Hearsay Evidence Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Hearsay Evidence - Essay Example "Hearsay evidence can be thought of as:- any statement made otherwise than by a person while giving oral evidence in the proceedings, which is tendered as evidence of the matters stated." http://www.forensicmed.co.uk/hearsay.htm Hearsay evidence is the second hand information that is used as evidence and it does not have any proof of its existence. It cannot be proved beyond doubt, and the doubt always exists even after the judgement. It is impossible to say that this really happened, but even the most brilliant law expert can only say that it might have happened. This made it unpalatable for the use of courts in earlier days. But now the act, looking at the importance and possibilities it holds, has made it admissible. "It occurs when a witness testifies NOT about something they personally saw or heard, but testifies about something someone else told them or said they saw. Hearsay usually involves an attempt to get some crucial fact entered into evidence that cannot be entered into evidence by any other means," http://faculty.ncwc.edu/toconnor/405/405lect11.htm In entering this as real evidence, Court will be depriving the other side a chance to process the evidence, by cross examining the witness, or verifying the evidence. There is nothing to cross-examine, as it is a kind of story, compared to other hard evidences, which glorify under solid proof. But there is an exception in the confession statement, where hearsay evidence is upheld. "The most important exception to the hearsay rule is admission or confession evidence. It is generally assumed that a party in a case would not make a statement against his or her own interests unless the statement was true" http://oasis.gov.ie/justice/evidence/hearsay_evidence.html As the confessions are an exception to the rule of Hearsay Evidence, even before the Act, a person stating another person's confession of a crime in the court, had been admissible. Victims of domestic violence sometimes could find it difficult to testify in the Courts for a variety of reasons and the statements of prosecution on their behalf might take the form of hearsay statement, or a secondary statement. While admitting these statements, Court does adhere to a lot of conditions and circumstantial proof. Statements made by the patients to the Medical officers usually are not disclosed as it comes under the priviledged category. But if disclosed, keeping the context in view, they might be admissible, even though it comes under the hearsay evidence category. The relevant rules for the hearsay evidence, are the best evidence rule, the opinion evidence rule and the self-serving evidence rule. Before the Act in question came into being, the rule prevalent was: "A.2.1. The Rule: Written or oral statements, or communicative conduct made by persons otherwise than in testimony at the proceeding in which it is offered, are inadmissible, if such statements or conduct are tendered either as proof of their truth or as proof of assertions implicit therein." http://www.irb-cisr.gc.ca/en/about/publications/weighevid/evidence_app_e.htm Hearsay evidence was thought to be untrustworthy, for the following