Hearsay

Hearsay is an out-of-court statement that is offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted in the statement. If the statement is not offered to prove the truth of what it says, then it is not hearsay.

For example, in a prosecution for credit fraud, computer printouts related to the defendant’s accounts, kept by the collections department of the credit card company, would meet the core definition of hearsay because they would be offered to prove the truth of their contents. On the other hand, in a prosecution for online solicitation of a minor, the reply e-mails from the victim, if introduced simply to show con­tact between the defendant and victim rather than for the truth of their con­tents, would not meet the core definition of hearsay. They would be relevant for the fact that the defendant received them, not for what they say.