Opinion ID: 1058744
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: bar graph charts

Text: During opening statements, the Estate showed the jury bar graphs displaying various information about patient falls in the general hospital population, and referred to the information on the graphs. The Defendants objected, stating that although the graphs could be properly relied on by experts and read to the jury pursuant to Code § 8.01-401.1, the graphs and articles were not evidence and [it was] certainly impermissible to argue to the jury statistics in this case. The trial court overruled the objection. Nurse Wendy E. Jenvey, the Estate's expert witness, then testified that the journal article containing the bar graphs was the type of source normally relied upon by others in the nursing field to form opinions, and that she considered the article to be a reliable authority. Jenvey described the content of the article and the graphs to the jury. The Defendants did not object to this testimony. The Estate again referred to information in the bar graphs during closing argument, again without any objection from the Defendants. Although shown to the jury, neither the journal article nor the bar graphs were introduced into evidence. In the absence of any objection to the bar graph references during Jenvey's testimony or closing arguments, only the Estate's reference to the bar graphs made in opening argument is before us in this assignment of error. Rule 5:25. In objecting to statements made in the opening argument, the Defendants argued that the bar graphs and journal article were not evidence and that arguing such statistics to the jury was impermissible. The assignment of error challenges the admission of evidence; however an opening statement is argument of counsel, and does not involve admission of evidence. To the extent the assignment of error addresses the propriety of the Estate's argument and the trial court's determination that including reference to the bar graphs was permissible, that ruling, if error, is harmless error. As the record reflects, the jury heard the same information during Jenvey's testimony without objection.