Evidence of Bad Character in Criminal ... - Law Commission

Persons other than defendants
Clause 3
EXPLANATORY NOTES
Where leave is required to adduce evidence of the bad character of someone who is not a
defendant, this clause provides that leave may only be given if the evidence falls within clause
4 or 5.
Clause 4
This clause concerns evidence of the bad character of someone who is not a defendant
which any party wishes to adduce for the sake of its explanatory value.
Leave may be given under this clause if
• without the evidence it would be impossible or difficult for the magistrates or jury
properly to understand other evidence in the case; and
• the evidence has substantial value for the understanding of the case as a whole.
Clause 5
This clause concerns evidence of the bad character of someone who is not a defendant
which any party wishes to adduce for the sake of its probative value.
Leave may be given under this clause if the evidence has substantial probative value in
relation to a matter in issue which is itself of substantial importance in the context of the
case as a whole.
Subsection (2) lists a number of factors to which the court must have regard in assessing the
probative value of the evidence. For this purpose the court must assume that the evidence
is true unless it appears that no court or jury could reasonably find it to be true (see clause
14).