A UNC School of Government Blog
As I noted in my last post on Rule 404(b) evidence, even when the evidence is relevant to an issue other than propensity or disposition, admissibility is “constrained by the requirements of similarity and temporal proximity.” State v. Beckelheimer, __ N.C. __, 726 S.E.2d 156, 159 (2012) (quoting State v. Al-Bayyinah, 356 N.C. 150, 154 … Read more
Suppose that a murder defendant goes by the street name “Hit Man.” The prosecution wants the investigating officer to testify that she received a tip that “Hit Man” committed the crime, and that she knew that the defendant used the nickname “Hit Man.” Defense counsel moves to prohibit all references to the nickname during the … Read more
Even when Rule 404(b) evidence is relevant to an issue other than propensity or disposition, admissibility is “constrained by the requirements of similarity and temporal proximity.” State v. Beckelheimer, __ N.C. __, 726 S.E.2d 156, 159 (2012) (quoting State v. Al-Bayyinah, 356 N.C. 150, 154 (2002)). In this, my fourth post on Rule 404(b) evidence, … Read more
Rule 404(b) is a rule of inclusion subject to one exception: the evidence must be excluded if its only probative value is to show that the defendant had the propensity or disposition to commit the charged offense. Evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts is admissible, however, for other purposes. In this post, my third … Read more
Even the greenest of prosecutors knows to ask it. And all officers, from rookie to veteran, know how to answer. Rare is the impaired driving case without it. What’s the it? The opinion question, of course. You’ll find the following exchange recorded in many a DWI transcript. Q: Did you form an opinion, satisfactory to … Read more
In this second post on Rule 404(b) evidence [editor’s note: the first post in this occasional series is here], I’ll address a point that sometimes gets overlooked in the admissibility analysis: In order for Rule 404(b) evidence to be relevant, there must be sufficient evidence that the defendant committed the other act in question. State … Read more
I have been asked several times whether the state may admit, under N.C. R. Evid. 404(b), evidence of noncriminal conduct. The answer is yes, assuming of course that the evidence is offered for a proper purpose under the Rule and meets the other requirements for admissibility. Examples. This issue can arise in many kinds of … Read more
An interesting thing happened to me recently at a cocktail party. Before you get too excited let me say that this is a PG blog post! And it’s about the law! Anyway, an experienced trial lawyer (perhaps emboldened by drink?) got all up in my grill and asserted: “I know the evidence rules backwards and … Read more
I’m preparing to teach a session during which I’ll cover the use of Rule 404(b) evidence in sexual assault cases. (As most readers of this blog know, Rule 404(b) evidence is evidence of bad acts by the defendant other than the charged offense; such evidence isn’t supposed to be used to show that the defendant … Read more
I wrote here about the court of appeals’ recent ruling in State v. Davis that expert testimony calculating the defendant’s alcohol concentration based on odor alone was improperly admitted at defendant’s trial on second-degree murder, impaired driving, and other charges arising from a fatal hit-and-run accident. This post addresses the court’s ruling in Davis as … Read more