State v. Foster

2019 ND 28, 921 N.W.2d 454
North Dakota Supreme Court·Decided January 15, 2019·No. 20180098·Published·Cited by 6 cases

Opinion

Tufte, Justice.

[¶1] Michael Eric Foster appeals from a criminal judgment finding him guilty of one count of conspiracy to commit criminal mischief, one count of criminal mischief, and one count of criminal trespass. On appeal, Foster argues that the district court erred in admitting or excluding certain evidence and that there was insufficient evidence to support the criminal mischief and conspiracy convictions. We affirm the district court.

I

[¶2] On October 11, 2016, Foster and a co-defendant went to a Keystone pipeline valve site located in Pembina County. Foster used bolt-cutters to cut the padlock on the gate as well as the padlock and chain on the valve itself. After a call was made to warn TransCanada Pipelines Limited ("TransCanada") that someone was about to close a manual valve on the Keystone pipeline, Foster closed the valve, halting the flow of oil. TransCanada performed an emergency shutdown of the pipeline, which then remained closed for over 7 hours. The State charged Foster with criminal mischief, conspiracy to commit criminal mischief, criminal trespass, and several other charges not at issue here. During the jury trial, the State called Trevor Pollock, a manager in TransCanada's pipeline operation control center. Foster argues that the State failed to provide sufficient evidence to prove he intentionally caused a financial loss greater than $10,000 and intentionally agreed to do so with another individual and that the district court abused its discretion in admitting and excluding several items of evidence.

II

[¶3] Foster argues that Pollock's testimony included inadmissible hearsay. He further argues this hearsay testimony was the only evidence the State produced to prove a financial loss greater than $10,000. Thus he argues the evidence was insufficient. A "district court exercises broad discretion in determining whether to admit or exclude evidence, and its determination will be reversed on appeal only for an abuse of discretion." State v. Doppler , 2013 ND 54 , ¶ 7, 828 N.W.2d 502 (quoting State v. Chisholm , 2012 ND 147 , ¶ 10, 818 N.W.2d 707 ). "A district court abuses its discretion in evidentiary rulings when it acts arbitrarily, capriciously, or unreasonably, or it misinterprets or misapplies the law." Id. Thus, we apply the abuse of discretion standard when "reviewing a district court's evidentiary rulings under the hearsay rule." State v. Azure , 2017 ND 195 , ¶ 6, 899 N.W.2d 294 (quoting State v. Vandermeer , 2014 ND 46 , ¶ 6, 843 N.W.2d 686 ).

[¶4] First, Foster argues Pollock testified to opinion testimony based on hearsay. A lay witness is permitted to testify if competent and "if evidence is introduced sufficient to support a finding that the witness has personal knowledge of the matter." N.D.R.Ev. 601, 602. "Evidence to prove personal knowledge may *458 consist of the witness's own testimony." N.D.R.Ev. 602. Testimony that falls within the personal knowledge of the lay witness is different from opinion testimony, which is governed by N.D.R.Ev. 701. Here, Pollock testified as a lay witness to facts within his personal knowledge, not opinions. Under the North Dakota Rules of Evidence, lay witnesses may testify to observations or facts within their personal knowledge. Such testimony does not constitute opinion testimony. See State v. Louser , 2017 ND 10 , ¶ 9, 890 N.W.2d 1 (discussing types of witness testimony and stating lay witnesses may testify to their direct observation or their opinion).

[¶5] Pollock's testimony was not expert testimony because it was not "based on scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge." State v. Crissler , 2017 ND 249 , ¶ 7, 902 N.W.2d 925 (citing State v. Evans , 2013 ND 195 , ¶ 17, 838 N.W.2d 605 ). A witness is qualified as an expert "if the testimony is rooted exclusively in his expertise or is not a production of his investigation but instead reflects his specialized knowledge." Louser , 2017 ND 10 , ¶ 9, 890 N.W.2d 1 (quoting State v. Saulter , 2009 ND 78 , ¶ 15, 764 N.W.2d 430 ) (emphasis removed). However, testimony "relating to purely physical facts requires no special qualification and does not come within the scope of expert opinion evidence." State v. Engel , 289 N.W.2d 204 , 208 (N.D. 1980).

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State v. Foster, 2019 ND 28, 921 N.W.2d 454 (N.D. 2019).

2019 ND 28 (State v. Foster) — published by Counsel Stack Legal Research, free access to 12M+ legal documents.

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