Is evidence of the violent character of the victim admissible in a prosecution for a homicide or assaultive crime where self-defense has been raised?
California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Banks, C077034 (Cal. App. 2018):
Evidence Code section 1103, subdivision (a) authorizes the defendant in a criminal case to offer evidence of the victim's character to prove his or her conduct at the time of the crime charged. Consequently, in a prosecution for a homicide or assaultive crime where self-defense is raised, evidence of the violent character of the victim is admissible to show the victim was the aggressor. (People v. Shoemaker (1982) 135 Cal.App.3d 442, 446 (Shoemaker).)
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