California, United States of America
The following excerpt is from People v. Medina, B292849 (Cal. App. 2020):
"In a prosecution for murder, photographs of the murder victim and the crime scene are always relevant to show how the charged crime occurred, and the prosecution is 'not obliged to prove these details solely from the testimony of live witnesses.' " (People v. Pollock (2004) 32 Cal.4th 1153, 1170.)
Evidence that is technically relevant may, however, still be excluded when its probative value is outweighed by its tendency to create undue prejudice to the defendant. (Evid. Code, 352.) " 'The court's exercise of that discretion will not be disturbed on appeal unless the probative value of the photographs clearly is outweighed by their prejudicial effect.' " (People v. Heard (2003) 31 Cal.4th 946, 976.) Prejudice does not refer to damage to a defense that naturally flows from relevant, highly probative evidence. (People v. Zapien, supra, 4 Cal.4th at p. 958.)
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"The trial court has broad discretion both in determining the relevance of evidence and in assessing whether its prejudicial effect outweighs its probative value." (People v. Horning (2004) 34 Cal.4th 871, 900.)
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