Hearsay Exceptions: Admissions by Party-Opponents

Evidence Rule 801(d) sets out a hearsay exception for “Admissions by a Party-Opponent.” If you’re not clear on that rule, read on. The rule says that a statement is admissible under this exception if it is “offered against a party” and is (A)  his or her own statement, in an individual or representative capacity; (B)  a statement that the party has manifested an adoption of or a belief in its truth; (C) a statement by someone authorized by the party to make it; (D) a statement by the party’s agent or servant about a matter within the scope of agency or employment, made during the existence of the relationship; or (E)  a statement by the party’s co-conspirator during and in furtherance of the conspiracy. N.C. R. Evid. 801(d). The exception is understood to apply to admissions, defined as “statement[s] of pertinent facts which, in light of other evidence, [are] incriminating.” State v. Al-Bayyinah, 359 N.C. 741, 748 (2005) (quotation omitted). In the criminal context, the Rule 801(d)(C) and (D) exceptions rarely apply and aren’t addressed here. Defendant’s Own Statement. In criminal cases, Rule 801(d) typically arises with regard to the first category of statements—when the defendant himself or herself made the statement at issue. See, e.g., State v. Al-Bayyinah, 359 N.C. 741, 747-48 (2005); State v. Lambert, 341 N.C. 36, 49-50 (1995); State v. Graham, __ N.C. App. __, 733 S.E.2d 100, 106 (2012); State v. Smith, 157 N.C. App. 493, 496 (2003). However, this aspect of the rule is self-explanatory [...]