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Hearsay Evidence and Children

NCJ Number
222121
Author(s)
Alison Cunningham M.A.; Pamela Hurley M.Ed.
Date Published
2007
Length
18 pages
Annotation
The focus of this handbook is on the use of children’s out-of-court statements as evidence, offering aid to frontline justice professionals who use special accommodations and testimonial aids for young witnesses in criminal proceedings.
Abstract
Hearsay is secondhand information, when a witness testifies not about something he or she witnessed or experienced (direct evidence) but about what someone else said. As a general rule, these “out-of-court statements” are not admissible. This is the hearsay rule. This topic usually comes into play when a child discloses information about a criminal victimization but cannot testify, because he/she is too young to testify. The recipient of the disclosure may be permitted to repeat the child’s statement in court. Because of young age, emotional trauma, or the passage of time, some children cannot give direct evidence. In 1990, the Supreme Court of Canada first ruled that a child’s out-of-court statement is admissible when reasonably necessary and where the circumstances suggest it is reliable. In other words, if a child describes events related to a criminal victimization, but is unable or unavailable to testify, the person who received the information can repeat the child’s words from the witness box; this is hearsay evidence. The other six handbooks in this series on using special accommodations and testimonial aids to facilitate the testimony of children are entitled: Overview of Issues Related to Child Testimony, Testimony Outside the Courtroom, Witness Screens, Video-recorded Evidence, Designated Support Person, and Children and Teenagers Testifying in Domestic Violence Cases. List of suggest reading