State v. Brunson

The judgment of the Court was announced by

STEIN, J.

N.J.S.A. 2A:81-12 permits the introduction into evidence of a witness’s prior convictions for the purpose of affecting the credibility of that witness. We interpreted that statute in State v. Sands, 76 N.J. 127, 386 A.2d 378 (1978), and concluded that whether a prior conviction may be admitted to impeach a testifying criminal defendant is a decision that rests within the sound discretion of the trial court. In Sands, we set forth broad guidelines for trial courts to follow in deciding whether the probative value of a prior conviction with…