Olden v. Kentucky

488 U.S. 227 (1988)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

Harris (D) was charged with raping Matthews. He allegedly met Matthews in a bar, induced her to go outside and get into his car, drove her to another location where he raped her, and then drove her to a dump, where he raped her again. At Matthews' request, D then dropped her near Russell's home. Russell was D's half-brother, and Matthews had been on her way to see him when the incident occurred. At trial, D's defense was consent. Additionally, he attempted to impeach Matthews' testimony by offering evidence that, at the time of the incident, Matthews and Russell were involved in an extramarital relationship, although both were married to others. At the time of trial, each had separated from their respective spouses and were cohabiting. D argued that the evidence was necessary to establish Matthews' motive to lie to protect her relationship with Russell. The court refused to admit the testimony, finding that it could create extreme prejudice toward Matthews since she was white and Russell was black. The court specifically found that the evidence was not barred by the state's rape shield law.