Also known as: FRE 803 · Fed. R. Evid. 803 · Rule 803
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A collection of hearsay exceptions that permit admission of out-of-court statements for their truth even when the declarant is available to testify.
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An environmental group offers a deceased consultant's field log showing high toxin levels near a factory outflow. The log was made contemporaneously under standard protocols and later lab tests partially confirmed the readings. The court admits the log because the circumstances and corroboration supply sufficient guarantees of trustworthiness and the evidence is more probative than other reasonably obtainable proof.
A pilot's family sues an aircraft manufacturer after a crash. The government offers an NTSB report containing both factual observations and the agency's conclusion that pilot error caused the accident. The court admits the entire report because public records under Rule 803(8) include factual findings and opinions from authorized investigations.
Survivors of a plane crash sue the manufacturer. The defense offers an NTSB report that concludes the crash resulted from pilot error rather than any mechanical defect. The court admits the report's conclusions because they constitute factual findings resulting from an official investigation.
The state offers a lab report showing the defendant's blood alcohol level. The analyst who performed the test does not testify, but a supervisor who reviewed the results does. The court excludes the report because the defendant has a right to confront the actual analyst who certified the findings.
Prosecutors introduce sworn certificates from lab analysts stating that substances seized from the defendant were cocaine. The analysts do not appear at trial. The court holds the certificates inadmissible because they are testimonial statements requiring confrontation.
A child victim testifies at trial about abuse. The government offers the child's earlier consistent statement made to a doctor. The court admits the statement only to rebut a charge of recent fabrication and not as substantive evidence of the abuse.
No. Rule 803 exceptions apply regardless of whether the declarant is available to testify.
Rule 803(8) covers public records and reports containing factual observations as well as factual findings, opinions, and conclusions from authorized investigations.
A public record may be excluded if the opponent shows that the source of information or other circumstances indicate a lack of trustworthiness.
…Opinion of Justice Brennan In this action we address a longstanding conflict among the Federal Courts of Appeals over whether Federal Rule of Evidence 803(8)(C), which provides an exception to the hearsay rule for public investigatory reports containing "factual findings," extends to conclusions and opinions contained in such reports. We also…