Can my prior record come in at trial?

The general rule is that prior offenses aren't admissible to suggest you have a propensity to commit crimes. That's the protection.

Three ways priors get in anyway.

Impeachment if you testify. Certain prior convictions can be used to attack credibility. In most circumstances the jury learns of the existence and number rather than the details — but that's enough.

Williams Rule evidence. Prior acts admitted for a purpose other than propensity, addressed next.

Where a prior is an element. Felon in possession is the clearest example; the prior conviction is part of what the State must prove.

What this means for strategy. A defendant with a record faces a harder decision about testifying, because doing so may introduce information the jury would never otherwise hear. That's frequently the deciding factor.

Motions in limine can address what comes in and how it's described, and that litigation happens before the jury hears anything.