§ 11.12 Related Issues

• Jurisdiction: United States

§ 11.12 Related Issues

Statute of limitations. Several cases have involved prior crimes for which the statute of limitations has expired. Most courts have held that this fact does not preclude admission of other-acts evidence,⁹² finding that the reasons for statutes of limitations are inapposite in this context: "The statute of limitations is a defense to prosecution, not a rule of evidence. Therefore, once prosecution is timely instituted, the statute of limitations has no bearing on the admissibility of evidence. It would be a bizarre result indeed if a crime properly prosecuted within the limitations period could not be proven because an essential element, such as intent, could only be established by proof of incidents occurring outside the period."⁹³

Exclusionary rule. The Fourth Amendment's exclusionary rule does not automatically preclude the use of other-acts evidence.⁹⁴

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Notes:

^[92] E.g., United States v. DeFiore, 720 F.2d 757, 764 (2d Cir. 1983); United States v. Means, 695 F.2d 811, 816 (5th Cir. 1983); United States v. Blosser, 440 F.2d 697, 699 (10th Cir. 1971).

^[93] United States v. Ashdown, 509 F.2d 793, 798 (5th Cir. 1975).

^[94] See United States v. Hill, 60 F.3d 672, 679 (10th Cir. 1995) (exclusionary rule does apply to evidence offered under Rule 404(b), but "[w]here 'the connection between police misconduct and evidence of a crime is sufficiently attenuated,' . . . exclusion neither protects the constitutional principles the rule was designed to protect, nor advances deterrence enough to justify...