Court Opinion

ID: 9670255
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 03:17:36.823855+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:16:03.385491
License: Public Domain

SACKETT, Judge
(specially concurring).
I concur with the majority only because I find no manifest abuse of discretion in the trial court’s ruling on the evidentiary matters. See Miller v. Bonar, 337 N.W.2d 523, 528 (Iowa 1983). However, I do not subscribe to the majority’s opinion. I specifically depart from it in the following respects:
1.The majority has determined error was not preserved on issues 1, 2 and 3. We must not forget these objections were made at the time of trial. I find the plaintiff clearly alerted the trial court to his challenges and find error was preserved on these issues.
2. Unlike the majority, I am not convinced that Officer Mossman is not qualified as an expert witness because he did not testify he possessed any experience in the field of accident reconstruction, a subject matter the majority determines is manifestly relevant to a qualified opinion on the issue of what evasive action decedent could have taken to avoid the collision. Officer Mossman, who actually investigated this accident, is a state trooper with 30 years of service, 20 years of which have involved extensive accident investigations. A state trooper with 30 years in the field has had much experience in reconstructing accidents. A trooper basically attempts to reconstruct every accident he or she investigates. While Officer Mossman may not have the “theory” which Pavlovic has, Officer Mossman definitely has the field experience.
3. Additionally, I do not understand the majority’s attempt to characterize Pavlovic's opinion as the storyline and Mossman and Workman’s as the moral.