§ 38:379 — Taking evidence to jury room

In reaching a verdict, the jurors should rely upon their memories, and when they retire to the jury room to deliberate, they shall not be allowed access to any written evidence or to any notes of the testimony of any witness, with the following exceptions:
(1) The judge may permit the jury to take into the jury room a concise summary of the property affected containing only the following: the size of the owner's affected property immediately before the expropriation; the size of the area expropriated; the size of the owner's remaining affected property immediately after the expropriation; a list of any improvements taken, and a list of any improvements not expropriated but which may have been affected by the expropriation, provided said summary has been admitted into evidence.
(2) The judge may permit the jury to take into the jury room a statement of the relevant value conclusions reached by each expert witness, if applicable, provided said statement has been admitted into evidence. Such statements shall not contain any corroborative or persuasive material and should consist solely of the name of the witness, the effective date of the value estimate, and a recitation of the pertinent value conclusions and unit value conclusions, if applicable, testified to by the witness.
(3) The jury may take with them into the jury room any object or document received in evidence which requires a physical examination to enable them to arrive at a just conclusion.
(4) The parties may stipulate that appraisal reports or summaries of appraisal reports testified to by expert witnesses may be taken into the jury room.
(5) The jury shall be permitted to take into the jury room an itemized statement of the loss the owner alleges he has suffered if testimony has been presented as to each item of loss and if the statement has been admitted into evidence.

Legislative History

Acts 1985, No. 785, §1, eff. July 22, 1985.