A1398

Permits court to admit evidence of prior offenses in domestic violence, child abuse, and sex offense prosecutions.

This bill allows the admission of evidence of prior acts of domestic violence, child abuse, and sex offenses in criminal prosecutions for those offenses. The evidence may be introduced by the prosecution but cannot be offered to prove conduct on a specific occasion. The evidence may only be admitted after a determination by the trial judge that it is admissible under Rule 403 of the New Jersey Rules of Evidence. This change aims to provide relevant, probative evidence of an offender's guilt and to refute common defenses that have historically enabled offenders to evade accountability.