Hearsay Exceptions (Rules 803, 804, 807)
Evidence · Lesson 03
Hearsay Exceptions (Rules 803, 804, 807)
這一課問的是：Rule 803/804/807 之傳聞例外能否使本陳述可採？
ActorActObjectStandardConsequence
Visual Scene · the picture in your head
Issue. Does a Rule 803, 804, or 807 hearsay exception apply to admit this statement?
這一課問的是：Rule 803/804/807 之傳聞例外能否使本陳述可採？
Core Terminology · 7 must-know
Tap a card to flip and reveal the meaning.
Rule 803
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Exceptions regardless of availability.
803 例外。
Rule 804
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Exceptions requiring declarant unavailability.
804 例外。
present sense impression (803(1))
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Statement describing event made while perceiving or immediately after.
當時印象。
excited utterance (803(2))
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Statement under stress of excitement caused by event.
激動陳述。
business record (803(6))
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Records kept in regular course of business.
業務記錄。
dying declaration (804(b)(2))
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Statement under belief of imminent death about cause.
臨終陳述。
residual exception (807)
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Catch-all for trustworthy hearsay.
殘餘例外。
Issue · what this lesson is really about
Does a Rule 803, 804, or 807 hearsay exception apply to admit this statement?
這一課問的是：Rule 803/804/807 之傳聞例外能否使本陳述可採？
Trigger words & phrases that should flag this issue:
excited utterancepresent sense impressiondying declarationbusiness recordpublic record
Expression Bank · how lawyers actually say it
Six function → sentence patterns. Use these in essay applications.
| Function | English sentence | 中文 |
|---|---|---|
| Apply 803(2) | Excited utterance requires startling event + statement under continuing stress. | 激動陳述：驚嚇事件 + 持續壓力下陳述。 |
| Apply 803(6) | Business record requires regular course, contemporaneous, custodian/qualified witness. | 業務記錄須常規、即時、有資格人證明。 |
| Apply 804(b)(2) | Dying declaration: declarant believed death imminent + statement about cause. | 臨終陳述：相信即將死亡 + 關於死因。 |
| Apply 807 | Residual exception applies if equivalent guarantees of trustworthiness + necessary. | 殘餘例外：等同信賴 + 必要。 |
Rule Sentence · the workhorse
Hearsay is admissible if it falls within a recognized exception: Rule 803 lists 23 exceptions regardless of declarant availability (present sense impression, excited utterance, business records, etc.); Rule 804 lists exceptions requiring unavailability (dying declaration, former testimony, statement against interest); Rule 807 provides a residual exception for trustworthy statements.
Sentence Anatomy · 5 roles, 5 colors
Every rule sentence breaks into five visual roles.
Actor 行為人proponent提出人
Act 行為invoking exception援用例外
Object 對象hearsay statement傳聞陳述
Standard 法律標準specific exception elements具體例外要件
Consequence 後果statement admissible可採用
Casebook Snapshot · a real American case
Palmer v. Hoffman
Holding. A statement prepared in anticipation of litigation does not qualify as a "record kept in the regular course of business" under the business-records exception; the document must be made for business operations, not for litigation. The railroad's accident reports prepared after collisions fail the test.
Why it matters. Palmer cabins 803(6) — litigation-prep documents don't sneak in as business records.
Palmer：為訴訟預備之文件非業務記錄。
Common Mistakes · what trips students
✗ 804 例外不要求 unavailability。
✓ 804 requires unavailability; 803 does not.
804 須無法到場；803 不需。
✗ excited utterance 只能 spontaneous。
✓ Stress of event determines, not strict spontaneity.
事件壓力決定，非嚴格自發。
✗ business record 可包括 employee 之個人筆記。
✓ Must be kept in regular course of business.
須業務常規記錄。
Mini IRAC · build the Application
Issue. May the prosecution introduce V's statement to police, made just after a violent attack while V was shaking and crying: "D did this to me"?
Rule. Under Rule 803(2), a statement relating to a startling event made while declarant was under the stress of excitement is an excited utterance admissible without regard to availability.
Application (model). V made the statement immediately after a violent attack while shaking and crying — clearly under the stress of excitement. Because excited utterances require a startling event and a statement made while the declarant remained under stress of that event, the fact that the violent attack was a startling event and V was visibly still under stress when speaking means both elements are satisfied.
Pick the right element for each blank:
g1.
g2.
g3.
Conclusion. Therefore, V's statement is admissible as an excited utterance.
MBE Check · multiple choice
D is on trial for murder. The prosecution seeks to admit V's statement to a nurse, made on V's deathbed: "D shot me." V died from the shooting. Admissible?
Mini Essay · write the Application paragraph
Facts. In a slip-and-fall case, P offers a maintenance log entry made by store employee E on the day of the fall: "3:00pm — water on aisle 5, mopped." E is unavailable to testify. The log is maintained for daily operations.
Call. Is the log admissible?
Practice Drill · tap to build the rule
Drop the chips here in correct order:
Tap chips to add → tap chips in the target to remove: