Rule 5-609 - Impeachment by Evidence of Conviction of Crime(a) Generally. For the purpose of attacking the credibility of a witness, evidence that the witness has been convicted of a crime shall be admitted if elicited from the witness or established by public record during examination of the witness, but only if (1) the crime was an infamous crime or other crime relevant to the witness's credibility and (2) the court determines that the probative value of admitting this evidence outweighs the danger of unfair prejudice to the witness or the objecting party. Cross reference: Code, Courts Article, § 10-905.
Committee note: The requirement that the conviction, when offered for purposes of impeachment, be brought out during examination of the witness is for the protection of the witness. It does not apply to impeachment by evidence of prior conviction of a hearsay declarant who does not testify.
(b)Time Limit. Evidence of a conviction is not admissible under this Rule if a period of more than 15 years has elapsed since the date of the conviction, except as to a conviction for perjury for which no time limit applies.(c)Other Limitations. Evidence of a conviction otherwise admissible under section (a) of this Rule shall be excluded if:(1) the conviction has been reversed or vacated;(2) the conviction has been the subject of a pardon; or(3) an appeal or application for leave to appeal from the judgment of conviction is pending, or the time for noting an appeal or filing an application for leave to appeal has not expired.(d)Effect of Plea of Nolo Contendere. For purposes of this Rule, "conviction includes a plea of nolo contendere followed by a sentence, whether or not the sentence is suspended. Committee note: See Code, Courts Article, § 3-8A-23 for the effect of juvenile adjudications and for restrictions on their admissibility as evidence generally. Evidence of these adjudications may be admissible under the Confrontation Clause to show bias; see Davis v. Alaska, 415 U.S. 308 (1974).
This Rule is derived from F.R.Ev. 609 and Rule 1-502.
Adopted Dec. 15, 1993, eff. 7/1/1994. Amended Dec. 4, 2007, eff. 1/1/2008; 12/13/2016, eff. 4/1/2017.HISTORICAL NOTES
2007 Orders
The December 4, 2007, order, updated a statutory reference in the Committee note following sec. (d).
2016 Orders
The December 13, 2016, order added an exception as to a conviction for perjury in (b).