Paralegal Certification PrepLitigationEasy
A paralegal is transcribing notes from a client interview in a civil lawsuit. The client states that they overheard a witness, immediately after a car accident, exclaim, 'Oh my god, I can't believe that truck just ran the red light!' The attorney wants to use this statement at trial to prove the truck ran the red light. The paralegal recognizes that this statement, though hearsay, might be admissible under a specific exception. Which hearsay exception most likely applies to this statement?
- ADying Declaration
- BBusiness Record Exception
- CStatement Against Interest
- DPresent Sense Impression
Show answer & explanationAnswer & explanation
Correct answer: D. Present Sense Impression
A 'present sense impression' is a statement describing or explaining an event or condition made while or immediately after the declarant perceived it. The spontaneity of the statement provides reliability, making it an exception to the hearsay rule.
Why the other options are wrong
- A. A Dying Declaration is a statement made by a declarant who believes their death is imminent and concerns the cause or circumstances of their death.
- B. The Business Record Exception applies to records kept in the ordinary course of business, not spontaneous utterances.
- C. A Statement Against Interest is made by someone unavailable to testify and is so contrary to their interests that a reasonable person wouldn't have made it unless true.
Present Sense Impression
A statement describing or explaining an event or condition made while or immediately after the declarant perceived it, admissible as an exception to the hearsay rule.
- Spontaneous utterance
- Describes event as it happens or immediately after
- Reliability comes from lack of time to fabricate
Memory trick: Hearsay is out, but 'Present Sense' lets in words spoken right in the moment.