Generally, because of the prejudice it would create, a defendant cannot be questioned about other crimes for which he is not on trial. ( People v. Carradine (1983), 114 Ill. App.3d 82, 87, 448 N.E.2d 569, 573.) But "[i]t is * * * clear that a prosecutor may cross-examine regarding any other convictions when a witness himself has `opened the door' by testifying on direct examination regarding some aspect of his criminal record."
However, it is also settled that a prosecutor may cross-examine a witness regarding his prior convictions where the witness "opens the door" by testifying on direct examination regarding some aspect of his criminal record. People v. Carradine (1983), 114 Ill. App.3d 82, 448 N.E.2d 569; People v. Brown (1978), 61 Ill. App.3d 180, 377 N.E.2d 1201. • 19 Here, on direct examination, defendant Bunch testified that he had been arrested for auto theft as a juvenile.