Is a defendant's right to call a character witness in a sexual assault case valid?

The defendant's right to call character witnesses is nonetheless subject to the trial court's authority to regulate the admission of evidence. (See People v. Jones (1998) 17 Cal.4th 279, 304.) In this context, " '[a]s a general matter, the ordinary rules of evidence do not impermissibly infringe on the accused's right to present a defense. Courts retain, moreover, a traditional and intrinsic power to exercise discretion to control the admission of evidence in the interests of orderly procedure and the avoidance of prejudice.' [Citation.]" (Id. at p. 305.) Evidence Code section 352 authorizes the trial court to exclude testimony from character witnesses when the time consumed presenting it outweighs its probative value.⁵ (See Jones, supra, 17 Cal.4th at pp. 304-305.)

Generally, in order to preserve a contention of error regarding the exclusion of a character witness, the defendant must make a sufficient offer of proof. (See People v. Earp (1999) 20 Cal.4th 826, 891-892.) "An appellate court may not reverse a judgment because of the erroneous exclusion of evidence unless the 'substance, purpose, and relevance of the excluded evidence was made known to the court by the questions asked, an offer of proof, or by any other means.'"

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(People v. Livaditis (1992) 2 Cal.4th 759, 778, italics omitted, quoting Evid. Code, 354, subd. (a).) As explained in People v. Schmies (1996) 44 Cal.App.4th 38, 53, "[a]n offer of proof should give the trial court an opportunity to change or clarify its ruling and in the event of [an] appeal[,] would provide the reviewing court with the means of determining error and assessing prejudice. [Citation.] To accomplish these purposes an offer of proof must be specific. It must set forth the actual evidence to be produced and not merely the facts or issues to be addressed and argued."

2. Underlying Proceedings