Excited utterances are an exception to hearsay testimony and can be used in court when...

Excited utterances are an exception to hearsay testimony and can be used in court when...

• A. They are admissible if the witness is a police officer
• B. They are admissible only if recorded on video
• C. They are an exception to hearsay and can be used in court
• D. They require corroboration

Answer: (C)

The idea being tested is that excited utterances are a hearsay exception because statements made while the speaker is still under the stress of a startling event are considered reliable enough for court. That spontaneity is the key: if a person speaks about the event immediately after it happens, before they’ve had time to fabricate or alter what they’re saying, the statement can be admitted as evidence even though it’s hearsay. This exception doesn’t depend on who the declarant is—whether the witness is a police officer or someone else is irrelevant—and it doesn’t require any special recording. An excited utterance can be spoken aloud, written, or recorded; what matters is that it was made while the person was still energized by the excitement of the event and relates to that event. There’s no need for corroboration; the reliability is grounded in the spontaneous nature of the remark, not in additional confirming evidence. So, excited utterances can be used in court as a hearsay exception when the statement is made about the startling event while the declarant remains under the influence of the initial excitement.

The idea being tested is that excited utterances are a hearsay exception because statements made while the speaker is still under the stress of a startling event are considered reliable enough for court. That spontaneity is the key: if a person speaks about the event immediately after it happens, before they’ve had time to fabricate or alter what they’re saying, the statement can be admitted as evidence even though it’s hearsay.

This exception doesn’t depend on who the declarant is—whether the witness is a police officer or someone else is irrelevant—and it doesn’t require any special recording. An excited utterance can be spoken aloud, written, or recorded; what matters is that it was made while the person was still energized by the excitement of the event and relates to that event. There’s no need for corroboration; the reliability is grounded in the spontaneous nature of the remark, not in additional confirming evidence.

So, excited utterances can be used in court as a hearsay exception when the statement is made about the startling event while the declarant remains under the influence of the initial excitement.