Massey

Here we affirm the conviction of Leroy Jack Massey for lewd or lascivious acts with a child under the age of 14. (Pen. Code, § 288, subd. (a).) 1 , *

In 1967 Massey was convicted of violating sections 288, subdivision (a) and 288a (oral copulation). In 1974 Massey was again convicted of violating sections 288, subdivision (a) and 288a, crimes identical or similar to the ones charged in the instant proceedings. At trial Massey moved to bar the use of these prior offenses to impeach his credibility as a witness. The trial court found that because the prior offenses involved child molestation, they were crimes of moral turpitude. Upon weighing the prejudice to the jury against the probative value of credibility, the court allowed the prior *822 offenses to be used for impeachment, but in a sanitized form. The jury learned only that Massey was twice convicted of undesignated felonies in 1967 and 1974.

In People v. Castro (1985) 38 Cal.3d 301 [ 211 Cal.Rptr. 719 , 696 P.2d 111 ], our Supreme Court considered the use of prior felonies for impeachment purposes in the light of article I, section 28, subdivision (f) of the Constitution—enacted in 1982 as the “Victim’s Bill of…