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Res gestae
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- This article is for the legal term 'Res Gestae'. For the article on the record of the accomplishments of the first Roman emperor, Augustus, see the article for Res Gestae Divi Augusti.
Res gestae (a Latin phrase meaning "things done") is an exception to the rule against Hearsay evidence. Res gestae is based on the belief that because certain statements are made naturally, spontaneously and without deliberation during the course of an event, they leave little room for misunderstanding/misinterpretation upon hearing by someone else( i.e. by the witness who will later repeat the statement to the court) and thus the courts believe that such statements carry a high degree of credibility. Evidence which can be admitted into evidence as Res gestae fall into three headings:
- Words or phrases which either form part of, or explain a physical act,
- Exclamations which are so spontaneous as to belie concoction, and
- Statements which are evidence as to someone's state of mind.
(In some jurisdictions the Res gestae exception has also been used to admit police sketches.[1])
The following scenario is an example of types one and two:
Imagine then a young woman standing on the side of a main road (the witness). She sees some commotion across the street. On the opposite side of the road to her she sees an old man shout 'The bank is being robbed!' as a young man runs out of a building and away down the street. The old man is never found (so can't appear in court and repeat what he said) but the woman repeats what she heard him say. Such a statement would be considered trustworthy for the purpose of admission as evidence because the statement was made concurrently with the event and there is little chance that the witness repeating the hearsay could have misunderstood its meaning or the speaker's intentions.
Res gestae is also used to refer to those facts or things done which form the basis or gravamen for a legal action.
- ^ Commonwealth v. Dugan, 381 A.2d 967 (Pa. Super. 1977)