Opinion ID: 1771189
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: officer ruth's testimony as an expert witness

Text: ¶ 13. Fairley alleges that the trial court erred when it allowed Officer Ruth to testify as an expert witness. ¶ 14. At trial, during direct examination, the State called Officer David Ruth to testify as a fact witness. Ruth was permitted to testify. However, when the State attempted to tender Ruth as an expert in the field of firearms, Fairley objected. The trial court sustained Fairley's objection on the ground that the State had not provided Ruth's name or the substance of his testimony to the defense as provided by the rules of discovery. ¶ 15. Later, during its rebuttal case, the State recalled Ruth to testify to rebut Fairley's explanation of how the gun fired, he having testified in substance that the hammer was pulled back and the gun accidentally discharged without contact of the trigger. Following a bench conference, the trial court permitted Ruth's testimony reasoning that Fairley had opened the door for such testimony. ¶ 16. The record indicates that Ruth only testified as to how the gun physically worked. Ruth detailed a characteristic common to revolvers, that being that they are designed not to fire except when the hammer is fully drawn back and firing in a single action. We conclude that Ruth was not testifying as an expert witness. According to M.R.E. 702, an expert witness is one whose testimony is about scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge.... The testimony presented by Ruth required no particular skill or training and was not beyond the knowledge of a layman. Additionally, the testimony was given during rebuttal. The State is not required to disclose rebuttal witnesses in discovery. Smith v. State, 724 So.2d 280, 320 (Miss.1998). Considering the overwhelming evidence of Fairley's guilt, it is inconceivable that Ruth's rebuttal testimony prompted the verdict. See Dancer v. State, 721 So.2d 583, 590 (Miss. 1998). We find that this assignment of error is without merit.