Opinion ID: 2779689
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 8

Heading: admission of lay testimony

Text: Defendants Alalu, Huarte, Dr. Kushner, and Biscayne Milieu argue that the district court abused its discretion by admitting the lay opinion testimony of various witnesses who testified as to the eligibility of patients to receive treatment as well as, in the view of appellants’, these patients’ medical diagnoses. 12 Lay opinion testimony must be: “(a) rationally based on the witness’s perception; (b) helpful to clearly understanding the witness’s testimony or to determining a fact in issue; and (c) not based on scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge within the scope of Rule 702.” Fed. R. Evid. 701. The determination of whether testimony is properly admitted as lay opinion is based upon the nature of the testimony, not whether the witness could be qualified as an expert. United States v. LeCroy, 441 F.3d 914, 927 (11th Cir. 2006). And “Rule 701 does not prohibit lay witnesses from testifying based on particularized knowledge gained from their own personal experiences.” Hill, 643 F.3d at 841. 12 Defendant Dr. Kushner separately argues that the district court improperly admitted lay testimony about the authenticity of his handwriting and signature on certain patient files. We reject this argument. The record does not reflect that the testimony regarding Dr. Kushner’s signature bore on the authenticity of his signature to the degree Dr. Kushner argues. Rather, the bulk of the testimony was from witnesses who, in reviewing records while on the stand, would testify that a given signature “appear[ed]” to be Dr. Kushner’s. The only witness to speak to the features of Dr. Kushner’s signature was Nurse Carmen Mercado, who testified about signing documents on behalf of Dr. Kushner. We see no abuse of discretion in the instances where the district court allowed this testimony. 40 Case: 12-16056 Date Filed: 02/17/2015 Page: 41 of 85 The record shows that the testimony here in question—principally from social workers and therapists at Biscayne Milieu—was based on personal knowledge and reflected the experience of treatment providers with the treatment process, and its shortcomings, at Biscayne Milieu. These witnesses were not standing in for experts. We see no abuse of discretion in the district court’s decision to allow such evidence as lay opinion. Moreover, the defendants at trial did not clearly object to the bulk of the testimony they now seek to challenge on appeal. Defendants Antonio Macli, Jorge Macli, and Huarte did file a pre-trial motion to exclude opinion testimony from witnesses not licensed to render medical diagnoses. Following a hearing, the district court deferred ruling on the motion until trial had commenced. But when most of the evidence then was admitted during trial, the defendants did not point out or renew their motion to exclude. While there were a few objections to certain questions during this lay opinion testimony, most of this lay opinion testimony came in without objection at trial. After ruling on evidentiary challenges as they arose during trial, the district court ultimately denied the motion in limine at moot. To the extent the defendants did not object during trial as the testimony came in, they cannot now show that it was plain error, an even more exacting standard, to allow such lay opinion testimony. 41 Case: 12-16056 Date Filed: 02/17/2015 Page: 42 of 85