Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

I was assaulted, (unprovoked punching), gave my statement to the police and now the prosecutor wants me to appear at the jury trial. I am quite willing to appear.

My question is whether it is appropriate and proper for me to mention at trial, that I have discovered through public records when trying to find out who this guy is, that this guy has been charged with domestic violence in the past and with assault, again in the past. His previous charges, which did not involve me, were eventually dropped because he apparently threatened the victims into not appearing.

When I became aware of his previous behaviour, it made me much more concerned for fear of what this guy might do to me in the future based on his history.

Is it best to let the prosecutor bring up his past or am I allowed to state that discovering his past has made me even more concerned for my safety?


Asked on 7/22/09, 5:54 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Your role at trial is to answer the questions that are asked of you, not to volunteer information.

Feel free to discuss what you have learned with the prosecutor beforehand, but don't even think about blurting information like this out while you are on the witness stand.

The prosecutor is unlikely to ask you about any of this information. It is almost certainly inadmissible. Testimony about it would likely result in a mistrial for the defendant. If you insist on telling the jury what you want it to hear rather than answering the lawyers' questions, you could be held in contempt and jailed for it. And there is no guarantee the prosecutors will bother trying the defendant again if you torpedo this trial.

If some of what you have learned can be used in trial, the prosecutor will probably use it. He may already know all of this anyway. Just let the prosecutor make this call; decisions about what the jury hears are not yours to make.

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Answered on 7/22/09, 6:01 pm


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