Johnson v. State

*503ON PETITION TO TRANSFER

SULLIVAN, Justice.

This case implicates the following principle enunciated by Chief Justice Shepard in Penley v. State (1987), Ind., 506 N.E.2d 806:

The notion that the State may not punish a person for his character is one of the foundations of our system of jurisprudence. Evidence of misconduct other than that with which one is charged ("uncharged misconduct") will naturally give rise to the inference that the defendant is of bad character. This, in turn, poses the danger that the jury will convict the defendant solely on this inference.

Id. at 808.

On June 18th 1992, a…