NCJ Number
84345
Date Published
Unknown
Length
0 pages
Annotation
The lecturer explains judicial decisions in cases where the business records exception to the rule against hearsay was not held and discusses the admissibility of other exceptions to the hearsay rule -- the dying declaration and 'reliable' (commonsense) evidence.
Abstract
Under the business records exception, it must be proved that the transaction in question was recorded on the record. This is hearsay within hearsay, which is not excluded under the hearsay rule. Moreover, trial judges may exclude the business records exception not only because the exception is hearsay but also because it is inherently suspect. Dying declarations are admissible as hearsay if it can be proved that the declarer was aware of the imminence of death. Proof can only be based on the declarer's actual statement of awareness and not on circumstantial evidence, a police officer's statement, or the declarer's request for a priest. A defendant's dying declaration is usually admissible in murder/manslaughter cases. The Federal Rules of Evidence state that dying declarations are available only in homicide cases but can be received in civil actions. The Rules also state that reliable evidence (i.e., an old newspaper clipping) is admissible as hearsay. For a definition of hearsay and additional exceptions to the rule, see NCJ 84342-44.