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The Law Whose Life Is Not Logic: Evidence Of Other Crimes In Criminal Cases, James W. Payne Jr.

University of Richmond Law Review

It is not the intention of the author to concentrate on generalizations in this article, but an introductory comment of a general character on this topic seems unavoidable. Assume that D is on trial for the rape of his fourteen-year-old daughter. He elects not to take the witness stand, claiming this right under the Fifth Amendment. (a) Could W, an older daughter, testify that D raped her several times when she was fourteen years old? (b) Could the prosecutor introduce evidence of a conviction of D for raping W when she was fourteen years old-i.e., would the foregoing offer of …