Opinion ID: 1846461
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: allowing dr. hammitt to offer expert testimony about soil conditions and causation.

Text: ¶ 40. Dr. George Hammitt was offered as an expert in the field of soil mechanics as a civil engineer who was able to give an opinion as to why the rig overturned. The court accepted Dr. Hammitt as an expert witness, with Coho and Cockrell waiving voir dire on his qualifications, yet objecting to his offering an opinion as to the soil conditions. ¶ 41. Dr. Hammitt obtained a Ph.D. in geotechnical and soils engineering from Texas A & M University. He was chief of the airfields and pavement division of the U.S. Army Waterways Experiment Station in Vicksburg, the largest research and development facility within the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. He provided soils analysis for the recommendation of proper foundations to support roads and landing fields. He is extensively published, has taught on the university level, and has served as a consultant within his field. Moreover, he has been qualified as an expert in courts of this state and other jurisdictions in the area of soil mechanics. ¶ 42. Coho and Cockrell argue that Dr. Hammitt had no experience in oilfield work and no knowledge of the duties and responsibilities of the various parties involved in oilfield work, and thus could not be an expert in that specific field. Additionally they argue that Dr. Hammitt's opinion failed to address the physical forces acting on the rig at the time of the accident and that he sampled the soil from 50 to 100 feet from the well, not at the well site where the accident occurred. ¶ 43. According to the Mississippi Rules of Evidence, where scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue, the qualified witness may testify. Miss. R. Evid. 702. As this Court stated in Roberts v. Grafe Auto Co., 701 So.2d 1093, 1098 (Miss.1997): The admission of expert testimony is addressed to the sound discretion of the trial judge. Unless we conclude that the discretion was arbitrary and clearly erroneous, amounting to an abuse of discretion, that decision will stand. Id. ¶ 44. Dr. Hammitt testified that his soil sampling complied with good engineering practices. He testified that if crushed stone or gravel had been added to the site prior to commencing the workover, the soil would have been sufficiently strong to support the weight of the pipes and the accident would not have occurred. ¶ 45. Clearly Dr. Hammitt's testimony would assist the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine whether Coho was negligent in failing to conduct soil tests or any further site preparation. The trial court did not abuse its discretion in determining that Dr. Hammitt was qualified as an expert, and it properly allowed Dr. Hammitt's testimony as to soil conditions and the cause of the rig's overturning. This issue is without merit.