Opinion
No. 2019-CC-32
01-07-2019
Patricia J. GONZALEZ v. Monty MONTELONGO and The State of Louisiana, Department of Public Safety and Corrections, Office of the State Police
ON SUPERVISORY WRITS TO THE CIVIL DISTRICT COURT FOR THE PARISH OF ORLEANS
Writ application granted in part.
CLARK, J., would grant and reverse.
HUGHES, J., dissents and assigns reasons.
CRICHTON, J., would grant and reverse.
Hughes, J., dissenting.
I respectfully dissent. The opinion of the U.S. Supreme Court in Graham v. Connor , 490 U.S. 386, 396, 109 S.Ct. 1865, 104 L.Ed.2d 443 (1989), as well as the opinions of this court in Mathieu v. Imperial Toy Corp. , 94-0952 (La. 11/30/94), 646 So.2d 318, and Kyle v. City of New Orleans , 353 So.2d 969 (La. 1977) are controlling, without qualification. The issue in this case is not plaintiff's level of intoxication, but what happened at the time of the incident.
According to this court's order, if plaintiff does not testify about her "level of intoxication," the defense may not open this door by asking leading questions on cross examination.
The officer's observations and the results of the field sobriety test are admissible. But the uncertified intoxilyzer results from two hours later cannot be used to prejudice the plaintiff in the eyes of the jury under the guise of impeaching her credibility on what happened at the time of the incident.