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  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
  • JOYCE JUELCH, ET AL VS. ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS (B/P)AS REFLECTED ON EXHIBITS et al ASBESTOS document preview
						
                                

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oOo Oe YD HW B WN eae a a ia eo YW DH HM PB WY S&S S _ oO 20 28 ‘Walswarth, Franklin, Bevins & ‘McCall, LLP ATTORNEYS ATLAS ROBERT M. CHANNEL, State Bar No. 109273 IAN P. DILLON, State Bar No. 203612 WALSWORTH, FRANKLIN, BEVINS & McCALL, LLP ELECTRONICALLY 601 Montgomery Street, Ninth Floor San Francisco, California 94111-2612 sopehr IL ED | Telephone: (415) 781-7072 fornia, Facsimile: (415) 391-6258 County of San Francisco APR 01 2010 Attorneys for Defendant Clerk of the Court HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC. BY: CHRISTLE ARRIOLA ke eputy Cler SUPERIOR COURT OF CALIFORNIA COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO JOYCE JUELCH AND NORMAN JUELCH, Case No. CGC-09-275212 Plaintiffs, MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF vs. DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN ASBESTOS DEFENDANTS, et al., LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE Defendants. EVIDENCE OF WILLIAM LONGO, JOHN TEMPLIN AND/OR RICHARD HATFIELD BASED ON INDIRECT ASBESTOS MEASUREMENT METHODOLOGY Trial Date: April 5, 2010 MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES I_ INTRODUCTION Plaintiffs allege that decedent Joyce Juelch ("Plaintiff") was exposed to asbestos while performing home remodeling activities. Hamilton anticipates that plaintiffs will call either William Ions, Richard Hatfield, and/or Philip John Templin, all employees of Materials Analytic Services, Inc. ("MAS"), to testify as an expert in this case, and that they will testify concerning data | on the levels of airborne asbestos released during their workplace simulation, which were obtained using an indirect collection and measurement methodology. MAS’ Airborne Asbestos Sampling Technique The National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health ("NIOSH") has approved a direct -]- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1155-5.2557Do Oe DY DH HA BW YD NN DN RN Ree nA vA BF BwNH EF Go wee ADH PB BW BH YH SG 27 method of sampling air to determine the level of airborne asbestos fibers in each cubic centimeter of air. Essentially, air from the breathing area of a subject is vacuumed across a filter over a set amount of time, and the number of fibers trapped on the filter is then counted. This common-sense measurement methodology has been accepted by governmental regulators and industrial hygienists, and is the basis for data used in cohort risk studies, because it provides a real-time snapshot of the actual asbestos fibers in the breathing area of a worker. Instead of using this well-accepted and easily understood method, MAS uses an indirect measuring methodology of its own design. In order to obtain their data, Longo or Hatfield perform workplace simulations using asbestos-containing products, which are specifically designed to create in inordinate amount of airborne dust. After the dust has settled, they then micro-vacuum a certain area of carpet. The dust trapped on the vacuum filter is emulsified and shaken several times, then placed under ultrasonic vibration, and allowed to dry. Not surprisingly, this method results in much higher fiber counts than the direct method -- as much as 1,000 times higher -- for several reasons, including the fact that the agitation of the fibers breaks them into multiple pieces and the asbestos in the sample is not taken from a certain volume of air near the breathing area, but rather falls from everywhere from the ceiling to just above the carpet. A full analysis of the problems with this method are outlined below. MAS' methodology is not accepted in the relevant scientific community and conflicts with the methods employed by and approved by authoritative bodies and other occupational health cine, and is therefore "junk science" barred by Kelly. People v. Kelly (1976) 17 Cal.3d 24. Moreover, as the indirect methodology results in asbestos fiber counts over 1,000 times greater than the direct method, and does not measure the level of asbestos fibers in the breathing zone of an exposed person, this data is irrelevant and prejudicial to Defendant. I. LEGAL ARGUMENT A. MAS' INDIRECT METHOD OF MEASURING AIRBORNE ASBESTOS SHOULD BE EXCLUDED BECAUSE IT IS NOT GENERALLY ACCEPTED IN THE RELEVANT SCIENTIFIC COMMUNITY MAS uses a method of calculating the level of airborne respirable asbestos fibers which is not accepted in the relevant scientific community. It is a method largely of their own making, and 2. MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1155-5.2557Co ON DA BP WN NN NR ND NR RR Re ta NA Ww fF WBN = SO we IY DH BF YW NH eH S 28 ‘Walsworth, Franklio, Bevins & ‘MeCall, LLP ATTORNEYSATIAW preferred by plaintiff's counsel because the method results in fiber counts that are over 1,000 times greater than measurements made under the accepted, direct method of measuring airborne asbestos fibers. MAS' indirect method of measuring airborne asbestos fibers, and the data and testimony derived from it, should therefore be excluded as "junk science." 1, KELLY MANDATES "JUDICIAL CAUTION" IN ADMITTING QUESTIONABLE SCIENTIFIC TECHNIQUES People v. Kelly established the rules of admissibility that apply to new scientific techniques as well as “evidence ‘developed by’ or ‘based upon’ new scientific techniques.” People v. Kelly (1976) 17 Cal.3d 24; People v. Shirley (1982) 31 Cal.3d 18, 52. When considering new scientific techniques, Kelly urges trial courts to use “judicial caution” in the admission of new scientific evidence, thereby establishing a “substantial obstacle” to the admission of such evidence. In adopting the Kelly test, which is based on the federal court’s Frye test, the Kelly court noted: The primary advantage ... of the Frye test lies in its essentially conservative nature. For a variety of reasons, Frye was deliberately intended to interpose a substantial obstacle to the unrestrained admission of evidence based upon new scientific principles. . .. Several reasons founded in logic and common sense support a posture of judicial caution in this area, Lay jurors tend to give considerable weight to “scientific” evidence when presented by “experts” with impressive credentials. We have acknowledged the existence of a“. . . misleading aura of certainty which often envelops a new scientific process, obscuring its currently experimental nature. (Kelly, 17 Cal.3d at 31-32.) Thus, “the [Ke/ly] doctrine contemplates an undefined period of testing and study by a community of experts before a new scientific technique may be deemed ‘generally accepted,” thus delaying the admissibility of evidence derived from the technique.” People v. Leahy (1994) 8 Cal.4th 587, 601-02. “Through application of the Kelly/Frye requirements, California courts have ‘long been willing to forego admission of ‘new’ scientific methods used to detect, analyze, or produce evidence absent a credible threshold showing that ‘the pertinent scientific community no longer views them as experimental or of dubious validity.” Texaco Producing, Inc. v. Co. of Kern (1998) 66 Cal.App.4th 1029, 1048, quoting People v. Webb (1993) 6 Cal. 4th 494, 524. “This all- or-nothing approach was adopted [in Kelly] in full recognition that there would be a ‘considerable lag’ between scientific advances and their admission as evidence in a court proceeding.” Leahy, 8 3- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 8982501 1155-5255728 ‘Walsworth, Frankdin, Bevins & McCall, LLP ATTORNEYS aT LA Cal.4th at 602. . Moreover, Kelly does not “leave questions of admissibility to the discretion of the trial court in the first instance.” Leahy, 8 Cal.4th at 594. Kelly next considered the appropriate test for determining the reliability of a new scientific technique. We recognized that one possible approach would be to leave questions of admissibility to the discretion of the trial court in the first instance, “in which event objections, if any, to the reliability of the evidence (or of the underlying scientific technique on which it is based) might lessen the weight of the evidence but would not necessarily prevent its admissibility.” (Citation omitted.) [Kelly] rejected the foregoing approach. Jd. at 594. Kelly requires the trial court look to the scientific community to determine whether the new scientific technique is sufficiently reliable to have obtained general acceptance within that community. Texaco, 66 Cal.App.4th at 1048. In this case, all of the MAS-associated witnesses have eschewed the generally accepted approach for measuring exposure to respirable asbestos fibers, having adopting instead a dubious, unproven approach. Thus, as demonstrated below, the simulations are inadmissible under Kelly. -4- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1155-5.255728 ‘Walsworth, Frenklio, Bevin & ‘McCall, LLP ATTORNEYS APLAR 2. THE OBSCURE AND HIGHLY COMPLEX METHODS FOR MEASURING EXPOSURE TO AIRBORNE ASBESTOS FIBERS ARE THE VERY TYPE OF IMPENETRABLE SCIENTIFIC PROOF THAT KELLY IS DESIGNED TO GUARD AGAINST Trial courts look to the underlying purpose of the Kelly rule to determine whether it is appropriate to apply the rule in a particular instance. “The Kelly test is intended to forestall the jury’s uncritical acceptance of scientific evidence or technology that is so foreign to everyday experience as to be unusually difficult for laypersons to evaluate.” People v. Venegas (1998) 18 Cal.4th 47, 80. Thus, the level of complexity involved in the technique is a key factor in determining whether a scientific method is covered by Kelly because the more “impenetrable” the technique, the more likely it is that the technique will assume a “posture of mystic infallibility” in the eyes of the jury. As Venegas observed when faced with competing methodologies for DNA testing: It is the very complexity of the issues surrounding the propriety of the various recognized methods [in question] . . . that draws them under the Kelly/Frye umbrella. ‘To .. . leave it to jurors to assess the current scientific debate . .. as a matter of weight rather than admissibility, would stand Kelly-Frye on its head. We would be asking jurors to do what judges carefully avoid — decide the of a novel method of scientific proof. .. . The result would be predictable. The jury would simply skip to the bottom line — the only aspect of the process that is readily understood — and look at the ultimate expression of match probability, without competently assessing the reliability of the process by which the laboratory got to the bottom line. This is an instance in which the method of scientific | substantive merits of competing scientific opinion as to the reliability proof is so impenetrable that it would’ . . . assume a posture of mystic infallibility in the eyes of a jury ...’ [Citation omitted.]’ Jd. at 83-84. As with the DNA testing in Venegas, measuring the amount of exposure to airborne asbestos fibers by using an indirect method of measurement is “so foreign to everyday experience as to be unusually difficult for laypersons to evaluate.” Jd. at 80. Thus, the Kelly test must be applied to “forestall the jury’s uncritical acceptance of [such] scientific evidence.” Id. | 5- | MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1155-5.25571 3. PLAINTIFF CANNOT SATISFY KELLY’S RIGOROUS THREE PRONG TEST OF ADMISSIBILITY 2 3 As the proponent of the evidence, plaintiff must show that: (1) the scientific techniques 4 | used by MAS are reliable (2) that plaintiff’s foundation witnesses are properly qualified to testify 5 | regarding general acceptance within the scientific community; and (3) that Longo, Hatfield or any 6 | other MAS associate used the correct scientific procedures. More specifically, plaintiff has the 7 | burden of satisfying the following three prongs to the Kelly test: 8 The first prong of the Kelly test requires that the “reliability” of a new scientific technique be established by showing that the technique 9 has “gained general acceptance in the particular field to which it belongs.” 10 The second prong requires that any witness testifying on general 11 acceptance be properly qualified as an expert on the subject. 12 The third prong of the test .. . [requires that] the proponent of the evidence must demonstrate that correct scientific procedures were 13 used in the particular case. Venegas, 8 Cal.4th at 78; see also Leahy, 8 Cal.4th at 611. 14 a. Many Jurisdictions have Excluded the Data and Conclusions Reached 15 By Longo, Hatfield, and MAS 16 The “burden of showing general acceptance lies with the proponent of the evidence to show 17 |/a ‘scientific consensus.”” Leahy, 8 Cal.4th at 611. That is, “[i]t is the proponent of such testimony, 18 } of course, who has the burden of making the necessary showing of compliance with [Kelly/|Frye, 19 |i.e., of demonstrating by means of qualified and disinterested experts that the new technique is 20 | generally accepted as reliable in the relevant scientific community.” Shirley, 31 Cal.3d at 54. 21 | “General acceptance’ under Kelly means a consensus drawn from a typical cross-section of the 22 jisvens qualified scientific community.” Jd. at 612. 23 The technique used by MAS, Longo and Hatfield has already been found to be “not 24 | scientifically reliable” ~ in effect, “junk science.” Courts consider numerous factors in determining 25 | whether a particular scientific technique has gained general acceptance in the scientific community. 26 | Among other things, the “court may also consider decisions from other jurisdictions . . . in deciding 27 | whether a technique is generally accepted.” People y. Axell (1991) 235 Cal.App.3d 836. 28 Longo's and Hatfield's workplace simulations and the TEM results obtained have been ‘Walsworth, Franidin, -6- Mec LL? MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON arroanersartaw g0g2 MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 1155-52557Oo DO YD WA PB WN NR BP NY BW NN NY Dm mw a ae SDN HA FW NH KF S BO we HI DA BRB wD HY fF So 28 ‘McCall, LLP ATToRNexcartaw subject to increasing challenge throughout the country.’ After a full preliminary evidentiary hearing on July 5, 2001 in which Longo himself testified to explain his work practice studies and videotapes, a court in Lamar County, Texas found them to be “junk science” and not only excluded the videotapes, but the entirety of Longo's testimony based thereon. (A copy of defendant Garlock's original motion, the plaintiff's opposition, and Judge Jim D. Lovett's findings of fact and conclusions of law in the Lamar County case are attached to the Declaration of lan P. Dillon “Dillon Declaration” as Exhibits E and F.) In reaching his decision to exclude Dr. Longo's testimony in a bankrupicy involving 600 re cases, Judge Lovett described Dr. Longo as follows: Dr. Longo presented at the hearing with testimonial charisma and convincing demeanor [and his] testimony sounded reasonable and this court accepted it at face value until completing study of all exhibits, affidavits and testimony. . .. After considerable study by the court, it became clear that the methodologies claimed to be used by MAS in test reports were not followed. . . . Neither the MAS tests nor Dr. Longo offer a satisfactory explanation as to why tests were not conducted under a foreseeable variety of test conditions. ... Re- reading of Dr. Longo's testimony reveals it to be practiced and to employ misdirection and evasiveness. It is at best disingenuous, not credible and unsupported by any respectable community of scientists. Judge Lovett excluded Dr. Longo’s testimony and work product on the following specific grounds: | (1) Generally, “It is apparent that the MAS tests started with the assumption that persons had been exposed to asbestos fibers ... and ' For additional cases in which the testimony of MAS experts has been excluded or severely limited, see Campbell vs. Abney Mills, King County Super. Ct., Washington, October 9, 2002; Carlson vs. Lear Siegler, San Francisco County Super. Ct., California, August 13, 1998; Lewis vs. John Crane, San Francisco County Super. Ct., California, April 3, 2000. Grego vs. Trailmobile Trailers, et al, San Francisco County Super. Ct., California, February 10, 2000; Hansen vs, Asbestos Defendants, et. al., San Francisco County Super. Ct., California, December 12, 2001; Berning vs. A.P. Green, et. al., San Francisco County Super. Ct., California,-January 8, 2000; | Richardson v. A. W. Chesterton Company, et al., San Francisco County Super. Ct., California, March 19, 2003; Trinchese vs. Raybestos Manhattan, et al., San Francisco County Super. Ct, California, June 18, 2002; James vs. Raybestos-Manhattan, et al., San Francisco County Super. Ct., | California, December 12, 2001. In fact, Judge Diane Wick, in Department 611 of San Francisco County Superior Court, has issued standing orders regarding issues frequently raised in asbestos cases, including Ruling Nos. 72 and 84, which specifically exclude the videotaped simulations prepared by Longo, Hatfield and Templin (a copy of Judge Wick's orders are attached to the Dillon Declaration as Exhibit N). -7- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1155-5.2557Oo Oo ND AW PB WN Nowy RN Ny oe = oe Se &® EF BBRPBSERERARREESHE SS 28 Walsworth, Franidin, Bevins & McCall, LLP ATTORNENSATLAW then selected methods to achieve the desired results ....” (2) Dr. Longo did not follow proper scientific procedures; (3) —_ Incollecting and analyzing air samples, Dr. Longo did not follow the method prescribed by the National Institute of Occupational Safety & Health (“NIOSH”), known as the NIOSH 7400, in that: (a) | Dr. Longo’s “tests improperly mixed direct and indirect methods of sample preparation,” using indirect sample preparation in place of the “required direct sampling method”; (b) Dr. Longo’s tests “misused and misrepresented TEM [transmission electron microscopy] analysis and Tyndall light”; (c) Dr. Longo “did not mention that there was no index to convert TEM data to PCM [phase contrast microscopy] data”; and (d) Dr. Longo reported results in structures per ce rather than structures per cubic cm, constituting a “misrepresentation of a the reportable result”; and. (4) Dr. Longo did not provide adequate quality controls. Id. Likewise, in Ohio, the appellate court reversed a trial court's decision to allow Longo to testify regarding asbestos exposure resulting from abrasion of asbestos pipe insulation. Ball v. Consolidated Rail Corp. (2001) 142 Ohio App.3d 748; a copy of this opinion is attached for the court's convenience to the Dillon Declaration as Exhibit J. The court found MAS' workplace simulations to be "an artificial and inaccurate representation of the conditions encountered by" the plaintiffs. (Jd. at 758.) Ball concluded that "the experiment was not designed to show the level of asbestos exposure allegedly encountered by” the plaintiffs and that "Longo should not have been allowed to testify concerning the amounts of asbestos released during the experiment.” Id. This ruling applies with equal force to Mr. Hatfield and any other associates of MAS. b. Dr. Longo and MAS Do Not Follow the Scientifically Accepted Method of Measuring Airborne Asbestos Longo, Hatfield, and MAS do not follow NIOSH 7400, which has long been the generally accepted scientific method prescribed by the National Institute of Occupational Safety & Health ("NIOSH") for measurement of airborne asbestos. Affidavit of Dr. Richard J. Lee ("Lec Affidavit"), attached to the Dillon Declaration as Exhibit A. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration ("OSHA"), of which NIOSH is the rule-making branch, has regulated the permissible exposure limits of asbestos in the workplace for -8- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.) 1155-5,255728 ‘Walsworth, Frankin, Revins & ‘McCall, LLP ArroRNersar Aw | | | nearly 30 years. OSHA has established its regulations in general accordance with accepted scientific principles. In collecting and analyzing air samples, NIOSH requires that the NIOSH 7400 method be used. NIOSH 7400 requires that occupational risk assessment from exposure to asbestos be based on a direct colllection method, the only method proven to be statistically reliable through proficiency analytical testing programs on standardized sample preparations. This method directly measures the amount of airborne asbestos by pumping air through a filter cassette during a fixed period of time while a particular activity is being carried out. The cassette is later opened, and the asbestos fibers greater than 5 microns are counted. See Jn re Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (2002) 285 B.R. 864, 869. Thus, the actual air in which a subject is working is directly tested for the amount of asbestos content. All of the permissible exposure limits (PEL) and threshold limit values (TLV) for occupational exposure to asbestos are based on direct collection measurements. (29 C.F.R. § 1910.1001.) Direct measurement data is the only data used in epidemiological studies. Thus, direct measurement data is the only data for which it is possible to tell whether the asbestos count measured from the air sample is in any way tied to the potential causation of disease in the human population. An indirect method of testing the level of airborne asbestos has been proposed as ASTM Standard D5755, wherein a 100 cubic centimeter of flooring is vacuumed for two minutes by a nozzle connected to a filter cassette. The cassette is then opened, and alcohol and water are poured onto the cassette and the solution is shaken and poured over a filter several times. The filter is then washed, acetic acid is added, and the resulting solution is again shaken, and put into an ultrasonic bath and sonicated for three minutes. The solution is filtered, and the filter is dried. A technician then counts the asbestos structures, which include matricies (fibers attached to a particle of mineral); clusters of fibers; or fibrils (a single fiber), While this method does not ercate or destroy fibers, it may alter their physical form by breaking down longer fibers into multiple particles, or tearing apart clusters of fibers, thereby exaggerating the total fiber count. "The number of asbestos structures, particularly smaller fibers, found through the indirect method is almost always significantly higher than through the direct method." /d. at 869. -9- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON 29g. MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 1158-5.255728 Watsworth, Franklin, Bevins & McCall, LLP ATTORNEISAT LAW OSHA itself does not recognize the use of indirect measurement methodology for determination of risk assessment under any of the occupational asbestos standards, but requires direct measurement instead. The use of indirect measurement is not generally recognized in the relevant scientific community as useful in the assessment of risk from exposure to asbestos- containing products. In fact, a plaintiff's expert environmental scientist, James Millette, has testified that there were many articles published in scientific literature concerning the use of direct analysis for risk assessment in asbestos exposure, but that he had heard of only one that discussed indirect methodology being used for risk assessment, but had never read it, was not certain that it had actually been published, and was unfamiliar with its contents. Deposition of James Millette, attached to the Dillon Declaration as Exhibit B, at 57-61; 148-150. Dr. Longo, testified that he only used TEM analysis for "internal research." Deposition of William Longo, attached to the Dillon Declaration as Exhibit C, at 25:3-7; 82:8-11. Both Millette and Longo testified that they are not aware of any epidemiological risk assessments based on indirect measurements to date. (Millette Deposition, Exhibit B to the Dillon Declaration, at 57:10-22; Longo Deposition, Exhibit C, at 23:16-25; 24:1-3.) Indirect measurement methodology produces inordinately high measurements, which will be highly prejudicial to Defendant if allowed to be told to the jury. The indirect measurements, by Longo's own admission, are for "internal research" only and therefore have no place in evidence. For counting asbestos fibers in his simulations, Longo used the indirect measurement methodology, as opposed to the more common-sense direct measurement that is required by NIOSH 7400. (Exhibit B, 55:21-25; 56:1.) c The Indirect Measurement Method Has Been Criticized by Other Scientists in Peer Reviewed Journals Scientific literature also confirms that the indirect sampling is unreliable and controversial. The Court may look to “‘published writings in scholarly treatises and journals’ in lieu of live testimony’ in order to determine if there is a scientific consensus.” Leahy, 8 Cal.4th at 611 (“iJfa fair overview of the literature discloses that scientists significant either in number or expertise -10- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE, 898250. 1155-5.2557Dey DW BF BW N BS NN NN NN RD ee a a a i ik A UF BH FH SO HM WD HAH BF BH YW SE SS publicly oppose [the technique] as unreliable, the court may safely conclude there is no such consensus at the present time." An article in the journal Environmental Science & Technology sums up the reasons for the controversy: There has been considerable controversy in recent years about the validity of asbestos siructure concentrations determined by indirect sample methods as specified in various measurement protocols. The large positive, asbestos concentration bias resulting from indirect preparation is widely recognized but poorly understood . . . Recently, however, the effects of surfactants and sonication duration on asbestos dusts have been explored. It has been shown [fns. omitted] that increasing sonication times result in higher apparent asbestos concentrations, presumably as a result of physical and chemical release of asbestos from matrices, from dissolution of bundles into individual fibrils, and from comminution of the fibers into more numerous, shorter and thinner fibrils (Lee, Van Orden & Dunmyre, “Interlaboratory Evaluation of the Breakup of Asbestos-Containing Dust Particles by Ultrasonic Agitation," 30 Environ. Sci. Technol.10, p. 3010 (1996), attached to the Dillon Declaration as Exhibit J.) The article’s authors sent dust samples, which were all of the same weight, dimensions, and asbestos content, to nine different laboratories for analysis under the ASTM D5755 testing method. Jd. at 3011. The results reported were “highly variable” with the “range of results for each sample type reveal[ing] a /000-fold difference between the highest and lowest concentrations.” Jd. at 3013 (emphasis added). Mr. Lee and his co-authors concluded that the indirect sampling method and the results it produces are unreliable. The Longo and Hatfield indirect method of measuring airborne asbestos was tested in a blind study, and it was found that some laboratories, having analyzed exactly the same samples, reported asbestos contents 1,000 times greater than other laboratories. Thus, at least one peer- | reviewed article concluded that the TEM analysis was not scientifically sound and did not produce accurate results. Longo and Hatfield cannot be allowed to testify regarding their TEM results because their techniques are not generally accepted as reliable in the relevant scientific community. All evidence related to these simulations and the results obtained from them should be excluded. -l- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON | MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1155-5.25574, THE TEM INDIRECT SAMPLE PREPARATION IS A METHOD TO ANALYZE DUST SAMPLES, AND WAS NOT INTENDED FOR DETERMINING HEALTH HAZARD RISKS OF AIRBORNE ASBESTOS The indirect sampling measurement method used by MAS is derived from the ASTM standard D5755 protocol entitled "Standard Test Method for Microvacuum Sampling and Indirect Analysis of Dust by Transmission Electron Microscopy for Asbestos Structure Number Concentrations." The ASTM D5755-95 protocol acknowledges that the indirect preparation method will break apart asbestos fibers and bundles, thereby changing non-respirable asbestos fibers into respirable fibers that are then counted by TEM: 1.4.1 The procedure outlined in this test method employs an indirect sample preparation technique. It is intended to disperse aggregated asbestos into fundamental fibrils, fiber bundles, clusters, or matrices that can be more accurately quantified by transmission electron microscopy. However, as with all indirect sample preparation techniques, the asbestos observed for quantification may not represent the physical form of the asbestos as sampled. More specifically the procedure described neither creates nor destroys asbestos, but it may alter the physical form of the mineral fibers. The Standard itself specifically provides that it is not to be used for the purposes intended by plaintiff's experts employed by MAS: 1.1 This test method covers a procedure to identify asbestos in dust. . . 3.1 This microvacuum sampling and indirect analysis method is used for the general testing of non-airborne samples for asbestos. 5.1.1 This test method does not describe procedures or techniques required to evaluate the safety or habitability of buildings with asbestos- containing materials, or compliance with federal, state, or local regulations or statutes. 5.1.2 At present, a single direct relationship between asbestos-containing dust and potential human exposures does not exist. Accordingly, the user should consider these data in relationship to other available information in their evaluation. The above-quoted ASTM D5755-95 protocol was principally authored by Dr. Longo, yet he intentionally ignores its limitations and attempts to use it in litigation to support the very uses he specifically excluded in the protocol. The ASTM standard clearly acknowledges that its sample preparation method changes the size distribution of the asbestos from the state in which it originally existed in the air that was -12- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250,1 1155-5.2557co Om NUN DH PB WN YE a ak oO YN DH FB BW NH SB SO 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 sampled by utilizing a dilution procedure and by sonication. These methods and results have never been peer-reviewed or published for the purposes used in this litigation. See, e.g. in re Armstrong World Industries, Inc. (2002) 285 B.R. 864, 871 (finding the TEM indirect method inadmissible under the federal Daubert standard) attached to the Dillon Declaration as Exhibit H) Plaintiff's experts will also opine as to the alleged presence of asbestos fibers in and on clothing based on their simulations. These experts will likely testify that millions of fibers appeared on the clothing, making the clothes hazardous and contaminated. These tests arc contrived and misleading, designed for litigation only, and should be excluded. MAS' methodology falls well short of being scientifically reliable, because the techniques it employs are scientifically untested and not published for peer review. Even plaintiff’s experts doubt the credibility, usefulness and accuracy of MAS' indirect sampling methods. Douglas Fowler, an industrial hygienist often retained by plaintiffs in asbestos litigation, testified that Longo's and MAS' protocols produce a higher level of concentration than appropriate and that he would not rely on Dr. Longo's or Mr. Hatfield's simulation results. a. Plaintiff Has Not Presented Any Witnesses Qualified to Testify Regarding Whether the Indirect Sampling Techniques are Generally Accepted In keeping with Kelly's second prong, any witnesses presented by plaintiff to testify regarding “general acceptance” must be properly qualified as an expert on the subject. Kelly, 17 | Cal.3d at 37. Undoubtedly, plaintiff will present testimony from Longo and/or Hatficid themselves stating that all of the scientific techniques used are generally accepted within the scientific jenn’ However, “it [is] questionable whether the testimony of a single witness alone is ever sufficient to represent, or attest to, the views of an entire scientific community regarding the reliability of a new technique.” Jd. The testimony of a such a witness is particularly suspect where the witness “has had a long association with the development and promotion” of the scientific technique. Jd. at 38. Given that Longo and Hatfield make their living as plaintiff experts, they are self-interested and suspect witnesses. Thus, their testimony is not sufficient to establish general acceptance. b. The Correct Scientific Procedures Were Not Used in This Particular Case MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE | -13- 898250,1 1155-5.2557oO YD WA BB WN eae oem ND WH BB WwW NH FE SO 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 ‘Walsworth, Frantin, Bevins & ‘McCall, LLP ATTORAEYSAT tae “The Kelly test’s third prong does not apply the Frye requirement of general scientific acceptance ~ it assumes the methodology and technique in question has already met ihat requirement. Instead, it inquires into the matter of whether the procedures actually utilized in the case were in compliance with that methodology and technique, as generally accepted by the scientific community.” Venegas, 18 Cal.4th at 78. As demonstrated above, neither Longo's nor Hatfield's overall testing scheme nor their individual testing protocols comply with generally accepted scientific techniques. B. LONGO AND HATFIELD SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED TO TESTIFY AS EXPERTS 1. LONGO AND HATFIELD DO NOT HAVE ANY SPECIAL EXPERTISE THAT WILL ASSIST THE TRIER OF FACT OR QUALIFY THEM TO SERVE AS AN EXPERT WITNESS AT TRIAL In order for a person to be qualified to testify as an expert, he must have “special knowledge, skill, experience, training, or education sufficient to qualify him as an expert on the subject to which his testimony relates.” Evid.C. § 720. Where a person lacks special knowledge or skill on the particular subject, he cannot offer expert opinion testimony on that subject. Id. § 720(a); Putensen v. Clay Adams, Inc. (1970) 12 Cal.App.3d 1062, 1080-81. In this case, Longo is unqualified to testify regarding the simulations. As already noted, he has no training or education, and virtually no experience, in any industry relevant to this case. Lis Jeserience is indistinguishable from that of a lay person. Thus, he does not have the requisite special knowledge or experience to testify regarding the simulations or any data derived from them. Hatfield aiso has no special expertise that will assist the trier of fact or that can qualify him lo Serve as an expert witness during the trial of this case. He has no doctorate or other post graduate degree. He is not a registered professional engineer in California or in any other state. He is not a certified industrial hygienist in California or in any other state. He is not a mineralogist. He has no training or education in any industry practices relevant in this case. His experience is indistinguishable from that of a lay person. He merely serves as a “senior consultant” at MAS, a corporation which is intimately associated with claimants in asbestos litigation, Thus, he also does not have the requisite special knowledge or experience to testify regarding the simulations. -14- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 8982501 1155-5.2557CD Oe NY DW BB Bw Nm NB Pw NY N N NN Rem a i I Dw PF BH KF So we AI HHA BHD NY FF TD 28 Walsworth, Franklin, Bevins & McCall, LLP ATTORNEYS AT LAW 2. THE LONGO'S AND HATFIELD'S OPINIONS ARE BASED ON UNRELIABLE AND INADMISSIBLE MATTERS Opinion testimony must be based on reliable matters. Evidence Code § 801(b). In particular, an expert may not base his opinion no any matter that has been declared by law to be an improper basis for an opinion. Evidence Code § 801(b). Under California law, scientific evidence that does not meet the Kelly standards is an improper basis for an opinion. (William E. Wegner, ef al., California Practice Guide: Civil Trials & Evidence, Section 8:747 (Rutter Group 2000) (“The following are some matters which the “law” precludes as the basis for an expert’s opinion: (1) Scientific evidence not meeting ‘Kelly’ standards”).) Because the simulations that serve as the basis of Longo’s and Hatfield’s purported opinions do not meet the Kelly standards, their opinions are based on unreliable matter and should be excluded. MI. CONCLUSION For these reasons, Defendant respectfully moves the Court for an order in limine to exclude the videotapes and related testimony of William Longo, John Templin and/or Richard Hatfield. Dated: March 2% , 2010 WALSWORTH, FRANKLIN, BEVINS & McCALL, LLP om Caw LDU Robert M. Channel Tan P. Dillon Attomeys for Defendant HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC. -15- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS. INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1NS5-5.2557_ PROOF OF SERVICE 2 3 I am employed in the County of San Francisco, State of California. I am over the age of 18 and not a party to the within action. My business address is 601 Montgomery Street, Ninth Floor, 4 | San Francisco, California 94111-2612. 5 On March. Zoro, I served the within document(s) described as: 6 MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, INC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT 7 | TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE EVIDENCE OF WILLIAM LONGO, JOHN TEMPLIN AND/OR RICHARD HATFIELD BASED ON INDIRECT ASBESTOS MEASUREMENT 8 [momen 9 on the interested parties in this action as stated below: 10 BRAYTON PURCELL 222 Rush Landing Road 11 | P.O. Box 2109 Novato, CA 94948 12 Facsimile No.: (415) 898-1247 13 (BY ELECTRONIC FILING/SERVICE) On the below date, I caused such document(s) to 14 be Electronically Filed and/or Served through the LexisNexis File & Serve System for the above entitled case to those parties on the Service List maintained on LexisNexis File & 15 Serve Website for this case. This service reported as complete and a copy of the "LexisNexis File & serve Filing Receipt" page will be maintained with the original 16 document(s) in our office. 17 Executed on March 2¢,2010, at San Francisco, California, 18 I declare under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that the foregoing is true and correct. 19 20 | Cheryl Lieu 6 4 (Type or print name) (Signature) 22 23 24 25 | 26 27 | 28 -16- MEMORANDUM OF POINTS AND AUTHORITIES IN SUPPORT OF DEFENDANT HAMILTON MATERIALS, ENC.'S MOTION IN LIMINE #9 TO EXCLUDE EXPERT TESTIMONY AND VIDEOTAPE 898250.1 1155-5.2557