Court Opinion

ID: 9935588
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2024-02-09 18:56:19.883217+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:28:24.808812
License: Public Domain

Evidence that the appellant raped Nwosu after the robbery was inadmissible. It did not "rebut" the appellant's alibi defense any more than the evidence presented during the State's case-in-chief, and it served no purpose other than to show the appellant's bad character or propensity to commit violent acts.
Nwosu had already testified as a State's witness that the appellant committed the robbery. After the appellant's testimony, the jury was faced with the choice of believing Nwosu or believing the appellant's alibi. In the absence of corroboration or physical evidence, Nwosu's testimony about the rape gave the jury no more reason to credit her over the appellant than it already had.
Therefore, evidence of the rape did not "rebut" anything. It merely stated to the jury, "If you don't believe me about the robbery, let me tell you one more bad thing the defendant did."