Opinion
Berman, Lilly, Friedrichs & Young, J. Bayard Young, Denver, for plaintiffs-appellees.
Sheldon, Bayer, McLean & Glasman, Raymond G. Carey, Jr., Denver, for defendant-appellant.
ENOCH, Judge.
This action was brought by Boulder Cycle Center, Ltd., and Northwestern National Insurance Group against the Denver-Boulder Bus Company, individually, and doing business as Hertz Truck Rentals. Plaintiffs' complaint alleged that defendant negligently failed to equip, repair and inspect a truck which it leased to the Boulder Cycle Center, and that this negligence resulted in the truck catching fire and damaging eleven motorcycles belonging to the Boulder Cycle Center. Trial was to a jury which found in favor of plaintiffs. We affirm.
Defendant appeals, alleging the trial court erred in admitting the opinion of one of plaintiffs' expert witnesses. The expert opinion testimony complained of was given by Officer Rodney Woods of the Boulder Fire Department and concerned the cause of the fire. Defendant admits Officer Woods was properly qualified by his training and experience as an expert fire investigator. Defendant contends, however, that Officer Woods' opinion was improperly admitted in this case because 'no proper foundation was laid stating the facts upon which he based his conclusion' and because his opinion 'assumed facts not in evidence.'
Officer Woods testified that he had examined the truck and had found the deepest char and several cracks in the wooden floorboard above a deteriorating muffler. The trial court then allowed Officer Woods to give his opinion regarding the cause of the fire. That opinion was, essentially, that carbon particles had been emitted through a hole in the muffler in the form of sparks and had ignited the wooden floorboard. We perceive no error in permitting him to express his opinion as to how the fire started. Whether a proper foundation had been laid was a matter lying within the sound discretion of the trial court. Starkey v. Bryan, 166 Colo. 43, 441 P.2d 314; Atencio v. Torres, 153 Colo. 507, 385 P.2d 659. There was no abuse of discretion by the trial court.
Judgment affirmed.
SILVERSTEIN, C.J., and DWYER, J., concur.