I have a question about whether hearsay is admissible in court in Canada. Suppose you are on trial, I know you are allowed to have character witnesses testify about your good character, but I was wondering if people who have had a long-ago grudge against you would be allowed to make negative comments about you in court or would it not be allowed because it might be predjudicial to a judge and jury.

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Originally Posted by earl237

but I was wondering if people who have had a long-ago grudge against you would be allowed to make negative comments about you in court or would it not be allowed because it might be predjudicial to a judge and jury.

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Hello earl:

The only time testimony about the character of the defendant would come into play is during sentencing. During the trial, nobody cares whether he's a good guy or not... The only care is whether he did it..

So, since character references are ALL hearsay, negative ones will be accepted just like the positive ones would be.

excon

PS> I'm speaking about the US, of course... But, I'll bet our neighbors to the North aren't too much different.