The following excerpt is from McGuire v. Estelle, 902 F.2d 749 (9th Cir. 1990):
Furthermore, we find the introduction of such prior injury evidence highly prejudicial. The prosecution introduced evidence of prior injuries to the baby to establish that appellant was a child abuser, and for no other purpose, in a murder trial for the death of his child. The trial court incorrectly admitted the evidence pursuant to California law allowing past injury evidence to establish the "Battered Child Syndrome." The Battered Child Syndrome allows proof of past injuries to prove the child's present injuries did not occur accidentally. See People v. Jackson, 18 Cal.App.3d 504, 506, 95 Cal.Rptr. 919, 921 (1971); Landeros v. Flood, 17 Cal.3d 399, 409, 551 P.2d 389, 393, 131 Cal.Rptr. 69, 73 (1976).
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