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§ 1106 [Plaintiff Sexual Conduct Evidence in Sexual Misconduct Cases]

Division 9: Evidence Affected or Excluded by Extrinsic Policies | Chapter 1: Evidence of Character, Habit, or Custom

Section titles shown in [brackets] are editorial additions for navigation purposes and are not part of the official statute.

(a) In any civil action alleging conduct which constitutes sexual harassment, sexual assault, or sexual battery, opinion evidence, reputation evidence, and evidence of specific instances of the plaintiff’s sexual conduct, or any of that evidence, is not admissible by the defendant in order to:

(1) Prove consent by the plaintiff.

(2) Prove absence of injury suffered by the plaintiff, unless the injury alleged by the plaintiff is in the nature of loss of consortium.

(3) Attack the credibility of the plaintiff’s testimony on consent or the absence of injury suffered by the plaintiff.

(b) Subdivision (a) does not apply to evidence of the plaintiff’s sexual conduct with the alleged perpetrator.

(c) Notwithstanding subdivision (b), in any civil action brought pursuant to Section 1708.5 of the Civil Code involving a minor and an adult as described in Section 1708.5.5 of the Civil Code, evidence of the plaintiff minor’s sexual conduct with the defendant adult shall not be admissible to prove consent by the plaintiff or the absence of injury to the plaintiff.

(d) If the plaintiff introduces evidence, including testimony of a witness, or the plaintiff as a witness gives testimony, and the evidence or testimony relates to the plaintiff’s sexual conduct, the defendant may cross-examine the witness who gives the testimony and offer relevant evidence limited specifically to the rebuttal of the evidence introduced by the plaintiff or given by the plaintiff.

(e) This section shall not be construed to make inadmissible any evidence offered to attack the credibility of the plaintiff’s testimony as to something other than consent or absence of injury as provided in Section 783.

Amendment history: Amended by Stats. 2024, Ch. 993, Sec. 1. (SB 1386) Effective January 1, 2025.