Bowen

— Defendant Donald Ryan is a dentist whose patients include difficult-to-treat children with behavior problems. This case began with a claim by plaintiff D’Michael Bowen that defendant choked him and shoved him against a wall during a dental appointment. It continued with a trial that included 13 witnesses testifying about nine different unrelated incidents in which defendant allegedly hit, restrained, or otherwise mistreated child patients. The trial ended with a nine-to-three special verdict awarding plaintiff $90,000 in damages. No punitive damages were awarded because the jury found no malice.

On appeal, defendant contends that the court erred in admitting the evidence of unrelated incidents. We agree, and reverse the judgment. For the guidance of the court in the event of retrial, we briefly address defendant’s remaining claims concerning the proper scope of an expert witness’s testimony.

Facts and Proceedings

Defendant had been in practice for approximately 28 years and estimated he had seen 35,000 to 45,000 patients during that time, including 8,000 to 10,000 patients in the preceding five years. The vast majority of his patients were children, some of whom had…