 |
 |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|
|
|
|
Adams v. City and County of San Francisco11/8/2002
NOT TO BE PUBLISHED IN OFFICIAL REPORTS
California Rules of Court, rule 977(a), prohibits courts and parties from citing or relying on opinions not certified for publication or ordered published, except as specified by rule 977(b). This opinion has not been certified for publication or ordered published for purposes of rule 977.
Angee Adams filed a personal injury complaint against the City and County of San Francisco (CCSF) seeking damages for injuries she sustained while riding as a passenger on a city bus. After Adams obtained a jury verdict in her favor, CCSF filed a motion for partial judgment notwithstanding the verdict (JNOV), arguing that Adams had failed to prove the most serious injuries she suffered were caused by the accident. The court denied the motion and entered a judgment in Adams's favor. CCSF now appeals, contending (1) the trial court should have granted its motion for a partial JNOV, and (2) the judgment must be reversed because the court committed two evidentiary errors. We reject these arguments and affirm the judgment.
I. FACTUAL AND PROCEDURAL BACKGROUND
On the morning of November 10, 1998, Adams was traveling to work on a bus owned and operated by the San Francisco Municipal Railway (MUNI) when it was struck from behind by a streetcar also operated by MUNI. Adams flew forward and struck her head against the head of another passenger. Adams then bounced back into a railing and into her seat. Adams and 16 other passengers were injured in the crash.
Adams was taken to a hospital. Doctors there gave her pain medication and sent her home. The following day, Adams felt much worse. She was vomiting and had intense pain everywhere. She also was dizzy and had pain in her shoulder and throat.
Some of the symptoms Adams was experiencing lessened after about one month. Others, including pain in her neck, head and arms, and a tingling sensation in her left arm, persisted. Adams went to a series of doctors in an effort to get treatment for the pain she was experiencing. Eventually, in the spring of 2000, a neurologist, Dr. Michael Sheinberg, diagnosed Adams as suffering from a condition known as Chiari malformation, type I (CM-I) with syrinx.
CM-I is a congenital condition in which tonsils that are attached to the bottom of a person's brain extend into the cervical spinal cord region. This causes overcrowding and compromises the spinal fluid that bathes the spinal column. One of the primary symptoms of CM-I is headaches. A syrinx is a fluid-filled cyst of the spinal cord. The syrinx disrupts nerve cells that flow through the spinal cord and causes negative symptoms.
Dr. Sheinberg performed brain surgery on Adams to relieve the overcrowding and to lessen the painful symptoms she was experiencing.
Adams filed a complaint against CCSF seeking damages for the injuries she had sustained. The case proceeded to a jury trial, where CCSF conceded it was negligent and that Adams probably suffered neck strain due to the accident. The primary issue for the jury to decide was whether the accident had caused Adams's previously asymptomatic CM-I condition to become symptomatic.
The parties presented conflicting evidence on that issue. Adams presented testimony from two experts, Dr. Sheinberg and Dr. Richard Rubenstein, both of whom testified that the accident had caused Adams's CM-I condition to become symptomatic. CCSF countered with an expert who testified that trauma has no effect on CM-I. The jury apparently accepted the former testimony and rendered a verdict awarding Adams $206,422.57 in damages.
CCSF then filed a motion for a partial JNOV. As is relevant here,
Page 1 2 3 4 5 California Personal Injury Attorneys
Personal Injury Lawyers
|
| |
to fill out a simple form to connect to Personal Injury Lawyers in your area.
|
|