Item #537
Courts may admit evidence of the defendant's commission of other offense(s); this is not true of the accusor (see Item #400)
Topic: Legal SystemSource
Citation: Federal Rule of Evidence 413 Author(s): United States Courts Institution(s): United States of America Link: https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/fre/rule_413 Nation(s): United States Year(s): 2015 Source: Primary Type: Historical DocumentDiscussion
Other Notes:This evidence of a prior rape is admissible even if the man never takes the stand (despite the 6th Amendment); even if the man had been criminially acquitted of the prior sexual offense (despite the 5th Amendment); and even if the alleged prior rape occurred many years ago, when a middle-aged man was a teenager or a young man in his 20s. | This rule is in force only for sexual assault, no other crime.