at 1172. The investigating officer's opinion on this matter was no more than speculation based on the same facts that the jury had before it. We therefore find that had the district court properly applied the Federal Rules, it would have excluded the officer's testimony concerning causation. In short, there was no error in the court's exclusion of the testimony under state law.