Opinion ID: 196888
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Appraisals and valuations by dealers of raw coins supplied by RCGA

Text: 15 The defendants argue that evidence of the value of the coins sold by the defendants was erroneously admitted. The government offered, and the district court admitted, testimony of eight coin dealers that the coins bought by the RCGA customers were of substantially lower quality and value than represented in the accompanying documentation. On appeal, the defendants argue that this testimony was not properly the subject of expert testimony and was irrelevant, neither of which grounds were argued to the district judge. As neither ground was argued below, we review only for plain error. See, e.g., United States v. Montas, 41 F.3d 775 (1st Cir.1994), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 115 S.Ct. 1986, 131 L.Ed.2d 873 (1995). 16 The value of the coins involved in a prosecution for their fraudulent sale is indisputably relevant. The fact that the subject matter is not scientific is no bar to admissibility of expert testimony. Federal Rule of Evidence 702 specifies that expert testimony covering scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge [which] will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue is admissible. See Daubert v. Merrell Dow Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 509 U.S. 579, 589, 113 S.Ct. 2786, 2794-95, 125 L.Ed.2d 469 (1993) (emphasis omitted). A trial judge enjoys broad discretion in determining the admissibility of expert testimony. Montas, 41 F.3d at 783. Opinions of value are a traditional subject of expert testimony, and it is well within the discretion of the district judge to admit them. One could hardly expect a lay jury to form conclusions about such an esoteric subject as the value of rare coins without the help of experts. The defendants complain, however, that the opinions were not based on consistent standards, and were subject to factors of taste and assessment of the market, and that the experts often disagreed among themselves. This is not unusual. These matters are properly the subject of searching cross-examination. See Daubert, 509 U.S. at 595, 113 S.Ct. at 2798. Defendants argue further that this testimony should have been excluded under Fed.R.Evid. 403, because its prejudicial effect outweighed its probative value. This determination is committed to the sound discretion of the trial court, and will be overturned only in extraordinarily compelling circumstances, Montas, 41 F.3d at 783, which we do not detect in this case. Review of the record reveals that the experts were experienced, the chains of custody of the coins were carefully established, the experts' methods were explained, and the appraisals were reasonably current. Thorough cross-examination was permitted on all of the issues, such as subjective judgments and variable markets, which might impeach the expert testimony. We perceive no error, plain or otherwise.