Experts allowed to testify on Eric Lurry’s death in Joliet police lawsuit case

A doctor who testified in former Minneapolis Police Officer Derek Chauvin’s trial over the murder of George Floyd is one of many experts whom a federal judge has allowed to testify in a lawsuit between the city of Joliet and the widow of Eric Lurry.

In Tuesday’s ruling, Dr. Bill Smock was allowed by U.S. Judge Virginia Kendall to testify on the cause of the death of Eric Lurry, 37, in 2020.

Smock had determined Lurry directly died from the ingestion of cocaine, fentanyl and heroin. That conclusion stands in contrast to the findings of other experts whom Kendall also allowed to testify on behalf of Lurry’s widow, Nicole Lurry.

However, Kendall did not allow Smock to testify that Lurry’s actions were “reckless” or “suicidal.”

Ronak Maisuria, attorney for Nicole Lurry, had motioned to block Smock’s testimony along with any reference of his past work on the George Floyd case. Smock had opined that Floyd died from a lack of oxygen, not drugs.

“Not only do the specific facts of that case differ drastically from the facts here [an officer kneeled on Mr. Floyd’s neck for over nine minutes while he pleaded for his life and stated he couldn’t breathe], George Floyd’s death was and remains an intensely polarizing matter,” Maisuria’s Aug. 18 motion said.

Maisuria’s motion said a reference to the Floyd’s death would “inflame the jury and is an attempt by defendants to have the jury give greater credence to Smock’s opinion for the defense here.”

Kendall didn’t make a ruling on that argument. The judge instead suggested Maisuria file another motion before trial regarding the barring of that testimony from Smock, if needed. No trial date has yet been set.

On Aug. 3, 2020, Nicole Lurry filed her lawsuit against the city of Joliet and four of its officers after Will County State’s Attorney James Glasgow’s Office cleared the officers of wrongdoing over her husband’s death.

“Eric Lurry’s death was caused by the ingestion of fatal amounts of heroin, fentanyl, and cocaine, and did not result directly from any action or inaction by an officer of the Joliet Police Department,” according to a statement from Glasgow’s office.

In the lead up to Kendall’s ruling on Tuesday, attorneys for Nicole Lurry and city of Joliet have been disputing which experts can testify in the case and what the limitations should be on their testimonies before the jury.

Kendall allowed the testimony of plaintiff’s experts Dr. Kelly Johnson-Arbor and Dr. Judy Melinek.

Kendall ruled that Johnson-Arbor could testify that Lurry would have likely survived the drug overdose if officers had called for medical attention when they first suspected he had put drugs in his mouth.

The judge also allowed her to testify that officers’ pinching Lurry’s nose and putting a baton in his mouth worsened his condition and increased his risk of death.

Melinek was allowed to testify on her conclusion that Lurry’s airway had been obstructed to the point that asphyxia contributed to his death.

“To the extent defendants challenge the accuracy of the conclusions Dr. Melinek reaches or the factual underpinnings of her conclusions, they can attack this on cross-examination and through the testimony of their own expert witnesses,” Kendall’s ruling said.

Kendall allowed defense’s police expert John “Jack” Ryan and plaintiff’s police expert Charles Drago to testify but with some limits on what they could say.

Ryan was allowed to testify that the officers involved in Lurry’s arrest acted consistently with generally accepted police practices and training, but not on whether they acted lawfully.

Kendall did not allow Drago to testify that officers violated departmental policies as that is irrelevant and unduly prejudicial under federal rules of evidence, as well as officers’ motives.

“Drago must also refrain from characterizing officers’ actions as ‘unlawful,’ or that the force they used was ‘excessive,’” Kendall said.