Essay On Hearsay Rule

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Hearsay Rule
The history of the Hearsay Rule begins in the 1500s but it was not finalized until the early 1700s. The Hearsay rule is a rule that states that an out-of-court statement is not admissible in court. Any statement made by an individual other than the witness, not under oath, or prior to the current trial, is considered hearsay. Hearsay evidence is any statement made by a witness that is not based on that witness’s personal knowledge. (CJ Realities and Challenges, Pg. 270)
Hearsay is used in court to attempt to get the jury to believe something that was said out of court. For example, let’s say that Paul is on trial for burglary. George is testifying as a witness; however he did not actually see Paul commit a crime. He did however state that his friend Bob saw the burglary. This is an attempt …show more content…

Washington is a United States Supreme Court decision that reformulated the standard for determining when the admission of hearsay statements in criminal cases is permitted. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crawford_v._Washington) The courts decided that cross-examination is required to enter statements to court made by witnesses who are no longer available. This case drastically changed how domestic violence cases are handled by removing evidence-based prosecution. The Crawford Court's decision renders most statements inadmissible without the accuser coming to court and testifying against the person he or she is accusing. (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crawford_v._Washington)
Some individuals believe that some hearsay should be admissible and others should be excluded. In California v. Green, the Supreme Court rejected challenges to the use of statements by a witness who appeared forgetful and evasive at trail. This witness has also previously implicated the defendant while speaking with the police and in testimony at the defendants hearing. (Criminal Evidence: An Introduction, Pg. 287) The Reliability Theory comes into play with this case.

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