Opinion ID: 1872538
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Evidence About Gang Activity

Text: Appellant filed a pretrial Motion in Limine arguing that the Commonwealth had not provided the proper KRE 404(c) notice that it planned to introduce evidence regarding gang activity in the area, specifically Appellant's, involvement in such. The notice requirement is mandatory, and failure to give proper notice can result in the evidence being excluded under KRE 404(c). However, since the verdict in this case is being reversed on other grounds, notice will not be a problem on retrial. Appellant also complains that the trial court misunderstood to whom KRE 404(b) applies, since the court allowed evidence of gang-related events leading up to the July 31, 2000 shooting as long as those events did not indicate any wrongdoing on behalf of Appellant. Clearly KRE 404(b) does not permit evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts to prove the character of a person in order to show he acted in conformity. To that extent, the rule is referencing a specific individual. Yet this does not remove the notice requirement when the evidence of other crimes, wrongs, or acts refers to someone other than the defendant. The trial court apparently believed that because gang-related evidence was general rather than about the Appellant specifically, the notice provision of KRE 404(c) did not apply. While the rule with its notice requirement is overwhelmingly applied to crimes or bad acts committed by a criminal defendant, it is also applicable to persons other than the criminal defendant. See Robert G. Lawson, Kentucky Evidence Law Handbook, § 2.25[3][a], 125-26 (4th ed.2003). Regardless, despite potential issues regarding relevance or other rules of evidence, the Appellant certainly has adequate notice that this evidence might be offered again on retrial.