Chaplin
I humbly bow to you sir for your command of language and logic.
creeper
Seriously--Black's law dictionary? Read some modern evidence codes my man.
An out of court statement proffered for the truth of the matter includes all manner of things stated in or portrayed by different forms of media in this modern world--books, newsprint, photos, videos, computer downloads, etc. It certainly is not limited to statements uttered by a human being, witness or otherwise. The very same evidentiary concerns exist--ability to cross-exam, etc. If it's not being offered for the truth of the matter asserted, then a relevance objection is certainly germain to the discussion.
The videos in your patrol units, as with the security cameras my clients use, regularly come in under the business records exception to the HEARSAY Rule--they are still hearsay in the first instance. They tend to make it in darn near automatically, and their admission has been codified if certain preconditions are met--but they still are hearsay and contain hearsay (some jurisdictions allow apportionment of hearsay and non-hearsay contained within the videos). The video here was not created for a business purpose. Clearly it was not an admission--Pat didn't make it. Might it still make it in for a non-hearsay purpose (not for the truth of the matter or to impeach)? Yes--and we both know you can't trust a juror to know the difference.
Yes--full context is needed, and the foundational issues must be answered--neither of which have been accomplished here.
But to say a video, including the ones in your patrol units are not hearsay? Please sir--tell me your District Attorneys have a better grasp on the evidence code of your jurisdiction when they seek to introduce the evidence you provide. Like I said, it may get in so quickly you don't notice--and I note that New York has codified its admission in both the civil and criminal contexts--but it's still a medium which includes hearsay.
I learned federal evidence from Judge Wallace, former Chief Judge of the Ninth Circuit, state evidence from a brillant guy here in California named Bernie Witkin (the dean of California law), and after 22+ years of practice, I teach evidence to a whole slew of youngins. But what the heck do I know?
