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Bosworth v. City of San Jose

United States District Court, Northern District of California
Aug 4, 2021
18-cv-05459-NC (N.D. Cal. Aug. 4, 2021)

Opinion

18-cv-05459-NC

08-04-2021

JESSE BOSWORTH, Plaintiff, v. CITY OF SAN JOSE, and others, Defendants.


ORDER AFTER PRETRIAL CONFERENCE

NATHANAEL M. COUSINS United States Magistrate Judge.

The Court held a pretrial conference on August 4, 2021. This order summarizes the events discussed at the pretrial conference:

1. LOCATION: The trial will take place in Courtroom 3; not Courtroom 7 as the Court stated in its Order Regarding Upcoming Trial (ECF 127). Courtroom 3 is equipped with screens for the jurors, counsel, and the Court to view exhibits. However, Courtroom 3 is not equipped with plexiglass, so the parties should plan accordingly.
2. COURTROOM WALK-THROUGH: The parties are to coordinate with my Courtroom Deputy, Lili Harrell, to schedule a walk-through and tech rehearsal during the week of August 9, 2021.
3. JURY TRIAL SCHEDULE: The trial will begin with opening statements on Tuesday, August 17, 2021, at 9:00 a.m. The trial will run from 9:00 a.m.
through 4:00 p.m. each weekday with a morning break, lunch break, and afternoon break. Each side will have 10 hours to present their arguments for both phases of the trial.
4. MASK POLICY: The Court requires all individuals to wear masks inside the courtroom. Witnesses and attorneys may wear clear masks for their testimony and opening and closing statements.
5. PUBLIC ACCESS TO TRIAL: To ensure public access, the proceedings will be broadcast via the Court's teleconference line. The teleconference line phone number is available at: https://www.cand.uscourts.gov/judges/cousins-nathanael-nc/.
6. BIFURCATION: The trial will be bifurcated. First, the jury will hear all of the claims. If the jury finds for Plaintiff on liability and punitive damages, then the issue of the amount of punitive damages will be tried in the second phase. The second phase will begin immediately after the jury returns its verdict.
7. STIPULATIONS: The Court GRANTS the stipulation regarding Defendant Officer Richard Harrison's remote appearance by Zoom (ECF 129).
8. JURY QUESTIONNAIRE: The Jury Office has distributed the jury questionnaire to the potential jurors. The Court will send the juror responses to the parties during the week of August 9, 2021. At that time, the Court will set a deadline for the parties to make any for cause challenges to potential jurors.
9. JURY SELECTION: Jury selection will take place on Monday, August 16, 2021, at 9:00 a.m. in Courtroom 3. The Court will request that the Jury Office prepare 40 jurors for selection. The jurors will come to Courtroom 3 in two groups of no more than 20 jurors. The parties will each have 20 minutes for voir dire of each group of jurors. Each side will have three peremptory challenges total for all approximately 40 jurors. Eight jurors will be selected.
10. JUROR QUESTIONS: In light of the unique challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic and the limited juror congregation space, the Court will
not allow jurors to ask questions following direct or cross-examination of witnesses. The jurors will still be able to ask the Court questions during jury deliberation.
11. WITNESS LIST: The parties submitted a joint witness list at ECF 82. At the pretrial conference, the parties confirmed that the witness list is final. Accordingly, testimony by any witnesses not listed in ECF 82 is not permitted without leave of court.
12. ADMITTED EXHIBITS: The parties submitted a joint exhibit list at ECF 90 in which Defendants reserved their right to introduce portions of recordings listed. In the interest of clarity, the Court ORDERS the parties to submit an updated final exhibit list, without reservations, by August 9, 2021.
13. PLAINTIFF'S DEPOSITION EXCERPTS: The Court ORDERS the parties to meet and confer regarding the introduction of Plaintiff s previously recorded deposition as his testimony. If the parties cannot stipulate to include or exclude the deposition, they are to file a joint supplemental brief by August 9, 2021.
14. COVID-19 VACCINATION: As a final note, the Court strongly encourages all trial participants to get vaccinated for COVID-19 as soon as possible.

IT IS SO ORDERED.


Summaries of

Bosworth v. City of San Jose

United States District Court, Northern District of California
Aug 4, 2021
18-cv-05459-NC (N.D. Cal. Aug. 4, 2021)
Case details for

Bosworth v. City of San Jose

Case Details

Full title:JESSE BOSWORTH, Plaintiff, v. CITY OF SAN JOSE, and others, Defendants.

Court:United States District Court, Northern District of California

Date published: Aug 4, 2021

Citations

18-cv-05459-NC (N.D. Cal. Aug. 4, 2021)