Is evidence of a person's violent character admissible in a murder trial?

Generally, "evidence of a person's character or a trait of his or her character . . . is inadmissible when offered to prove his or her conduct on a specified occasion." (Evid. Code, 1101, subd. (a).) Evidence Code section 1103 sets forth an exception to this general rule. Among other things, it "authorizes the defense in a criminal case to offer evidence of the victim's character to prove his conduct at the time of the charged crime. . . . Consequently, in a prosecution for a homicide or an assaultive crime where self-defense is raised, evidence of the violent character of the victim is admissible to show that the victim was the aggressor." (People v. Shoemaker (1982) 135 Cal.App.3d 442, 446, fn. omitted.) Evidence of the victim's violent character may take "the form of an opinion, evidence of reputation, or evidence of specific instances of [violent] conduct." (Evid. Code, 1103, subd. (a).)