All About Witness Statements
A witness statement, from a legal perspective, is generally a document that sets out the evidence that a witness would be prepared to give in court. It is not a formal court document and is not the same as an affidavit, which is a written statement of fact voluntarily made by a person that is used as evidence in court. However, the purpose of the two is similar.
Witness statements can be presented in a number of different ways, but often they are relatively short narrative accounts that indicate the key facts of the case that the witness saw or heard. They can also be much longer contributions that contain a considerable amount of detail about a particular event in question.
The purpose of a witness statement is to provide a detailed record that can be referred to if legal action becomes necessary. It is a way of ensuring that a witness provides a clear and accurate version of events that may reduce the chance of alterations to what actually happened.
Witness statements are frequently used within legal proceedings, particularly when giving evidence at a trial . Their importance, therefore, cannot be overstated.
In criminal cases particularly, witness statements provide the police with critical information that can help them to build a successful case against a perpetrator. Often, witness evidence is even essential in gaining access to a warrant to search premises or a suspect’s home as a part of an investigation.
Whereas witness statements are crucial for the police, a civil case may have a very strong case if there are no witness statements. In some circumstances where professionals such as doctors and lawyers are involved, the absence of witness statements can lead to allegations of negligence.
It is important therefore to understand why you have been asked to provide a witness statement and how essential it can be in legal proceedings. If you have doubts about writing your statement, or if you are not sure whether your evidence is relevant or not, it is worth seeking the advice of a legal professional before going ahead with your statement.
Essential Elements of a Witness Statement
Apart from the name and address of the witness, there are few standard features in a witness statement. The following are examples of essential elements commonly found in a witness statement:
The Witness’ Particulars
A witness statement should include the name, date of birth, and current address of the witness. This information is commonly recorded at the beginning of the document.
Statement of Facts
The body of the witness statement will set out all the facts that are known to the witness. It is important that the witness only include information which is within his own knowledge.
At times, the witness may wish to include other information, like comments offered by other witnesses to the event. However, if this information forms part of the witness’ own knowledge, it may be considered to be hearsay evidence.
There may be occasions when matters outside the witness’ own knowledge need to be addressed. In these cases, the witness would include a statement in the witness statement like, "I have been told by Production/Project Engineer Jones (the person in charge of producing the report) that the reproductions attached to my statement correctly represent the original documents," rather than saying, "The reproductions attached to my statement correctly represent the original documents," which gives the impression that the witness has ultimate knowledge of the truth of the document.
Signature
The witness should sign the statement where provided.
Declaration of Truth
Like all affidavits, the witness statement should have a declaration of truth, which would look similar to the clause below:
"I believe that the facts stated in this witness statement are true." The witness should sign the document below this statement.
Different Types of Witness Statements
As with most things, there is a systematic approach to the gathering and utilization of witnesses’ statements. Broadly speaking there are three classifications of witness statements which have their unique features and uses.
Lay witness: A lay witness is someone who possesses knowledge or experience pertinent to the issues in the case which comes through observation. Lay witness testimony is to describe the surrounding circumstances at the time of the events. The lay witness cannot freely give their opinion, they can only testify based on their perception and observation of the events. Lay witnesses cannot give insight, inferences, or conclusions about the events; they must simply present what they have seen or heard. Lay witnesses are not experts on the events or people involved in the events, therefore their testimony is limited to only what lies within their personal experience and observations. If a lay witness has specialized training, knowledge, or experience that would apply to the facts of the case, that testimony can be admissible if it already meets Rule 702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence.
Expert witness: An expert witness is a special type of witness whose factual testimony is helpful in assisting the court with application of inapplicable facts or evidence. The helpfulness requirement under Rule 702 of the Federal Rules of Evidence states that an expert witness may give testimony when "scientific, technical, or other specialized knowledge will help the trier of fact to understand the evidence or to determine a fact in issue." Rule 701 of the Federal Rules of Evidence defines lay witness as "If a witness is not testifying as an expert, testimony in the form of an opinion or inferences is limited to those opinions or inferences which are (a) rationally based on the perception of the witness and (b) helpful to a clear understanding of a fact in issue or to the determination of a fact in issue."
Character witness: Character witnesses can be both lay and expert witnesses, but character witnesses testify for the purpose of helping establish the character of a person, generally the defendant of an accused. The character witness is an important aspect of bail proceedings and can provide information as to the respectability, circumstances, and disposition of the accused person. Character is defined as the aggregate of mental and ethical traits that comprise the individual. Character witnesses have personal knowledge of a person’s character and generally testify to the positive traits of the accused. Character witnesses are sometimes essential to the successful defense of individuals charged with less serious criminal offenses.
Creating a Strong Witness Statement
Once you’ve made the decision to get started with writing a witness statement, you must then determine how your statement will be organized. Typically, a witness statement will be organized in chronological order, and you can use titles in order to help break up the text for each statement. As you draft your statement, you should pay particular attention to remaining objective. For example, if you witnessed someone breaking into a home, you wouldn’t refer to the person as "the criminal." Likewise, you would refrain from referring to the action as an act of intentional harm or an intentional act. Remember: Your job is to report the facts, and not draw your own assumptions.
Before writing anything, you should take the time to consider each detail that you remember about the event at issue. It’s often helpful to write these details down on paper. You should be specific about the time and location of the event, and provide as much detail as possible. It’s not uncommon for witnesses to experience some degree of detail confusion, and the more details that you include in your witness statement, the less this confusion will come into play. Finally, you must remember that a witness statement is not an essay or a short story. You should write clearly and concisely, without a lot of elaboration.
Errors in Witness Statements
One of the biggest errors people make when completing a witness statement for personal injury claims is stating opinions rather than facts. It may be that you were asked a question about a recent incident and you responded with your personal views on what was going to happen or how events were going to pan out. For example you might say "i believe the accident was the other persons fault" this is an issue that is subjective and should not be stated. Instead you should focus on the facts regarding the blame. Or "in my opinion the road was too slippery" instead restate the fact of the conditions on the road and describe them in detail.
One of the most common errors made by witnesses is to move house without advising the insurance company or lawyers handling their compensation claim.
This has the outcome of witnesses not being able to be contacted – there is no way of knowing how or where to track a witness who has changed their home address without advising the party interested in their statement .
The second most common error is failing to update a witness statement.
If something happens after your eyewitness statement has been submitted, you will need to update it to reflect those changes, otherwise the statement loses its relevance.
It also means that updates can be done in advance without having to worry about the changes that occurred after submission.
It’s important to maintain an accurate address when testifying. Otherwise it can have some unintended consequences, such as altering the determination made about the extent of the injury privately.
A common mistake is failing to keep a proper diary or journal. This journal should include key points of your day-to-day life, such as:
- appointments,
- conversations or questions,
- thoughts or observations that you make, and are significant to your claim.
Your witness statement must be your honest voice, reflecting the facts of the matter. Writing for your mother, father, partner or solicitor will not work. The best strategy is simply to be yourself, telling the truth as you see it.
Real World Witness Statement Examples
Witness statements are common in almost every area of law, so it’s easy to find examples of them online. For example, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office made a list of samples of witness statements and depositions by deputy DA’s. Here are excerpts from some of those examples: Example 1: Apprehending a thief: I got a call last night about a theft from a department store on Hollywood Boulevard. It took me about 15 minutes to get there, arriving at approximately 2:05 pm. Upon arrival, I ran into two undercover police officers who identified themselves as being undercover LAPD officers. The officers were about 75 yards from the main entrance of the department store. As I was walking to the department store entrance, I observed a male, 50-year-old Hispanic who was approximately 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighing 250 lbs. He was pushing a shopping cart toward the main entrance. The shopping cart appeared to be full of women’s clothing and shoes. Example 2: Detective report: On 01-22-98, at about 0815 hours, I, Detective, Chula Vista Police Department, was dispatched to Detective, Chula Vista Police Department, office to meet with victim, , in regards to his ex-wife, was threatening Mr. over the telephone. Detective, Chula Vista Police Departments, investigated Mr. regarding the threats and determined that Mrs. on multiple occasions in the evening would call Mr. and make those threats to him. Detective also instructed Mrs. that she was not to make any contact with Mr. I, Detective, noted that Mrs. would drive by when she became aware of Mr. being in Chula Vista. On 02-03-98, at about 0500 hours, I, Detective, Chula Vista Police Department, in the company of Officer, Chula Vista Police Department, met with Mr. regarding the threat of Mrs. against him. Mr. explained that it was 0200 hours when he went to bed and had heard Mrs. scream in the animal pen. Also at this time, he had seen a neighbor walk her dog outside. At about 0400 hours, Mr. heard Mrs. yelling in the animal pen again and observed the same neighbor walk her dog again. After hearing Mrs. the second time, Mr. went out to see what the yell was all about when he observed Mrs. in the yard and saw her stab the barking goat with a knife. The knife used by Mrs. appeared to be a small 5′ knife with a plastic handle. I was later informed that the knife was constructed by another officer and was provided to Mr. as evidence. I was also informed that Mrs. killed the goat as it was stabbed six times and left to die in the pen. The deaths of these animals caused by the actions of Mrs. were witnessed by the neighbor and her dog. Example 3: Domestic disturbance arrest: Upon my arrival, I met with the victim/ complainant, , who stated that the suspect had threatened to kill her and broke a window. I could see that the window in the front of the dwelling was broken. The edge of the broken glass was adjacent to the sidewalk and to the right side of the front door directly across from the driveway. At the scene, I was contacted by suspect, , who stated, "The cops are here to accuse me of something I didn’t do." I asked if he had threatened to kill the victim and broke the window. The suspect replied, "I never threatened to kill her but I did break the window." I asked the suspect why he broke the window. The suspect stated, "I saw a spider." The suspect said. The suspect was arrested for criminal threats and vandalism. I later spoke with the victim, who stated that she was passing by the front of the residence, she saw the suspect with the window being broken; she assumed that he was cleaning the glass. The victim explained that she thought nothing of it at the time until she saw the police car. The victim stated that she went inside the house because it was cold outside. Seconds later, she heard the suspect say, "Run bitch, run!"’ The victim stated she ran to a back room in the house and testified she heard the suspect say, "Why don’t you come out here?" I was told by the victim that she stood by the window and observed the suspect throw two rocks at her.; one missed and broke out a window on the back side of the house. She stated that about a minute later, she heard the suspect say, "Who are you going to call?" The victim replied that she was going to call the police and asked the suspect to leave. The victim stated that the suspect simply turned around and walked away. I asked the victim how she felt at that moment while speaking to the suspect. The victim stated that she felt threatened and ended up running to the front door to call the police.
Witness Statement Legal Considerations
The legal implications of witness statements are significant, particularly in the context of civil law. Witness statements are documents that summarize the witness’s testimony based on the facts that the witness recalls or the accounts of other persons related to him or her.
Witness statements can be prepared either by a lawyer depending on the specifics of the matter. When prepared by a lawyer they are already formatted properly which saves time and effort of formatting the document later on.
In the court system, the content of the statement is typically more important than the form, although court rules might contain certain requirements in this respect. Either way, the credibility of the author of the statement and the particular content of the statement are factors that will weigh heavily on the judge in determining the outcome of the case . While adjudicators consider witness statements as evidence, they also weigh other evidence before them and consider the circumstances under which a statement was made. While statements prepared by lawyers are typically more carefully vetted, there is little regarding their use that is considered as more compelling than having a witness testify in court.
However, knowing that the content of witness statements is extensively investigated by adjudicators, the accuracy and completeness of the witness statement must be verified before any submission to a court to avoid false statements or misrepresentation of facts which lead to adverse legal consequences for the witness.