California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Schall, E060481 (Cal. App. 2015):
Daniel relies upon People v. Carter (1957) 48 Cal.2d 737, which explains the proper order for presentation of evidence: "Section 1093, subdivision 4, of the Penal Code provides that after the defendant has offered his evidence, the prosecution may then offer 'rebutting testimony only, unless the court, for good reason, in furtherance of justice . . .' permits it to offer evidence upon its original case. . . . The purpose of the restriction in that section is to assure an orderly presentation of evidence so that the trier of fact will not be confused; to prevent a party from unduly magnifying certain evidence by dramatically introducing it late in the trial; and to avoid any unfair surprise that may result when a party who thinks he has met his opponent's case is suddenly confronted at the end of trial with an additional piece of crucial evidence. Thus proper rebuttal
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