Opinion ID: 1953260
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 6

Heading: whether the plaintiffs are entitled to a new trial based upon the improper submission to the jury of the manslaughter conviction and upon misconduct of counsel?

Text: Brown argues that Blackwood's lawyer improperly submitted her manslaughter conviction to the jury in his closing arguments, in violation of the judge's order to exclude any evidence of the conviction or her lack of visitation during incarceration. Brown also argues that Blackwood committed misconduct by introducing evidence  UMC medical records and social work records  which contained references to the incarceration and lack of visitation. Brown asserts that such misconduct mandates a new trial. Blackwood argues that he made no reference to Brown's manslaughter conviction or incarceration during closing arguments. Blackwood also argues that the medical records he introduced into evidence  Exhibits D-9(a) and D-9(b)  which Brown complains contained references to her lack of visitation, had already been introduced by Brown herself as Plaintiff's exhibit P-13. Blackwood notes that the judge granted Brown's request to delete from these records any reference to the conviction or lack of visitation during incarceration before the records went to the jury. However, Blackwood argues, Brown's attorneys failed to make such deletions, and therefore concocted their misconduct charge against Blackwood. [14] During his closing argument, Blackwood's attorney stated in part: But we got down looking at Bobbie Jean Brown's claim for mental anguish. I sat down and I went through those medical records from the University of Mississippi Medical Center, and months would go by without any contact of Bobbie Jean Brown down there even though she had a toll-free telephone number. And during this period of time, she visited a total of eleven times down there and all of those  six of them occurred during one week when she stayed at the Ronald McDonald House. And if you go through the social worker's notes which are in there, you'll find that months would go by where they searched trying to find Bobbie Jean Brown and could not locate her in spite of the fact that Dr. Miller repeatedly asked them to try to find or locate her ... Brown argues that two of the eleven visits referred in this closing argument occurred during her incarceration, and therefore constituted an impermissible reference to such incarceration. She provides a list of dates of her visits, including 10/6/87, and 10/23/87, during the incarceration. Blackwood provides a somewhat different list of eleven visits, none of which occurred during the period of incarceration. The record shows that the eleven visits did in fact occur on the dates provided by Blackwood. It may be noted that for several of the dates (June 13, 14 and 15, 1990), each of two or three entries concerning Brown's presence with Tryvale are counted as a separate visit. For example, on June 13, 1990, there is one entry at 10 a.m., and another at 6 p.m.; Blackwood counts these as two separate visits. In theory, it is possible that Brown remained in the hospital for the entire day, and arguably, the separate entries should not be considered separate visits. Nevertheless, Blackwood's attorney's closing argument stated that Brown visited a total of eleven times, and such description may fairly be interpreted as consistent with the evidence. In any event, it cannot be said that Blackwood's reference to eleven visits, without further specificity, improperly referred to any visits during the incarceration. Brown also argues that the statement Dr. Miller repeatedly asked them to try to find or locate her also refers to the incarceration, because Dr. Miller's requests were made only during the period of incarceration, and not at any other time. Blackwood argues that such requests by Dr. Miller, and attempts by the social workers were made in late 1989 through late 1990. Again, the records support Blackwood's assertions. Therefore, it cannot be said that Blackwood's statement concerning requests to find Brown improperly referred to the period of incarceration. Finally, Brown asserts that the statement if you go through the social worker's notes which are in there (exhibit D-9b) improperly invited the jury's attention to references in the notes to her incarceration. Blackwood counters that Brown herself had already introduced those same notes as part of a larger exhibit, P-13, consisting of all Tryvale's medical records at the University Medical Center. While securing the court's permission to delete all references to incarceration from exhibit D-9, Brown made no attempt to delete such references from the identical materials in P-13. Therefore, Blackwood asserts, the plaintiffs cannot now complain that the information was improperly before the jury. Blackwood has the better argument. Brown herself introduced the social worker's notes which are in there, and did not take the necessary steps to delete reference to her incarceration. One may not complain on review of errors for which he was responsible ... (a)n appellant will not be permitted to take advantage of errors for the commission of which he was responsible, or which he himself committed, caused, brought about, provoked, participated in, created, or helped to create, or contributed to. Planters Bank v. Garrott, 239 Miss. 248, 122 So.2d 256, 261 (1960). In particular, where a party has introduced evidence on an issue, that party may not complain about the admission of evidence on the same proposition by an opposing party. Thornton v. Shows, 537 So.2d 1363, 1366 (Miss. 1989); Deposit Guaranty Bank & Trust Co. v. Nelson, 212 Miss. 335, 54 So.2d 476, 480 (1951). See also Glo-Ann Plastic Industries, Inc. v. Peak Textiles, Inc., 216 S.E.2d 715, 718, 134 Ga. App. 924, 927 (1975) (where an advocate fails to make the necessary motion for concealment of any material in a document that is otherwise admissible, then such failure amounts to a waiver). In sum, Brown's contention that Blackwood's closing argument improperly referred to her incarceration, and that Blackwood improperly submitted evidence of the incarceration to the jury, is without merit.