Opinion ID: 1609015
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 13

Heading: reasonableness of clinton's actions

Text: Ford assigns that the district court erred in allowing testimony as to opinion of whether [Clinton] was reasonable in his actions and expectations. Ford presents little argument in his brief in support of this assignment of error, and it is difficult to discern precisely on what basis he contends that the testimony should have been excluded. It is clear, however, that Ford's complaint relates to the following colloquy from direct examination of Westfall: [Defense counsel:] Do you have an opinion based upon your training and experience in safety and automobiles and all of the subjects that you testified about earlier having received training in whether or not ... Clinton, as he drove to the right of the pickup in front of him, drove as would be reasonably be anticipated given the situation he was presented with? [Plaintiff's counsel]: Your Honor, I'm going to object on form and foundation, this calls for speculation on the part of the witness as to what ... Clinton could be anticipated to do. THE COURT: Overruled, you may answer. [Westfall:] I hate to have you repeat that but it was so long, was that expected? [Defense counsel:] Did [Clinton] do what was reasonable expecting a person to do given the situation he was presented with at the time. [Plaintiff's counsel]: Same objection. THE COURT: Overruled. [Westfall:] In my opinion there was no reasonable expectation, this is an unexpected event, you can't have an expected response. [Defense counsel]: No further questions, Your Honor. As the foregoing colloquy indicates, the objection made by Ford at trial was that the question posed by the defense called for speculation on the part of the witness. The argument in Ford's appellate brief, however, is not that the testimony was speculative. One may not, on appeal, assert a different ground for excluding evidence than was urged in the objection made to the trial court. Benzel v. Keller Indus., 253 Neb. 20, 567 N.W.2d 552 (1997). Where the grounds specified for the objection at trial are different from the grounds advanced on appeal, nothing has been preserved for an appellate court to review. Id. Ford has waived any valid objection that might have been made to Westfall's opinion testimony. Furthermore, we note that to the extent we can determine the basis of Ford's appellate argument, it seems to be that the testimony given by Westfall addressed the ultimate issue to be decided in the case. However, testimony in the form of an opinion or inference otherwise admissible is not objectionable because it embraces an ultimate issue to be decided by the trier of fact. Neb.Rev.Stat. § 27-704 (Reissue 1995). More significantly, we note that whatever objection might have been appropriate to the question posed by the defense, Westfall's answer to the question did not include an opinion that Clinton's actions on the night of the accident had been reasonable. Instead, Westfall simply testified, in essence, that the circumstances prior to the accident were unexpected. While the question asked by the defense may have been objectionable, Westfall did not give any prejudicial opinion testimony in response to the question. Any error by the court in allowing the question to be asked was harmless, because Westfall's answer to the question was not prejudicial to Ford. The only other discernible appellate argument on this issue seems to be that Westfall was not a properly qualified expert witness. Ford's objection at trial does refer to foundation. However, an objection on the basis of insufficient foundation is a general objection. Sherard v. Bethphage Mission, Inc., 236 Neb. 900, 464 N.W.2d 343 (1991). If a general objection on the basis of insufficient foundation is overruled, the objecting party may not complain on appeal unless (1) the ground for exclusion was obvious without stating it or (2) the evidence was not admissible for any purpose. Brown v. Farmers Mut. Ins. Co., 237 Neb. 855, 468 N.W.2d 105 (1991). Neither of those criteria is met in the instant case, and no valid foundational objection has been preserved for appellate review. Ford's second assignment of error is unsupported by any argument identifying a valid objection that was properly made at trial and preserved for appellate review. Furthermore, Westfall, in responding to the defense's question, did not give an opinion that Clinton's behavior prior to the accident had been reasonable, and any error in permitting the question to be asked was therefore harmless. Ford's second assignment of error is without merit.