Is evidence of an ostensible victim's violent character admissible in a criminal case?

Thus, "[a] defendant has the general right to offer a defense through the testimony of his or her witnesses (Washington v. Texas (1967) 388 U.S. 14, 19 [87 S.Ct. 1920, 18 L.Ed.2d 1019]), but a state court's application of ordinary rules of evidenceincluding the rule stated in Evidence Code section 352generally does not infringe upon this right [citations]." (People v. Cornwell, supra, 37 Cal.4th at p. 82.)

Under Evidence Code section 352, a trial court has discretion to exclude evidence if "its probative value is substantially outweighed by the probability that its admission will (a) necessitate undue consumption of time or (b) create substantial danger of undue prejudice, of confusing the issues, or of misleading the jury." A trial court may exclude evidence under section 352 "to prevent criminal trials from degenerating into nitpicking wars of attrition over collateral credibility issues." (People v. Mills (2010) 48 Cal.4th 158, 195.)

Evidence of a victim's character is admissible in a criminal action to prove that the victim acted in conformity with that character. (Evid. Code 1103, subd. (a)(1).) Thus, evidence of an ostensible victim's violent character may be relevant to show the victim was actually the aggressor in an altercation. The victim's character may be shown by evidence of his reputation or by specific acts. (People v. Wright (1985) 39 Cal.3d 576, 587.)

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2. Analysis