Court Opinion

ID: 9689847
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-24 18:48:43.524935+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:18:52.517386
License: Public Domain

Hendry, C.J.,
dissenting.
Because I disagree with the majority’s conclusion that a new trial on damages is warranted in this case, I respectfully dissent.
STANDARD OF REVIEW
I agree with the majority that an abuse of discretion standard is the proper standard regarding a motion for new trial. However, I disagree with the majority’s application of the abuse of discretion standard insofar as the majority asserts that this court must view the facts on appeal in the light most favorable to the trial court’s decision. I believe this court’s established precedent requires that we view the facts in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict.
Most recently in McCune v. Neitzel, 235 Neb. 754, 457 N.W.2d 803 (1990), a case involving a claim for defamation, the trial court granted a new trial on the issue of damages. We stated, “In reviewing the evidence on damages, an appellate court views the evidence in the light most favorable to the prevailing party [at trial], and all controverted facts are resolved in favor of that party.” Id. at 765, 457 N.W.2d at 811. After construing the evidence of damages in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, we concluded the trial court abused its discretion in granting a new trial on damages. Compare, Kehm v. *121Dumpert, 183 Neb. 568, 162 N.W.2d 520 (1968); Chaloupka v. State, 176 Neb. 746, 127 N.W.2d 291 (1964); Thomas v. Owens, 169 Neb. 364, 99 N.W.2d 611 (1959). These cases reflect this court’s well-established policy that a jury verdict is not rendered meaningless on appeal by the fact that the trial judge has granted a new trial.
The majority, in asserting this court should view the facts in the light most favorable to the trial court’s decision, stresses that the trial court is in a better position than an appellate court to assess the issues related to granting a new trial. This, however, begs the principal question at issue, namely, whether the trial court is in a better position to assess the amount of damages than is the jury. This court has often stated that assessing damages is a function of the jury. See, e.g., O’Connor v. Kaufman, 260 Neb. 219, 616 N.W.2d 301 (2000). Furthermore, damages awarded by a jury are accorded particular deference when “ ‘[t]he law does not prescribe a definite rule for the ascertainment of the exact amount recoverable ....’” Jensen v. Barnett, 178 Neb. 429, 433, 134 N.W.2d 53, 55 (1965). In Greenberg v. Fireman’s Fund Ins. Co., 150 Neb. 695, 35 N.W.2d 772 (1949), this court set out the importance of the role of the jury as fact finder. We stated:
It further is argued that the actions, demeanor, and statements of counsel and witnesses for the defendants were heard and observed by the trial court, and that the trial court had the right to consider those matters in determining the granting or denying of a new trial. The fault with that reasoning is that it is for the trial jury to weigh those matters in reaching a verdict. Those considerations are not for the court in exercising its judgment on the motion for a new trial.
(Emphasis supplied.) Id. at 705, 35 N.W.2d at 779.
Under the rule set forth by the majority, a motion for new trial becomes a potent method for the losing party to convert, for purposes of appeal, a jury verdict against him or her into a bench trial verdict in his or her favor. The decision to request a jury trial, and the jury’s verdict in the prevailing party’s favor, would have no effect on our review of the trial court’s grant of a new trial. At least two of the jurisdictions relied upon by the majority embrace such a rule. See, Hutcherson v. City of Phoenix, 192 *122Ariz. 51, 961 P.2d 449 (1998); Wall v. Suits, 318 S.C. 377, 458 S.E.2d 43 (S.C. App. 1995).
As further support for its position, the majority relies on Gasperini v. Center for Humanities, Inc., 518 U.S. 415, 116 S. Ct. 2211, 135 L. Ed. 2d 659 (1996). The issue before the Supreme Court in Gasperini was whether the Reexamination Clause of the Seventh Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which is applicable only to federal courts, prohibits appellate review of a district court’s judgment denying a motion to set aside a verdict as excessive. Id. The Court held in Gasperini that appellate courts may review such an order, consistent with the Seventh Amendment, so long as an abuse of discretion standard is applied, giving considerable deference to the trial court’s decision. However, the U.S. Supreme Court has not addressed a case such as the present one where the court and the jury reach differing conclusions regarding the amount of damages.
In accord with the jury’s role as fact finder, several federal courts have agreed that in reviewing a trial court’s decision to grant or deny a new trial on excessive damages, the facts must be considered in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict. See, McNabola v. Chicago Transit Authority, 10 F.3d 501 (7th Cir. 1993); Velazquez v. Figueroa-Gomez, 996 F.2d 425 (1st Cir. 1993); Scala v. Moore McCormack Lines, Inc., 985 F.2d 680 (2d Cir. 1993).
The rationale for such a rule is set out in Holmes v. City of Massillon, Ohio, 78 F.3d 1041, 1047 (6th Cir. 1996), where the court stated:
[I]n reviewing a trial court’s decision [granting a new trial] we must closely scrutinize the trial court’s justifications in order to protect the litigant’s right to a jury trial. . . .
“. . . [T]he trial judge in negating the jury’s verdict has, to some extent at least, substituted his judgment of the facts and the credibility of the witnesses for that of the jury. Such an action effects a denigration of the jury system and to the extent that new trials are granted the judge takes over, if he does not usurp, the prime function of the jury as the trier of the facts.”
In addition, as noted by this court, “The public does not maintain the courts and the expense of jury trials for experimental *123investigations, but rather to determine controversies.” Greenberg, 150 Neb. at 702, 35 N.W.2d at 777.
Giving deference to the trial court’s decision to grant a new trial under an abuse of discretion standard is not “inconsistent” with viewing the facts on appeal in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict. Under McCune v. Neitzel, 235 Neb. 754, 457 N.W.2d 803 (1990), I believe the proper inquiry concerning an appeal from a motion for new trial based on excessive damages is a three-step process which both recognizes the unique place of the jury as fact finder and affirms the trial court’s decision unless it is supported by “no tenable grounds.”
In the first step of the process, we review the evidence presented at trial regarding damages in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict. See McCune, supra. Second, we consider the grounds set forth by the trial court in its order supporting the conclusion that the damages were excessive, recognizing that the trial court was present and heard the witnesses and testimony. See id. In the final step of the process, we consider whether given the evidence, the amount of damages awarded, and the grounds upon which the trial court granted a new trial, the trial court abused its discretion in granting a new trial. Id. During this final consideration, we will affirm the trial court’s decision unless no tenable grounds exist to support its decision. See Kumar v. Douglas County, 234 Neb. 511, 452 N.W.2d 21 (1990). Accordingly, in my opinion, the McCune standard of review accommodates both the jury’s role as fact finder and the deference due to the trial court’s decision granting a new trial.
I do not believe the rule set out by the majority is in accord with this court’s established jurisprudence regarding a motion granting or denying a new trial based on excessive damages. See, e.g., McCune, supra; Vacek v. Ames, 221 Neb. 333, 377 N.W.2d 86 (1985); Paddack v. Patrick, 163 Neb. 355, 79 N.W.2d 701 (1956); Shiers v. Cowgill, 157 Neb. 265, 59 N.W.2d 407 (1953). I am of the view that McCune properly stated this court’s standard of review and should be followed in this case.
GRANT OF NEW TRIAL
Under McCune, supra, I believe the trial court abused its discretion in granting a new trial on Holmes’ assault and battery and false imprisonment claims.
*124Regarding Holmes’ assault and battery claim, the measure of recovery in such a case encompasses “ ‘the nature of the injuries, and pain and suffering,’ ” see Nelson-Holst v. Iverson, 239 Neb. 911, 915, 479 N.W.2d 759, 762 (1992), including “the emotional distress and anguish caused by a humiliating assault and battery,” see Duncza v. Gottschalk, 218 Neb. 879, 881, 359 N.W.2d 813, 815 (1984). Furthermore, damages for pain and suffering are “intangible and quite subjective elements” which are not “a mere matter of computation.” Duncza, 218 Neb. at 880, 359 N.W.2d at 814.
The evidence in the present case, viewed in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, shows that during the assault and battery, Holmes suffered significant mental and emotional distress in addition to his physical injuries. After Holmes’ altercation with O J. and K.C., he described the incident with the security guards:
Officer Ted Reynolds runs to the door, pushed the door open. He runs up and says, what is going on? What is going on? [K.C.] said to him, he hit me. . . . Officer Reynolds didn’t give me a chance to say anything. He runs over to me, from that chair to there, 15 feet, runs to me and pushed me dead in my chest, boom! You like to fight with little girls? Fight me. I said, hey, hold it. I’m telling you what is going on. Boom! he pushed me again, and he repeated the exact same thing.
... I put my hands to my side - to my waist just like this (indicating). I kept my hands to my side ... I figured he’s still out of control. I turned my back on him. I turned around on him. That’s when he attacked me, when my back was turned. What he did was he went up there and took his right arm and threw it up to my neck, pulled me back and we bumped heads, pushed my jugular vein down my throat almost and screaming, get down, get down, get down. . . . He really put the pressure on and I couldn’t get myself together.
When I saw lights, I saw flashing lights, I was getting ready to go. So what I did, I took my left hand, which was free, and grabbed his wrist, pulled it off my Adam’s apple
*125Then [Leggett] comes out there ... and they were trying to get me down. And I was telling them, Man, you are making a mistake. And he goes whop! right in my side, right there (indicating) and knocked the wind right out of me. I said, oh, man. Then he said, get down, get down. I thought I better get down or these guys are going to kill me ... .
Holmes also gave the following description of the events which occurred after he was on the ground:
The next thing I look up and my head is over the curb, over the curb. I’m trying to tell these Security [officers] that they made a big mistake. I’m the one that got attacked. I’m the one that got attacked, and they didn’t want to hear it.. . . He grabbed my head - he grabbed my head and put his knee on my head .... When I said, you made a mistake, he applied more pressure.
Then I looked up the street and here come the [security] Jeep coming down there. My head is laying out in the street and the Jeep come flying down there and they said, get him up, get him up. I thought the Jeep was going to hit my head. I mean, they just lost complete control. .. .
... Especially when he had his wrist or part of his hand on my Adam’s apple because of the way I had him to keep him off, it was like a — I don’t know what he was trying to put me into, but it didn’t work. I had to get myself out of it. If I didn’t do what I did, I don’t think I would be here talking to you today. That’s how close it is.
You know, when somebody pushes your Adam’s apple in, believe me, that is an experience you don’t want to go through.
Holmes also testified he knew that O.J. and K.C., as well as a large crowd of people coming and going from the Mall, watched as the security officers subdued and handcuffed him, placed him in a security car, and drove him to the security office. Holmes testified, “There was a lot of people there and saw what was going on. A lot of people was there.”
Applying the first step of the standard in McCune v. Neitzel, 235 Neb. 754, 457 N.W.2d 803 (1990), I would construe the facts as follows: (1) Holmes was attacked, subdued, and handcuffed *126by the security officers; (2) Holmes suffered injuries to his knees and shoulder which left scars; (3) the incident occurred in front of a large crowd; (4) Holmes was placed in fear of his life during the incident; (5) Holmes suffered shame and humiliation during the incident; and (6) Holmes was seen later that day by emergency room personnel.
Next, under the second step in the process, I would consider the trial court’s grounds for concluding the verdict was excessive. The trial court here found the damages awarded on the assault and battery claim were “clearly exorbitant” in that the damages “do not bear a reasonable relationship to the elements of damages proved.” In support of this conclusion, the court specifically found that Holmes’ “injuries were not life threatening” and that Holmes “played softball after the July 9, 1994, incident, although he apparently sat on the bench.” The court also found “[n]o medical bills were offered or received in evidence, nor was there a stipulation regarding medical bills.” Furthermore, “[tjhere was no medical testimony by a doctor or any other health professional” regarding Holmes’ injuries. The court found “[t]here is absolutely no evidence of any permanent injury,” “permanent disability,” “future medical expenses,” “inability to work,” or “loss of earning capacity.” Finally, the court noted that Holmes received “no medical attention after he went to Immanuel Medical Center.”
The court in its order focuses on the fact that Holmes’ injuries were relatively minor and that the incident did not physically incapacitate Holmes to any significant degree. However, as discussed previously, Holmes is also entitled to recover for the mental and emotional distress, shame, humiliation, and fright that he suffered during the incident. The fact that Holmes’ injuries were relatively minor, standing alone, does not provide tenable grounds for concluding that the verdict on the assault and battery claim was excessive.
We have noted previously that a court should be very reluctant to substitute its judgment for that of a jury “ ‘[w]here recovery is to be had for such subjective elements as the mental anguish caused by a humiliating beating, and the pain and suffering resulting therefrom ....’” Crouter v. Rogers, 193 Neb. 497, 498, 227 N.W.2d 845, 847 (1975). See, also, Stewart v. Ritz Cab Co., 185 Neb. 692, 178 N.W.2d 577 (1970). Even in a situation in *127which the reviewing court might “ ‘determine that a lesser amount would constitute adequate compensation for the injuries sustained,’ ” the court “ ‘may not substitute its judgment for that of the jury’ ” so long as the jury could properly arrive at the amount determined. Husak v. Omaha National Bank, 165 Neb. 537, 544, 86 N.W.2d 604, 608 (1957).
When considered as a whole, the evidence shows that Holmes suffered humiliation in front of a large crowd. Holmes also suffered emotional and mental distress as a result of being subdued, dragged, and handcuffed. Holmes believed the officers were out of control. The officers did not listen to Holmes’ explanations. Holmes feared for his life at two different points during the incident. Given the evidence in the record, I find no tenable grounds for the trial court’s conclusion that the jury’s award of $250,000 for Holmes’ assault and battery claim was motivated by passion or prejudice. Therefore, I believe the trial court abused its discretion in granting a new trial on the assault and battery claim.
Regarding Holmes’ false imprisonment claim, he is entitled to recover damages for the physical discomfort and mental distress caused by the unlawful act. Huskinson v. Vanderheiden, 197 Neb. 739, 251 N.W.2d 144 (1977). “In awarding damages for physical discomfort and mental anguish a jury must rely on the totality of the circumstances surrounding the incident, the credibility of the evidence and witnesses, and the weight to be given to all these factors rests in the sound discretion of the jury.” Id. at 745, 251 N.W.2d 148. See, also, Herbrick v. Samardick & Co., 169 Neb. 833, 101 N.W.2d 488 (1960).
Construing the facts in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, the evidence shows that Holmes was unlawfully detained for approximately 45 to 60 minutes and that for most of that time, he remained handcuffed and was bleeding from his injuries. He was offered no care for his injuries, except a tissue to wipe the blood. Holmes also testified that during his detention:
They gave me two - two choices. They said while I was in handcuffs and everything, we want you to sign the paper [banning him from the mall for 1 year because of fighting], and I said, no, I’m not going to sign any papers. And they said, well, if you don’t sign the papers, you will stay here or you will go downtown. And that was my ultimatum.
*128.. . [H]e presented this paper to me and said you have to sign this. I said, for what? He said, for fighting. I said, no, huh-uh, you’re wrong. So we was going back and forth, back and forth, back and forth for a long time. And then he said, okay, you’ve got a choice. I said, what is the choice? I’m still in handcuffs at the same time. I’m still handcuffed. He said, you got a choice. Either sign this paper or you go downtown for criminal charges.
Holmes further testified that he refused to sign the form for about 35 minutes, but finally agreed to sign it. Holmes stated, “I had no choice. I didn’t want to go downtown.” Holmes was concerned about possible criminal prosecution because his job with the Omaha Public Schools required him to keep his record “clean.”
Regarding the false imprisonment claim, the trial court found in its order that “the plaintiff was in the security office for 45 to 60 minutes, and ... was bleeding the whole time.” The trial court made no other findings in its order as to why the award of $50,000 was not reasonably related to the evidence of damages.
Our remarks in Bishop v. Bockoven, Inc., 199 Neb. 613, 617-18, 260 N.W.2d 488, 491 (1977), regarding a claim for false imprisonment, are applicable in the present case:
There is evidence of embarrassment and mental anguish in this case, and there is no accurate method or formula by which such damage can be measured and determined. In awarding damages for physical discomfort and mental anguish, the fact finder must rely on the totality of the circumstances surrounding the incident, [and] the credibility of the evidence and witnesses ....
I believe the evidence, when viewed in the light most favorable to the jury’s verdict, provides no tenable grounds for the trial court to conclude that the jury’s award of $50,000 for Holmes’ false imprisonment claim was motivated by passion or prejudice. Accordingly, in my opinion, the trial court further abused its discretion in granting a new trial on Holmes’ false imprisonment claim.
For the reasons set forth above, I respectfully dissent.
McCormack, J., joins in this dissent.