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Good Character Evidence Essay

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The accused in a criminal trial is allowed to introduce evidence of his good character; that is, character witness, as a general rule.

Character witness is a person who testifies to another person’s good reputation in a court of law. The character witnesses therefore provide evidence about the good reputation of the accused in the community such as being calm, careful, compassionate, considerate, generous, gentle, honest, sincere, reliable, and others. Evidence of character is, without a doubt, imperative to the accused. It can show whether the accused is a person who are capable of misconduct or not.

The court in addition will consider the character of the accused, along with other evidences, before giving a verdict. The good character of the accused hence may influence the outcome of the trials. …show more content…

It is to uphold the assumption the accused is innocent until proven guilty.

Once a witness has given testimony on the good character of the accused, the prosecution nevertheless may cross-examine the witness. The prosecution will take the advantage of the cross-examination to challenge the good reputation of the accused in which the accused has attempted to claim. This is to prevent the accused from creating a false impression which may mislead the court.

In view of that, it is necessary to consider the evidence submitted by the defense as well as the rebuttal by the prosecution when determining whether to accept the accused as a person of good character. It is, however, crucial to notice that the good character evidence does not excuse the misdemeanor of the accused. This is if the crime is proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt.

Character evidence is just similar to any other evidence nonetheless. It is just one aspect of evidence in a criminal trial. Depending on the testimony of the witnesses, the weight of the evidence is up to the court to

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