Trustees of Wade Baptist Church v. Mississippi State Highway Commission, 53075

• Court: United States State Supreme Court of Mississippi
• Writing for the Court: BOWLING; PATTERSON
• Citation: 411 So.2d 761
• Parties: TRUSTEES OF WADE BAPTIST CHURCH, et al. v. MISSISSIPPI STATE HIGHWAY COMMISSION.
• Docket Number: No. 53075,53075
• Decision Date: 24 March 1982

Page 761

411 So.2d 761 TRUSTEES OF WADE BAPTIST CHURCH, et al.
v.
MISSISSIPPI STATE HIGHWAY COMMISSION. No. 53075. Supreme Court of Mississippi. March 24, 1982.

Cumbest, Cumbest & Hunter, David O. McCormick, Pascagoula, for appellants.

Jones, Maples & Lomax, F. Gerald Maples, Lowry M. Lomax, Pascagoula, for appellee.

Before SUGG, P. J., and BROOM and BOWLING, JJ.

BOWLING, Justice, for the Court:

This is an eminent domain case that originated in a Special Court of Eminent Domain in Jackson County. The landowner disagreeing with the jury's verdict appeals and propounds several alleged reversible errors. We need to consider only one assignment of error as it requires a reversal of the cause for a new trial. This assignment is:

THE COURT ERRED AND ABUSED ITS DISCRETION IN REFUSING TO LET MR. BOB STEPHENS TESTIFY AS AN EXPERT IN THE FIELD OF APPRAISING PROPERTY THUS PREJUDICING THE RIGHTS OF THE LANDOWNER BY TAKING PROPERTY WITHOUT JUST COMPENSATION.

The Wade Baptist Church is located on the northwest corner of the intersection of highways numbered 63 and 614. The taking consisted of property and access fronting on both highways. For the purposes of this opinion, it is not necessary for us to go

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into further detail as to the remaining testimony regarding the proper amount owed the church. The highway commission introduced one expert witness. The church introduced one of the three member Board of Trustees. The testimony of these two witnesses, as is usually the case, was not the same regarding values. The church attempted to introduce Mr. Bob Stephens as an independent witness; however, the trial judge sustained appellee's objection to testimony from Mr. Stephens, the court stating that he did not have the necessary qualifications. We therefore are limited to a discussion of Mr. Stephens' qualifications and whether or not it is reversible error that his testimony was not permitted to be heard by the jury.

Mr. Stephens first testified that he had been a licensed real estate appraiser since 1972 at the direction of the proper state agency; however, there is no such title in the state, but he had a broker's license from the Mississippi board which authorized such appraisal work. He was a member of the Jackson County Homebuilder's Association and Jackson County Board of Realtors. He served as president of Jackson County Homebuilder's Association. He was at one time president of the Gulfport Board of Realtors and was on the Board of Directors of the state association. He is a member of the National Homebuilders Association and the National Board of Realtors. He has been in the real estate business approximately 16 years. He has done appraisal work "most of this time, but not on a full-time basis." He was manager for Reid-McGee...