Wallace v. Cates

Bell, Presiding Judge.

In this suit for damages arising out of an automobile collision, the plaintiff in testifying volunteered that the defendant had liability insurance. The defense counsel, out of the presence of the jury, moved for a mistrial. The court denied the motion and immediately, in the presence of the jury, firmly rebuked the plaintiff and his counsel and emphatically instructed the jury to disregard the statement and not to allow the matter to have any weight whatsoever in their decision in the case. Following completion of the trial, the defendant filed a motion for a new trial…