Opinion ID: 2590208
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: Testimony of Dr. Lindall Smith

Text: Struzik asserts that Dr. Lindall Smith, Troy's pediatric critical care physician at Wesley Hospital, refused to consider the possibility that Troy's injuries occurred in a manner other than by abuse. He asserts that Dr. Smith's testimony was such that a reasonable juror would conclude that Dr. Smith believed that Struzik was the perpetrator of the abuse that resulted in Troy's injuries and eventual death. Dr. Smith testified that it was his duty as a physician to identify cases of possible child abuse to be reported to the authorities. He explained the criteria for determining whether to report possible child abuse is the severity of the child's injury and the explanation by the caretaker's statement of how the injury occurred. In Troy's case, Dr. Smith and the other doctors responsible for Troy's care after hospitalization were to determine if the explanation for Troy's injuries, a fall down the stairs, was consistent with the severity of the child's injuries. Dr. Smith explained that a child's fall down the stairs generally results in minor injuries such as broken bones or broken teeth and bruises on high impact areas. It was the doctor's opinion that in this case the fatal brain trauma was not an injury consistent with a fall down the stairs. Dr. Smith stated that most children with injuries similar to Troy's were unrestrained passenger injuries suffered by a child in motor vehicle accidents or injuries inflicted as a result of child abuse. Dr. Smith observed that Troy's injuries were not consistent with a delayed brain swelling reaction and noted that most children with the type of head injury Troy sustained would, within minutes of the injury, lose consciousness. Children who remain conscious after such injury are dysfunctionalirritable, inconsolable, and not able to eat, drink, walk, or talk. Struzik is incorrect that Dr. Smith would entertain no possibility other than that Troy's injuries occurred in a manner other than by abuse. Dr. Smith testified that he had treated children with similar injuries resulting in motor vehicle accidents. The essence of Struzik's complaint is that Dr. Smith would not testify that Troy's injuries were consistent with a fall down the stairs or agree that Troy would have been able to sustain a period of normal activity after the injury that resulted in his death was inflicted. In State v. Smallwood, 264 Kan. 69, Syl. ¶ 4, 955 P.2d 1209 (1998), this court stated that under K.S.A. 60-456(d) expert testimony in the form of an opinion is not objectionable because it embraces the ultimate issue or issues to be decided by the trier of fact. Here, Dr. Smith's testimony contradicts Struzik's theory of defense that Troy suffered from delayed brain swelling or that he died as a result of an accidental fall down the stairs. The defining point, however, is that Dr. Smith's testimony was based on medical evidence involving the character and severity of Troy's injuries, not Dr. Smith's opinion of Struzik's veracity or credibility. Therefore, Dr. Smith's testimony did not extend beyond the limits of acceptable expert medical testimony.