Understanding Hearsay in Court

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In this video we will discuss hearsay. Hearsay is a type of testimony that is generally prohibited in court. There are some exceptions though. Hearsay usually involves someone testifying about what someone else said or wrote. The definition of hearsay is an out-of-court statement offered in court for the truth of the matter asserted. An out-of-court statement means a statement made by someone who's not in court, meaning that it's an unsworn statement. Nobody swore that the statement was true when testifying in court. Witnesses must swear to tell the truth. So let's say we have David and we have Wally and they meet on the street. This is not testimony in court. And David tells Wally that he saw Debbie go to a bank early in the morning. So David saying that he saw Debbie go to the bank is our out-of-court statement. Now let's say sometime later Debbie goes on trial. She's on trial for stealing money from the bank. The prosecutor wants to prove that Debbie went to the bank. Can he ask Wally to testify that David said that he saw Debbie go to the bank early in the morning? Maybe not because that statement is hearsay. Wally's testimony is hearsay because he is testifying about David's out-of-court statement and it's being offered for its truth that Debbie went to the bank. The prosecutor wants the jury to believe that David really saw Debbie go to the bank. If the jury believes that what Wally said is true the jury might be more likely to convict Debbie. Of course, David could testify as to what he saw and that would not be hearsay. If you'd like to discuss hearsay or any other matter related to US law stop by the message board (no longer active please visit my website uslawessentials.com) and please visit my blog also feel free to submit your comments below and to send me an email.