State v. Gowan

13 P.3d 376 (2000)

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State v. Gowan

Montana Supreme Court
13 P.3d 376 (2000)

Facts

Richard Gowan (defendant) was on trial for selling drugs. Gowan had a prior conviction for perjury. Before trial, the trial court ruled that evidence of Gowan’s perjury conviction was inadmissible character evidence. At trial, Gowan called Kris McPherson as a witness. McPherson was not identified as a character witness and did not testify about any character issues on direct examination. However, after answering a question during cross-examination, McPherson added an extra statement about Gowan being an honest and trusting person. The trial court ruled that this was character evidence from a defense witness that opened the door for rebuttal character testimony attacking Gowan’s character trait of honesty. Rebuttal evidence was then admitted to show Gowan’s propensity for dishonesty, including evidence of his previous perjury conviction and a lawsuit against him for not delivering a car title as promised. The jury convicted Gowan of the drug-sale charges, and Gowan appealed.

Rule of Law

Issue

Holding and Reasoning (Hunt, J.)

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