Jose Walter Claros v. United States

When a criminal defendant timely objects to a trial court’s evidentiary ruling, this Court and every court of appeals except the Ninth Circuit hold that the government bears the burden to show the error was harmless. By contrast, the Ninth Circuit holds that “a defendant must still prove that the error or defect was prejudicial.” United States v. Torres, 794 F.3d 1053, 1061 (9th Cir. 2015) (emphasis added). The question presented is: Which party bears the burden to show prejudice when a defendant timely objects to a trial court’s erroneous evidentiary ruling. prefix