Instructing on Character Versus Honesty
March 20th, 2014

 

In revising CC 350 in August of 2012, the CC Committee stated that “A judge noticed that the instructions for filling in the blanks for “insert character trait” in [CC 350], Character of Defendant, could pose a problem if the trait in question were honesty. Character evidence must be relevant to the charged offenses, and honesty may or may not be relevant.” The Committee addressed the problem by revising the instructions for filling in the blanks and adding an explanatory bench note and case cite. (Advisory Committee on Criminal Jury Instructions, Report to the Judicial Council for meeting of August 31, 2012, p. 3.)


Tags: ,