Opinion ID: 2609775
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 7

Heading: Appellee's Remark in Closing Argument

Text: In closing argument appellee argued: no matter how much you find the damages to be, he will recover only the amount that you attribute to the Defendants. Amounts that you attribute to anybody else, to Crittenden or to Anselmi or to Sleeping Indian, he recovers none of that. Appellants argue that this remark was prejudicial and, as a result, the jury did not accurately understand the consequences of its verdict. No objection was made to this argument at trial. This court has held improper argument of counsel cannot be raised or urged for reversal in the absence of an objection. Coryell, 745 P.2d at 886, quoting Joly v. Safeway Stores, Inc., 502 P.2d 362, 364 (Wyo.1972). The remark made by appellee at trial was an attempt to explain Instruction No. 7. However, appellee went beyond what was contained in Instruction No. 7 and arguably hinted that appellee can be compensated for his injuries only by appellants. It is true that he can recover compensation in this lawsuit only from appellants. It is not true that he cannot recover from others in another case or has not recovered compensation. This remark was improper, and appellee's counsel should not have made it. If counsel persists in this type of argument, the opposing party, upon timely objection, should be permitted to respond. However, there was no objection here and no effort by appellants to respond in argument. Also, appellants have not demonstrated that this single remark resulted in substantial prejudice to their case. The instructions given did accurately instruct the jury on the law. One sentence in a closing argument in all likelihood escaped the notice of the jury, and since they had the correct law in hand in the form of Instruction No. 7, there was no prejudice. We presume the jury followed the instructions and not a single sentence spoken in closing argument. In addition, Instruction No. 8 required the jury to determine the percentage of fault attributable to Sleeping Indian or Paul Anselmi even though they did not appear or offer evidence. The settling defendants' names appeared on the verdict form. Appellants were afforded the opportunity to argue their negligence. Thus, there was no prejudicial error in the argument.