Opinion ID: 722593
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: The Admission of the Transcript

Text: 25 Workinger next contends that the district court abused its discretion when it admitted the transcript of his recorded deposition into evidence. Workinger asserts that the transcript violated the best evidence rule, Fed.R.Evid. 1002; that the transcript was hearsay, Fed.R.Evid. 801 and 802; and that the transcript was not sufficiently authenticated as required by Fed.R.Evid. 901(b)(1).
26 Workinger's claim that the admission of a transcript violated the best evidence rule is otiose. See Fed.R.Evid. 1002. The rule provides that: To prove the content of a writing, recording, or photograph, the original writing, recording, or photograph is required, except as otherwise provided in these rules or by Act of Congress. Here the government sought to prove the content of the tape made during Workinger's deposition. The tape, therefore, was the best evidence of its own content. See United States v. Gonzales-Benitez, 537 F.2d 1051, 1053 (9th Cir.), cert. denied, 429 U.S. 923, 97 S.Ct. 323, 50 L.Ed.2d 291 (1976). However, the tape was not available because it had been erased by its owner, Mr. Johnson, prior to the trial. That had been done in the ordinary course of his business and not at the behest of the government. Therefore, use of the tape itself was not required. See Fed.R.Evid. 1004(1); see also United States v. Ross, 33 F.3d 1507, 1513-14 (11th Cir.1994), cert. denied, --- U.S. ----, 115 S.Ct. 2558, 132 L.Ed.2d 812 (1995). The best evidence rule was not violated. 27 We, of course, are well aware of the fact that a tape recording cannot be said to be the best evidence of a conversation when a party seeks to call a participant in or observer of the conversation to testify to it. In that instance, the best evidence rule has no application at all. See Gonzales-Benitez, 537 F.2d at 1053-54. That is not this case. 28 It is true that, ultimately, the transcript of the tape was intended to reflect the content of the conversation that took place. But, more proximately, it was intended to reflect the content of the tape itself. When Johnson's secretary was given the tape and told to transcribe it, what she did was prepare a document which purported to indicate what she heard on the tape. But if somebody wanted to know the content of that tape, it itself was the best evidence of that. A different rule would lead to transcripts being submitted with the admonition Trust me, the transcript does reflect what was taped. Indeed, it would be like having the secretary come to court to testify, I have listened to the tape, and here is what it says. That cannot be right; it is precisely what the best evidence rule was designed to avoid. 29 Thus, again, the tape was the best evidence of what was recorded upon it, but the best evidence rule was not violated in this case.
30 Workinger next contends that the transcripts were inadmissible hearsay. Fed.R.Evid. 801(c). That rule defines hearsay as a statement, other than one made by the declarant while testifying at the trial or hearing, offered in evidence to prove the truth of the matter asserted. However, an admission by a party-opponent is not hearsay. Fed.R.Evid. 801(d)(2)(A). Workinger's statements in the transcript were admissions of a party-opponent; they were not hearsay.
31 Workinger additionally contends that because the transcripts were not adequately authenticated, the district court abused its discretion when it admitted them into evidence. See Fed.R.Evid. 901(a). That Rule states that for authentication there must be evidence sufficient to support a finding that the matter in question is what its proponent claims. A document can be authenticated by the testimony of a witness with knowledge. United States v. Childs, 5 F.3d 1328, 1336 (9th Cir.1993), cert. denied, 511 U.S. 1011, 114 S.Ct. 1385, 128 L.Ed.2d 60 (1994). The government need only make a prima facie showing of authenticity so that a reasonable juror could find in favor of authenticity or identification. United States v. Chu Kong Yin, 935 F.2d 990, 996 (9th Cir.1991) (citation omitted). Once the prima facie case for authenticity is met, the probative value of the evidence is a matter for the jury. Id.; United States v. Blackwood, 878 F.2d 1200, 1202 (9th Cir.1989) (per curiam). 32 To authenticate the tapes, the government elicited testimony from the person who transcribed the tape. She testified that she listened to them over and over to make sure that her transcription was accurate. The government also elicited testimony from Mr. Johnson, the attorney who conducted the taped interview. Mr. Johnson testified that he had examined the transcript shortly after it was made and had compared it to the actual tape recordings and then filed an affidavit with the state court attesting to its accuracy. He testified that, to the best of his recollection, the transcript accurately represented the testimony during the deposition. Although he testified at trial that he could not specifically recollect listening to the tapes, he also testified that he would not have signed the affidavit had he not done so. 33 The district court did not abuse its discretion when it admitted the transcript because the testimony certainly met the minimum requirements for authentication. Workinger's objections, therefore, were simply a matter for the jury to consider when it determined the weight it would afford to the transcript.