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Hermreck v. State3/24/1998
ely inflammatory or introduced for the purpose of inflaming the jury." DeWitt v. State, 917 P.2d 1144, 1148 (Wyo. 1996). As stated above, the experiment had probative value because it validated Mr. Alcorn's calculations and ultimate conclusions. Hermreck had ample opportunity to attack the credibility of Mr. Alcorn on cross-examination and to point out the flaws in his experiment through the testimony of her own accident reconstruction expert, Milo Beaver. Although Mr. Alcorn and Mr. Beaver differed in their conclusions as to how fast Rodney crossed the road, and thus how much time Hermreck had to react, the differences are attributable in large part to the fact that the two experts used different underlying assumptions. For instance, Mr. Beaver assumed Rodney was traveling at a constant speed, while Mr. Alcorn assumed Rodney was stopped at the side of the road before he crossed. Mr. Beaver assumed that the impact occurred 23 feet from the side of the road, while Mr. Alcorn estimated that Rodney rode 30 feet before he was hit. Mr. Beaver pointed out for the jury the differences in the assumptions used by the two and explained the bases of his assumptions. He also testified that, assuming Rodney stopped before crossing, he would estimate Rodney's crossing time at 3 seconds, a figure encompassed in Mr. Alcorn's chart. Under these circumstances, we fail to see how evidence of Mr. Alcorn's experiment inflamed the jury or was unfairly prejudicial to Hermreck.
CONCLUSION
Hermreck did not make an offer of proof as to what evidence she would present to support her theory that Rodney would have suffered less serious injuries had he been wearing a helmet. That being the case, we find no abuse of discretion by the district court in ruling that such evidence would not be permitted. The court properly refused Hermreck's jury instructions on proximate cause and the lesser-included offense of simple battery because they were unsupported by the evidence. Finally, the court properly exercised its discretion when it allowed evidence of the experiment performed by the State's accident reconstruction expert. The judgment and sentence is affirmed in all respects.
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