Hernandez v. State

OPINION

HEDGES, Justice.

A jury found appellant guilty of possession of cocaine weighing more than one gram and *755less than four grams. The trial judge sentenced him to 35 years in prison. In a single point of error, appellant asserts that the trial judge erred in allowing the State to impeach him with evidence of a 1977 felony conviction. We reverse and remand.

Generally, when a defendant testifies, prior convictions for felonies or misdemeanors involving moral turpitude may be admitted in evidence as impeachment. Tex.R. Evid. 609(a).1 The trial judge should conduct a balancing test to determine…