Smith v. The State of California Department of Highway Patrol

Filing 109

PRETRIAL ORDER. Signed by Judge James Donato on 3/12/15. (lrcS, COURT STAFF) (Filed on 3/12/2015)

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UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT

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NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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NICOLE SUMMER SMITH,

Case No. 13-cv-01341-JD

Plaintiff,
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v.

PRETRIAL CONFERENCE ORDER

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA
DEPARTMENT OF HIGHWAY PATROL,
Defendant.
As discussed at the pretrial conference on March 11, 2015, a jury trial of this matter is set
for March 23, 2015, and will be conducted under these procedures:
1. Time limits. Each side will have 8 hours to present their case, exclusive of

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opening statements and closing arguments. The 8 hours includes all witness

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examination time, whether direct or cross, and whether the witness is live or

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presented by recording. The parties will strictly conform to the timekeeping

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procedures stated in the Court’s standing order on civil trials. Each side may use

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up to 30 minutes for opening statements, and up to 1 hour for closing arguments.

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Trial will be held from 8:30 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. each trial day, with two 15 minute

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breaks. The first day of trial will begin at 9:00 a.m. and may go longer to

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accommodate openings. Trial will not be held on Wednesday. The Court has

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blocked out March 23rd, 24th, 26th and 27th for this trial. On the afternoon of

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March 23rd, 2015, the parties should be prepared to give opening statements and

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plaintiff should be prepared to call her first witness.

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2. Jury selection. The Court uses the “strike and replace” method for jury selection,

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as described at the pretrial conference. The Court will conduct the voir dire using

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its own questions and questions proposed by the parties. Each side will have three

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peremptory challenges in total. Any prospective juror not excused after the initial

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voir dire will be deemed a member of the jury and may not be subsequently

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challenged by peremptory or otherwise. The voir dire process will repeat with any

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replacements until eight jurors are seated. The final voir dire questions have been

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posted.

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3. Jury notebooks. The parties will prepare jury notebooks and lodge 12 copies --

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eight for the jurors and four for the Court -- by March 20, 2015. The notebooks

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should be in the form of binders that have a plastic cover with a caption page, and

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must include these materials:
a. Lists of witnesses, attorneys, and trial dates and times.

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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b. A tab for witness photos. The parties will take a photo of each witness

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outside the courtroom immediately before the witness testifies and shall

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provide the Courtroom Deputy with 12 three-hole punched letter-sized

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copies of each photo. The Courtroom Deputy will distribute the photos.

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The witness must appear the same in the photo as he or she will appear on

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the witness stand (e.g., same clothing, hairstyle, eyewear).

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c. A tab for 25 pages of blank lined paper for notes.

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The parties are free to suggest to the Court other materials for inclusion in the

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binders.

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4. Witnesses excluded from Court. No fact witness may be in court to view the

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proceedings until the Court rules that the witness’s testimony is complete. The sole

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exception is that each party may have one party representative present at counsel’s

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table throughout the trial.

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5. Objections. Immediately after the daily witness designations under the Court’s

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standing order on civil trials, the parties must meet and confer to resolve any

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objections to the witness, exhibits, and demonstratives. If the parties for some

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reason cannot work out the issues, they may file a joint objection and response by

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8 a.m. the day before the witness is to testify or the exhibit or demonstrative is to be
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used. The objections and responses are limited to 3 pages each, and the joint

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submission may not exceed 6 pages. The parties are limited to one joint

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submission per day, and the Court does not expect to see a submission each and

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every trial day. No declarations or other materials outside the joint submission are

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permitted other than a copy of the disputed exhibit. The parties should resolve any

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issues about opening statement demonstratives before March 19, 2015.

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United States District Court
Northern District of California

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6. Jury instructions. The Court will post a revised set of the parties’ joint proposed
instructions. The Court will provide the parties an opportunity to object.
7. Verdict form. The Court will issue a verdict form after the jury instructions have
been finalized.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
Dated: March 12, 2015
______________________________________
JAMES DONATO
United States District Judge

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