California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from The People v. Rios, H034085, No. F00788 (Cal. App. 2010):
Accordingly, we conclude that the trial court did not abuse its discretion in ruling the gang evidence inadmissible. (See, People v. Cardenas (1982) 31 Cal.3d 897, 904, [admission of evidence of gang membership to prove witness bias was abuse of discretion where bias already established by other testimony].)6
Finally, we reject appellant's claim the exclusion of this evidence violated his constitutional right to put on a defense. Although due process requires that a criminal defendant have " 'a meaningful opportunity to present a complete defense[]' [citations]" (Crane v. Kentucky (1986) 476 U.S. 683, 690), this right is not absolute. Courts have
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