What is the test for admissible evidence under Rule 404(b) of domestic violence?

Other acts of domestic violence involving the same victim are textbook examples of evidence admissible under Rule 404(b), and courts have permitted this evidence under a variety of theories. Some have explained that additional assaults are admissible as a "critical part of the story" that clarifies the motive behind the charged crimes.² Other courts have allowed this evidence to illustrate the "history of [the] relationship" between the defendant and victim, which speaks to a defendant's intent.³ These cases say essentially the same thingprior (and subsequent) acts of violence towards the identical victim can shed light on the mindset of the defendant during the charged crime, such as whether there was a grudge between the two, a desire for payback of some sort, or that the defendant had the intent to exert control over this particular victim through violence. See, e.g. , United States v. Lewis , 780 F.2d 1140, 1142 (4th Cir. 1986) (prior assault involving same victim admissible under Rule 404(b) as evidence of "[r]ising animosity" that "could easily provide the motive for an assault").⁴

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