NCJ Number
146337
Journal
American Journal of Criminal Law Volume: 21 Dated: special issue (Fall 1993) Pages: 127-222
Date Published
1993
Length
96 pages
Annotation
This article examines three cases in which the court set down guidelines for admission of uncharged sexual misconduct in sex offender cases.
Abstract
The trial and conviction of Oscar Wilde, wherein admitted proof of his prior sexual misconduct was allowed to prove Wilde's predisposition to engage in sodomy, serves as the background for this examination of United States courts' handling of uncharged sexual misconduct in sex offender cases. The article profiles sex offender cases in Delaware, Indiana, and Rhode Island. There is little practical difference in the outcome of the three decisions. Uncharged sexual misconduct will be admitted in sex offender cases, given the right conditions, when the facts presented can be deemed relevant and of probative value. In addition to the three cases already referred to, the article discusses: (1) The Logical Relevance of Uncharged Misconduct Evidence in Sex Offender Cases; (2) The Development of the Use of Uncharged Sexual Misconduct Evidence in Sex Offender Cases; and (3) The Modern Rationales for Admission of Evidence of Uncharged Sexual Misconduct. Footnotes