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Walker v. Benz11/22/2005
NATURE OF THE CASE: CIVIL - PERSONAL INJURY
DISPOSITION: REVERSED AND REMANDED - 11/22/2005
EN BANC.
. Tim Walker sued Richard Benz, Jr. on a tort claim for assault. A jury sitting before the Leflore County Circuit Court returned a verdict for Benz and found that Benz was not liable to Walker for assault. Aggrieved, Walker appeals and raises four issues, listed verbatim:
I. WHETHER THE CIRCUIT COURT JUDGE ERRED IN DENYING THE APPELLANT'S MOTION FOR PARTIAL SUMMARY JUDGMENT.
II. WHETHER THE CIRCUIT COURT JUDGE COMMITTED REVERSIBLE ERROR IN ALLOWING EXTRINSIC AND COLLATERAL IMPEACHMENT EVIDENCE TO BE INTRODUCED AT TRIAL.
III. WHETHER THE CIRCUIT COURT JUDGE COMMITTED REVERSIBLE ERROR IN ALLOWING HIGHLY PREJUDICIAL IMPEACHMENT EVIDENCE TO BE INTRODUCED AT TRIAL.
IV. WHETHER THE CIRCUIT COURT JUDGE COMMITTED REVERSIBLE ERROR IN ALLOWING CHARACTER EVIDENCE PERTAINING TO THE APPELLANT TO BE INTRODUCED AT TRIAL.
Finding that the circuit court erred when it admitted improper evidence, we reverse the jury's verdict and remand this matter to the Leflore County Circuit Court for a new trial.
FACTS
. Tim Walker and his girlfriend, Brenda Ellis, hired attorney Richard Benz, Jr., of Greenwood, Mississippi to represent them incident to a car wreck. Benz testified that he discovered a lien against Walker for child support arrearages. Based on the trial testimony, Benz told Walker and Ellis that it would be unlikely that they would collect on their car wreck claim because the Mississippi Department of Human Services would apply a lien against any recovery in the car wreck case. Dissatisfied, Walker and Ellis terminated Benz and hired another attorney.
. On January 24, 2002, Walker went to Benz's office to pick up his file. What started as a conversation ended up in violence. It is undisputed that Benz beat up Walker. Benz and Walker paint two distinctly different pictures of the events that led to Walker's beating. In both versions, Walker stood at the open door to Benz's office, while Benz sat at his desk. In both versions, Benz and Walker engaged in a conversation. Both Walker and Benz testified that Benz told Walker he no longer represented him. However, Walker and Benz disputed Walker's response.
. Walker testified that he simply told Benz, "I understand that. . . aybe its for the best. I appreciate what you did for me." According to Walker, he left Benz's office after he thanked Benz. However, Benz testified that Walker was not quite so polite. Benz testified that Walker did not thank him and leave. According to Benz, Walker insulted him when he said, "Good, I'm glad you don't represent me anymore, 'cause you're a crook."
. Both Walker and Benz testified that Walker left Benz's law office immediately after the disputed exchange. Likewise, both Walker and Benz testified that, as Walker reached his truck, Benz caught up with him and beat him up. The two versions of the beating, however, are not exactly alike.
. In Walker's version, Walker became aware of something behind him. Walker testified that Benz hit him in the head, his ribs, and his left elbow. Then Benz got him in a head lock and tripped him. At that point, Benz had Walker face down on the pavement. Walker testified that Benz sat on Walker's lower back, grabbed Walker's neck, and "snatch [Walker's] neck sideways." Walker claimed that Benz clawed his eyes and bashed his head into the concrete. Benz's legal secretary convinced Benz to stop and get up off of Walker, but before he stopped, Benz jumped and came down feet first onto Walker's lower back. Afterwards, Benz "got
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