Questions about the hearsay status of nonverbal conduct are also included. The exercise deals only with the concept of hearsay, not with exceptions to the hearsay rule. This lesson, which emphasizes Supreme Court decisions about the sixth amendment's requirement that an accused be confronted with the witnesses against him, should be helpful to teachers of evidence and criminal procedure. The lesson is designed to be useful both for students who have, or for those who have not, studied the cases. Students with some exposure to this material will encounter a challenging set of hypotheticals that will thoroughly test their understanding.
Appropriate feedback appears whether the student's answer is correct or incorrect.
The lesson begins by noting the overlapping purposes of the hearsay rule and confrontation clause, but it also highlights the differences between the two. The lesson contains links to carefully edited versions of the relevant cases. The first section of this lesson, Baseline Hearsay, is designed to introduce students to the definition of hearsay in the Federal Rules of Evidence, as the courts typically apply it. They Assert, which addresses more difficult and controversial questions, particularly issues pertaining to implied assertions. The second section, Hearsay Arguments, focuses on the underpinnings of the hearsay definition and on less conventional understandings of that definition.