Wedding video debuts in court

Lots of couples videotape their weddings, but scenes from one made Baltimore County jurors chuckle recently. Jurors watched snippets of a wedding held at the Essex home of Leroy Weinreich, who is being sued by Lonnie J. Nelson of Edgewood.

Nelson alleges he was injured when a pier collapsed on Weinreich’s property. Nelson’s lawyers argued that Weinreich did not warn guests that the pier was unstable even though he knew it needed repairs.

After Weinreich’s wife testified that Nelson was nowhere near the pier when it collapsed, Nelson’s lawyers played the video taken at the wedding, which the Weinreichs were hosting for a friend. Scenes included the Weinreichs’ toasting the happy couple, dancing, and drinking from red plastic cups (which were entered as evidence).

To find out what the jury decides in this trial, go to our Web site, www.exhibitAnews.com

Steve Wernick, a Philadelphia video producer, said it’s rare but not unprecedented for such tapes to be used in court. Video was used about six months ago to convict someone accused of stealing gifts from an event, he said.

Wernick said he’s been hired so videos he’s made could be used in lawsuits, but none of his event footage has been shown in court—yet.
“Anyone with a camera knows anything can happen,” he said.

—On the Record blog