Opinion ID: 1398014
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 3

Heading: admissibility of similar act evidence

Text: We granted certiorari to decide whether evidence of a defendant's similar acts of misconduct is admissible on the issue of liability for punitive damages or solely on the issue of the amount of punitive damages in a bifurcated trial under § 51-12-5.1 and to review the recommendation of trifurcated trials. If we were deciding this issue in the absence of the punitive damages statute, we would adhere to our decision in Moore v. Thompson . We agree with that opinion that (1) a defendant's prior and subsequent acts of driving under the influence are relevant to whether the defendant acted with conscious indifference to the consequences in again driving under the influence, (2) although relevant, the evidence is highly prejudicial to the issue of the defendant's liability in the underlying negligence case, and (3) the trial court should try the issue of punitive damages separately from the issue of compensatory damages in a bifurcated DUI trial. Consistent with that opinion, we note that it is not necessary to have a separate proceeding on the amount of punitive damages, as the statute requires, to avoid prejudice to the defendant. Because the punitive damages statute precludes trial courts from separating compensatory and punitive damages claims in a bifurcated trial, we urge the Georgia General Assembly to reconsider the mandatory nature of the procedure established in OCGA § 51-12-5.1. Until the legislature amends the law, however, both trial and appellate courts must seek to reconcile the statutory requirement of bifurcation of the punitive damages issues with the ruling in Moore v. Thompson that prior similar acts are relevant to the issue of liability for punitive damages. Rather than adopt a bright-line rule, we conclude that the best way to guarantee a fair trial and ensure judicial economy is to continue to give the trial judge discretion on when to admit the evidence of prior and subsequent acts. The general rule is that trial judges may exercise discretion in excluding relevant evidence if its probative value is substantially outweighed by the risk that its admission will confuse the issue, mislead the jury, or create substantial danger of undue prejudice. [18] In making their decision, trial courts should consider the potential prejudice to the parties, the complexity of issues and the potential for jury confusion, and the relative convenience, economy, or delay that may result. [19] We prefer this balancing test because there is too wide a range of factual situations to fashion one rule on the admissibility of similar act evidence in tort actions. Punitive damages have been allowed not only in DUI cases but also in malpractice, [20] products liability, [21] tortious interference with contract, [22] and negligence actions, including assault, [23] speeding, [24] and dog bite cases. [25] Even within DUI cases, different facts prevent the articulation of a single rule. There is, for example, a difference between a defendant who has been convicted of one prior DUI in which no person was injured, as occurred in this case, and a defendant who has been convicted of two prior DUIs and two subsequent DUIs that involved injuries, as occurred in Moore v. Thompson . We believe that trial courts should have the flexibility to manage their trials and rule on the admissibility of evidence based on the particular facts of the case before them.