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April 6, 2022 by Greg Baumgartner
If you have been injured in a car accident in Houston and the police issued a report, you may wonder if you can use that report in a lawsuit. Questions often arise regarding the admissibility of police officers’ opinions in crash reports. Consult with an auto accident attorney in Houston for expert advice.
As a preeminent-rated personal injury lawyer with over 40 years of experience, I can say that parts of the report will likely be admissible in court.
Every day in Texas, many people are injured or killed in car accidents, and a driver’s negligence causes the crash.
A Texas crash report is generally admitted into evidence in a personal injury trial as a “public record.” But because the crash report probably contains “expert opinions,” the real question is how much of it comes into evidence, considering the admissibility of police reports.
Parts of a Houston police report should be allowed into evidence. The extent to which the report is admitted depends on several factors. Police reports are often admissible in court, at least in part. However, parts of the police report may be excluded as “inadmissible hearsay.”
If you’re wondering whether to file a police report after a car accident or how to obtain a crash report in Houston, follow the link!
Texas Rules of Evidence 702 states: “If scientific, technical or other specialized knowledge will assist the trier of fact in understanding the evidence or in determining a fact in issue, a witness qualified as an expert by knowledge, skill, experience, training or education may testify thereto in the form of an opinion or otherwise.”
In many personal injuries or wrongful death accidents, the parties will hire accident reconstruction experts to testify regarding the crash’s reenactment and who is generally at fault.
The expert must be qualified and have used the appropriate methodology to support the opinions offered as testimony. It is well established that the admissibility of an expert’s testimony is generally within the trial court’s discretion. Expert testimony is subject to cross-examination in court, where the opposing party can challenge the expert’s findings and methodology. Sometimes, a Texas personal injury attorney can use the investigating officer’s opinions; at other times, they cannot.
An investigating officer may testify to factual observations and also be qualified to testify about applicable traffic laws. Whether the officer will be permitted to testify regarding an accident reconstruction issue, such as causation opinions, generally depends on the degree of training and experience in accident investigation and reenactment they have received, as well as whether or not they reenacted the crash.
Often, the admissibility of the police report depends on several factors, including the following.
Under Texas Rules of Evidence 702, a hearsay exception is provided for the admissibility of public records such as accident reports. Some courts have also admitted the police report under the business records exception under 803(6). See Sciarrilla v. Osborne, 946 S.W. 2nd, 919 (Tex.-App. Beaumont 1997).
Rule 803 (8) creates a presumption in favor of admissibility, and the burden falls on the opposing party to show the lack of trustworthiness. Generally, police reports fall under the category of hearsay, which can be used in a trial as an exception to the rule.
In McRae v. Echols, 8 S.W.3d 797, the court admitted the full accident report into evidence in a personal injury case trial even though the officer did not testify.
The court admitted the CONTRIBUTING FACTORS and INVESTIGATOR’S NARRATIVE. The court followed Federal Rule 803(8) and the United States Supreme Court ruling in Beech Aircraft Corp. v. Rainey, 488 U.S. 153, which stated that “portions of investigative reports otherwise admissible under rule 803 are not inadmissible merely because they express a conclusion or an opinion. The form is shown below.
As long as a conclusion is based on the factual investigation and satisfies the Rule’s trust with a requirement, it should be admissible along with other portions of the report.” Id at 170. The defendant did not raise objections to the report’s trustworthiness at the time of the report’s admission.
In Griffin v. Carson, 2009 WL 1493467, (Tex.App-Houston (Ist Dist.) 2009), a trial court required the police report, which contained the officer’s opinion of the cause of the accident, to be redacted.
In Griffin, the officer did not testify, and there was no evidence of the officer’s qualifications. The court held that the opinion testimony in the accident report should be excluded. See also First Transit, Inc. v. Hector Alfaro et al., in the Fourteenth Court of Appeals No. 14-14-00063CV, 2015.
There, one officer relied on factual observations made by another officer at the scene, and the crash report admitted into evidence was redacted to exclude the narrative opinion. In Texas, it is well settled that a trial court has broad discretion in deciding whether to admit or exclude this evidence. Improper multiple hearsay led to the exclusion of parts of the accident report/
Police officers’ opinions regarding the cause of the crash may or may not be admissible in a personal injury trial and may or may not be admitted via the crash report. Whether the officer is qualified to render such opinions and how much of the crash report comes into evidence are issues for the trial court. General rules for evidence include: Is it relevant? And is it trustworthy?
There are many cases in which the investigating officer’s opinions were admitted as proper, and many cases in Texas where the officer’s opinions and conclusions were not admissible and required to be redacted from the crash report.
Texas crash reports contain factors and conditions, including the officer’s observations and opinions. The trial court will have broad discretion regarding the admissibility of an accident report in Texas. How a person deals with a traffic ticket can impact a personal injury case.
For over thirty years, Baumgartner Law Firm has helped people injured in accidents in Texas, adhering to the Texas Rules of Evidence, specifically Rule 702. We have recovered millions of dollars for our clients, and we hope to help you too.
If you have questions about a Houston personal injury case or a car accident, contact a car accident lawyer in Houston at Baumgartner Law Firm for a no-obligation consultation. (281) 587-1111.
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Since establishing Baumgartner Law Firm in 1985, Greg Baumgartner has built a reputation as one of Houston’s leading personal injury attorneys, dedicated to representing severely injured victims and families who have lost loved ones due to negligence.
Greg holds two law degrees, a distinction earned by less than 1% of all attorneys, demonstrating his exceptional legal expertise. He is also a prestigious Trial Lawyers College graduate, further enhancing his skills in trial advocacy and litigation.
His relentless commitment to legal excellence and client advocacy has earned him recognition from prestigious organizations, including Super Lawyers, the Top 100 Trial Lawyers, and many others.
With decades of experience, Greg has consistently received top peer reviews. He holds a preeminent rating, a testament to his unwavering dedication to securing justice and maximum compensation for his clients.
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