California Rape Shield Law (Evidence Code 1103, 782 & 702). Sex Crimes Criminal Defense Lawyers Explain CA Rape Shield Law & Exceptions.
- sexcrimesdefensela
- 24 minutes ago
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California’s Rape Shield Law forbids the introduction a victim’s past sexual conduct to prove the victim consented to sexual conduct with the defendant (i.e., sexual intercourse, oral copulation, sexual penetration, sodomy, etc.).
Example: David is accused of raping Sarah. At trial, David wants to introduce evidence that proves Sarah has consensual sexual intercourse with many men. David wants this evidence introduced to show that Sarah consented to sexual intercourse with David because consent to sexual intercourse is a defense to David’s rape allegation.
Result: David will not be allowed to introduce Sarah’s sexual proclivity to prove that she consented to sexual intercourse with David, because California’s Rape Shield Statute prohibits evidence of Sarah’s past sexual conduct to prove consent to sexual intercourse with David.
Evidence Code 1103(c)(1) & 782: California’s Rape Shield Law is found at California evidence code 1103(c)(1) & EV 782.
Per EV 1103(c)(1):… in any prosecution under PC 261 (rape), PC 264.1 (rape in concert), PC 286 (sodomy), PC 287 (oral copulation), or PC 289 (sexual penetration by object), opinion evidence, reputation evidence, and evidence of specific instances of the alleged victim’s sexual conduct, is not admissible by the defendant to prove consent by the alleged victim (EV 1103(c)(1) Abbrev.).
Evidence code 1103(c)(1) also applies to any criminal allegation that alleges an assault with intent to commit, conspiracy to commit, or an attempt to commit either rape by force or fear (PC 261(a)), rape in concert (PC 264.1), sodomy (PC 286), oral copulation (287), or sexual penetration by foreign object (PC 289). [EV 1103(c)(1) Abbrev.].
Note: Evidence code 1103 specifically excludes the Rape Shield Statute from precluding evidence of past sexual conduct to prove conformity with the alleged victim’s character if the defendant’s crime is alleged to have occurred in a local detention facility or California state prison (EV 1103 Abbrev.).
Alleged Victim’s Dress: California’s Rape Shield Law specifically disallows evidence of how the alleged victim was dressed prior to sexual conduct to prove consent of the alleged victim (EV 1103(c)(2) Abbrev.).
Exception: The defendant may introduce evidence of the alleged victim's dress (clothing) to impeach the evidence.
Example: David and several of his friends are accused of rape in concert against Sarah. Sarah alleges that her clothes were ripped off of her during the gang rape. As a result, David may introduce evidence of Sarah's clothing that she wore during the alleged gang rape to prove that Sarah's clothing was not ripped, and therefore, she has misrepresented the facts.
Important: California’s Rape Shield Statute does not preclude evidence of the alleged victim’s conduct, including sexual conduct, with the defendant to prove consent (EV 1103(c)(3) Abbrev.).
Also, California’s Rape Shield Law does not prohibit evidence that is otherwise admissible under EV 782 to attack the credibility of the alleged victim.
Impeachment Evidence: The criminal defendant can introduce evidence of the alleged victim’s sexual past to show that his or her testimony is not trustworthy. This is different than showing the alleged victim’s past to show that he or she consented to sexual conduct (EV 782).
Example: David is charged with raping Sarah. At David’s trial, David is not allowed to introduce evidence that Sarah is a sexually promiscuous person, and therefore, Sarah likely consented to sexual intercourse with David. However, David can introduce evidence that Sarah was sexually promiscuous with David, and therefore, likely consent to sexual intercourse with David.
Example: David is charged with forced oral copulation against Sarah. David is not allowed to introduce evidence that Sarah has a reputation of being a very sexual person to prove that Sarah consented to oral copulation with David. However, David can introduce evidence of Sarah’s past oral copulation with David to prove that Sarah consented to oral sex with David.
Important: California’s Rape Shield Law does not preclude evidence of past sexual behavior with the defendant to prove consent to sexual conduct with the defendant.
Witness Introduces Evidence: Evidence code 1103 and California’s Rape Shield Law do not preclude evidence of the alleged victim’s sexual conduct if the alleged victim introduces the evidence first.
Example: David is accused of forced sodomy (anal sex) against Richard. At trial, David may not bring into evidence the past sexual proclivities of Richard to prove that Richard Consented to sodomy. However, if Richard first introduces evidence of his own past sexual proclivities, then David may introduce evidence of Richards past sexual proclivities to prove either Richard’s false testimony.
Evidence to Show Motive or Source of Injury: California’s Rape Shield Law & EV 1103 do not preclude the introduction of evidence of the alleged sexual victim’s past sexual conduct if the evidence is used to prove something other than the alleged victim’s consent to sexual conduct.
Example: David is on trial for the rape of Sarah. At trial, Sarah introduces evidence that David injured her vagina during David’s rape by force. In response, David may introduce evidence that Sarah had recent sex with other men (past sexual behavior of victim) to show the source of Sarahs’ vaginal injuries emanated from someone other than David.
Evidence of False Allegations: California’s Rape Shield Law and EV 1103(c)(1) forbid the introduction of prior allegations of unlawful sexual conduct, by the alleged victim, against other persons who are not the defendant, unless the defendant can demonstrate that his or her alleged victim lied in those prior allegations.
Example: David is on trial for forced sexual penetration by foreign object against Sarah. At trial, David wants to introduce evidence that shows Sarah has previously made false allegations of sexual violence against her by other men, and therefore, Sarah is likely making false allegations against David. Per CA’s Rape Shield Law, David may not introduce this evidence unless he can show the court that Sarah’s prior allegations were false.
Motion to Introduce: The criminal defense attorney who wants to introduce evidence of past sexual behavior, conduct, proclivities, etc., or the complaining witness (alleged victim), must bring the issue to the court’s attention before attempting to introduce the evidence at trial.
This requirement of EV 1103 is to protect victims of sexual abuse from surprise at trial of irrelevant and embarrassing evidence. The motion to include or exclude EV 1103(c)(1) evidence is filed under protective seal and the court must make an order as to the reasoning for admitting or denying the evidence.
To learn more about California “Rape Shield” Laws and CA Evidence Codes 1103, 782 & 702, and how these laws apply to the defense of sex crimes criminal charges in California, contact our sex crimes criminal defense lawyers today for a free consultation.
Our team of highly successful sex crimes criminal defense lawyers have helped thousands of criminal defendants charged with every type of misdemeanor and felony sex crime in California. We can help you too.
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