Farlice

Appellant, Nora F. Farlice, appeals from a judgment entered on a jury verdict claiming the award of compensatory damages of $10,000 for the false imprisonment of respondent Lynell Washington was unsupported by the evidence. Appellant also contends the $50,000 award of punitive damages is excessive as a matter of law. We conclude the compensatory damage award is supported by substantial evidence and affirm that award. However, we further conclude insufficient evidence was produced at trial to support the punitive damage award of $50,000. We consequently reverse that portion of the judgment and remand for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Facts and Proceedings Below

Appellant was the girlfriend of respondents’ father, Theodore R. Nealy, a.k.a. Hough Dankines, from 1976 until his death in 1982. Appellant was a real estate agent. Dankines headed a non-profit religious organization. During this relationship appellant quitclaimed a half interest to Dankines in a three-unit residential building located at 2143 Windsor Avenue, Altadena. Nine months after Dankines death, appellant recorded a deed to this property in which Dankines purportedly quit-claimed back to…