Opinion ID: 1452933
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Admission of the Transcript for Impeachment

Text: It is not disputed by the parties that a prior inconsistent statement may be used to impeach the credibility of a witness, if a proper foundation is laid, in accordance with HRS §§ 621-23 and 621-24. The dispute here centers around whether or not defendant's two accounts differ in such a way as to render them inconsistent. Whether an omission to state previously a fact now asserted constitutes an inconsistency, sufficient to allow the previous statement to be shown, depends upon the circumstances under which the prior statement was made. Not every omission will constitute such an inconsistency. But where the prior circumstances were such that the speaker could have been expected to state the omitted fact, either because he was asked specifically about it, or because he was purporting to render a full and complete account of the transaction or occurrence, and the omitted fact was an important and material one, so that it would have been natural to state it, the omission gives rise to a justifiable inference that the omitted fact was omitted because it did not exist. Langan v. Pianowski, 307 Mass. 149, 151, 29 N.E.2d 700, 701 (1940); Erickson v. Erickson & Co., 212 Minn. 119, 125, 2 N.W.2d 824, 827 (1942); 3 Wigmore, Evidence § 1042 (3rd ed. 1940); 1 Greenleaf, Evidence § 462a (16th ed. 1899). The inference is of course not conclusive, and the trier of fact need not draw it; but it is a justifiable inference, and in proper circumstances a party should be allowed to make use of it. We think that such circumstances were present here. In the prior trial, the defendant took the stand in his own behalf and was thoroughly questioned about the circumstances of the accident. The sequence of events was covered more than once by counsel in those proceedings, and the defendant purported to give a full and complete account of it. Furthermore, we think that the fact of the crash was an important and material fact. Its presence could make a significant difference to a trier of fact in the determination of exactly who was negligent in this rather confusing and ambiguous fact situation. A crash prior to the collision of the defendant's and plaintiffs' cars could give rise to an inference, for example, that plaintiffs were not, as they contended, proceeding normally within the center lane right up until the moment of impact with the defendant's car. Or it might give rise to an inference that the plaintiffs' vehicle had already gone out of control before being struck by the defendant's vehicle. Other possibilities, too, might justifiably occur to a trier of fact confronted by this piece of evidence. In addition, this fact is not one that is of abstruse legal importance only; it is clearly the kind of fact that would be natural to mention if one were giving an account of how the accident happened. In these circumstances, we think that the plaintiffs should have been allowed to show that this fact had been omitted from defendant's account of the accident at the prior trial.