ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the definition of the expression 'character' in criminal proceedings. It provides extracts from judgments on cases. In practice, good character evidence of the defendant simply means that the defendant has no previous convictions. It is now an established principle that, where a defendant of good character has given evidence, it is no longer sufficient for the judge to comment in general terms. The certified question was intended to raise the problem whether a defendant without any previous convictions may 'lose' his good character by reason of other criminal behaviour. When Parliament by the Act of 1898 effected a change in the general law and made the prisoner in every case a competent witness, it was in an evident difficulty, and it pursued the familiar English system of compromise. Section 98 of the Criminal Justice Act 2003 identifies the types of evidence the admissibility of which will be determined by the new statutory regime.
