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

(5) recent dissimilar conviction; 6
(6) old dissimilar conviction;
(7) recent conviction for indecent assault on a child; or
(8) old conviction for indecent assault on a child.
A.4 The judge gave the appropriate standard direction depending on whether a
previous conviction was disclosed or not. Where it had been stated that the
defendant was of good character, the judge gave the following direction:
You have heard that the defendant has no previous convictions. In
deciding whether the prosecution has made you sure of his guilt, you
should have regard to the fact that he is a man of good character. You
should take it into account in his favour in the following two ways. 7
A.5 Where nothing was disclosed about the defendant’s character, the judge did not
say anything about the defendant’s character. Where a previous conviction had
been mentioned, the judge said,
You have heard about the defendant’s previous conviction for […].
You must not assume that the defendant is guilty or that he is not
telling the truth because he has been convicted on a previous
occasion. It is for you to decide the extent to which his previous
conviction assists you.
A.6 The magistrates watched a single version of the video in groups of between 12
and 18. Immediately after watching it they completed Questionnaire 1 in which
they expressed their initial verdict, a rating of confidence in that verdict, and two
ratings (one on a five-point scale and one on a 0–100% scale) of the likelihood
that the defendant committed the offence.
A.7 They were then divided into groups of three to arrive at a bench verdict. After
group deliberation they then completed Questionnaires 2 and 3. Questionnaire 2
asked for the bench’s decision, the individual magistrate’s personal verdict and
again, ratings of the likelihood that the defendant committed the offence.
Questionnaire 3 asked the magistrates for (i) their impressions of the defendant
(giving ratings for credibility, trustworthiness and propensity to commit
particular crimes); (ii) their views on whether fact-finders should be told of
previous convictions; (iii) their beliefs about people’s propensity to re-offend or to
lie in court depending on previous convictions and (iv) their experiences of
discovering or realising that the defendant has previous convictions and the
extent to which this is a source of difficulty for them.
6 Intentionally causing grievous bodily harm (contrary to s 18 of the Offences Against the
Person Act 1861) in the handling stolen goods trial and handling stolen goods in the
indecent assault trial.
7 The direction then goes on to explain that good character supports credibility and the lack
of propensity to commit the offence charged.
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