Court Opinion

ID: 9656439
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-23 19:48:14.809791+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T18:13:32.325420
License: Public Domain

*766Cynar, J.
(concurring). I agree with the result reached by Judge Gage and I concur with her reasoning except for her suggestion that the burden of justifying the exclusion of defendant’s prior convictions may properly rest on the defendant. I believe that the plain language of MRE 609(a)(2) places the burden on the prosecution. That rule provides that the court must determine that the probative value of evidence of the conviction outweighs its prejudicial effect. Rule 609(a), when read in its entirety, requires that such a determination be made as a prerequisite to admission. I interpret the rule to place the burden of persuasion on the prosecution.
Regardless of whether the .defendant or the prosecution advanced explanations or arguments, the factors to be considered by the trial court in making its determination weigh in favor of admission, and therefore the prosecution’s burden of persuasion has been met.