COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. JOHN MINICH

COMMONWEALTH OF PENNSYLVANIA v. JOHN MINICH No. 711 and 712 WDA 2008 2010 PA Super 66 Atlantic: n/a Filed: 4/21/2010
	Appeal from the Order April 14, 2008 Court of Common Pleas, Jefferson County, Criminal Division at Nos. CP-33-CR-0000518-2007 and CP-33-CR-0000083-2008
Before: BOWES, DONOHUE and POPOVICH, JJ.
Opinion by: DONOHUE, J.
In this appeal, the Commonwealth challenges the trial court’s denial of a motion in limine seeking to preclude defense counsel from impeaching the credibility of the alleged victim of the crimes at issue through cross-examination and extrinsic evidence tending to show that the alleged victim lied about matters unrelated to the case. This case raises an issue of first impression in Pennsylvania, namely the interplay between Pennsylvania Rule of Evidence (Pa.R.E.) 608, which deals specifically with character evidence relating to the truthfulness of a witness, and Pa.R.E. 404(a)(2)(i), which addresses the admissibility of evidence of a “pertinent trait of character” of a victim who testifies at trial. Because we conclude that Pa.R.E. 608 codifies Pennsylvania law defining the limits of permissible evidence to impeach or bolster any witness’s credibility and precludes the use of specific instances of conduct, we reverse the trial court’s denial of the Commonwealth’s motion in limine and remand the case for trial consistent with this decision.

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