pp. 821-37.
The business record you offered into evidence last week is not just a question of hearsay. The piece of paper itself is also an exhibit, and there are rules of evidence covering exhibits. The most important is that exhibits must be authenticated. This is actually very easy. Don't make it into something hard. Just hand it to a witness (with personal knowledge, of course), and ask the witness what the item is. You have to do this even though everyone in the courtroom already knows what it is.
The rules of exhibit authentication distinguish between "real" evidence (things actually involved in the event itself, such as the murder weapon or the contract alleged to have been breached), and "illustrative" evidence (things made up later and used to illustrate the event, such as a diagram or scale model). In either event, a witness is usually required to authenticate it, and the witness must have personal knowledge of the event itself, so the witness can testify that this exhibit is the actual one involved in the event, or is a fair and accurate illustration of some object involved in the event.
Problem 18-2 on page 829. Personal injury/traffic accident case.
(1) How would you authenticate a photograph of the scene? Which witnesses could authenticate it and what two questions would you ask?
Here are your choices:
a) The plaintiff, Dirk
b) The defendant, Jean
c) The defendant's daughter
d) A bystander who saw the accident
e) A police officer who investigated the accident
f) An ambulance driver who transported Dirk to the hospital
g) The emergency room admitting nurse who wouldn't let him see a doctor until he produced an insurance card
h) The ER physician
i) The tow truck operator who towed both vehicles to the repair shop
j) A paralegal for plaintiff's attorney who photographed the scene a month after the accident
When you think you know the answer, click here .