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26 ¦ DECEMBER 21, 2020 CONNECTICUT OPINIONS

SUPREME COURT court failed to exercise its discretion in reviewing
the evidence in light of the Academy reports. The
court noted that the trial court was not required
to conduct a Porter hearing when exercising its
CRIMINAL APPEALS discretion, but that it was not bound by Legnani

Trial Court Abused Discretion by to reject one outright. The court found the error
Refusing to Consider Porter Hearing was not harmless, and reversed and remanded for
a new trial. The court found the trial court prop-
CASE: State of Connecticut v. Raynor erly dismissed the defendant’s motion in limine.

COURT: Connecticut Supreme Court INSURANCE LITIGATION
DOC. NO.: SC 20183
COURT OPINION BY: Kahn
DATE: December 04, 2020 • PAGES: 28 Court Reverses on Insurer’s Duty to
Defendant and an accomplice retrieved a .223
caliber assault rifle from the accomplice’s car, Defend

then performed a drive-by shooting of a rival CASE: Nash St., LLC v. Main St. Am. Assurance Co.
gang member, wherein the defendant hung out COURT: Connecticut Supreme Court
of the back window of the vehicle and fired 10 DOC. NO.: SC 20389
to 15 shots from the rifle. The rival gang mem- COURT OPINION BY: McDonald
ber died as a result of gunshot wounds, and the DATE: September 09, 2020 • PAGES: 18
accomplice later identified the defendant and the Plaintiff was repairing their house, and contract-
rifle as the perpetrator and the weapon. The de- ed with New Beginnings Residential Renova-
fendant was charged with murder, and at his trial tions for renovations including foundation work,
he moved for a Porter hearing on the admissibil- wherein the house would be lifted and temporar-
ity of state’s firearm and toolmark expert, and in ily placed on cribbing. While the house was being
the alternative filed a motion in limine to exclude lifted, it shifted off of the cribbing and collapsed.
the scope of the expert’s testimony. Defendant ar- Plaintiff brought a negligence action against New
gued that a National Academy of Sciences report Beginnings, and New Beginnings tendered de-
called into question the methodology used by fense to the defendant insurer to defend the case.
the expert to trace the casings found at the crime The insurer declined to defend, and plaintiff was
scene to the rifle. The trial court rejected both mo- awarded a default judgment. Plaintiff brought
tions, the defendant was found guilty of murder, the present action against the insurer to recover
and the appellate court upheld the trial court’s from the judgment, and the insurer pled special
finding, relying on the finding from Legnani. The defenses alleging the damages were not covered
court found the trial and appellate courts’ reli- by their policy, under the “business risk” exclu-
ance on Legnani in assessing the request for a sions. Defendant argued that the policy excluded
Porter hearing was erroneous, and that the trial coverage for damage to “[t]hat particular part

CONNECTICUT
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