During a jury trial for second degree murder, the defence brought a Corbett application seeking to restrict cross‑examination of the accused on prior convictions should he testify.
The accused had an extensive criminal record containing numerous recent offences, including robbery, break and enter, and breaches of court orders.
The court balanced probative value against the risk of prejudice and propensity reasoning.
Convictions for assault and assault with a weapon were excluded due to their similarity to the charged offence and the risk that the jury might improperly infer a violent disposition.
Other convictions, including robbery, were permitted because of their relevance to credibility and because exclusion would create a misleading picture of the accused’s criminal history.
