Definition Of Terms in Criminal Evidence

1. Accused - A person or persons formally charged but not yet tried for a crime.

2. Acquittal - A legal judgment, based on the decision to either a jury or a judge, that an
accused is not guilty of the crime for which he or she has been charged or tried.

3. Admission - any statement of fact made by a party against his interest or unfavorable to
the conclusion for which he contends or is inconsistent with the facts alleged by him.

4. Allegation - A claim or statement of what a party intends to prove; the facts as one party
claims they are.

5. Appeal - A request made by the defense or State that the case be reviewed by a court of
appeal.

6. Arraignment - The appearance of the defendant in court to enter his or her plea to the
charges.

7. Bail / Bond - The money or property given to the court as security when an accused
person is released before and during a trial with the agreement that the defendant will
return to court when ordered to do so. Bail is forfeited if the defendant fails to return to
court.

8. Best Evidence Rule - is that rule which requires the highest grade of evidence obtainable
to prove a disputed fact.

9. Burden Of Evidence - logical necessity on a party during a particular time of the trail to
create a prima facie case in his favor or to destroy that created against him by
presenting evidence.

10. Beyond a Reasonable Doubt - The burden of proof that the prosecution must carry in a
criminal trial to obtain a guilty verdict. The jury must be convinced that the defendant
committed each element of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt before returning a
guilty verdict.

11. Burden Of Proof/Risk of Non-Persuasion - the duty of a party to present evidence on the
facts in issue necessary to establish his claim or defense by the amount of evidence
required by law.

12. Change of Venue - A change in the location of a trial, usually granted to avoid prejudice
against one of the parties.
13. Charge - A formal accusation or indictment filed by the prosecutor’s office that a specific
person has committed a specific crime. Also known as pressing charges.

14. Character - the aggregate of the moral qualities which belong to and distinguish an
individual person.

15. Circumstantial Evidence - is the proof of a fact or facts from which taken either singly or
collectively, the existence or a particular fact in dispute may be inferred as a necessary
or probable consequence.

16. Common Reputation - is the definite opinion of the community in which the fact to be
proved is known or exists. It means the general or substantially undivided reputation, as
distinguished from a partial or qualified one, although it need not be unanimous.

17. Competency Of A Witness - is the legal fitness or ability of a witness to be heard on the
trial of a cause.

18. Competent Evidence - one that is not excluded by these Rules, a statute or the
Constitution.

19. Compromise - is an agreement made between two or more parties as a settlement

matter in dispute.

20. Conclusive Evidence - the class of evidence which the law does not allow to be
contradicted.

21. Conditional Admissibility – where the evidence at the time of its offer appears to be
immaterial or irrelevant unless it is connected with the other facts to be subsequently
proved, such evidence may be received on the condition that the other facts will be
proved thereafter, otherwise the evidence already given will be stricken out.

22. Confession - categorical acknowledgment of guilt made by an accused in a criminal

case, without any exculpatory statement or explanation. If the accused admits having
committed the act in question but alleges a justification, therefore, the same is merely an
admission.

23. Corroborative Evidence - is an additional evidence of different kind and character

intending to prove the same point.

24. Cumulative evidence – is an evidence of different kind and character as that already
given and tends to prove the same proposition.

25. Corroborative Evidence - is additional evidence of a different character to the same

point.
26. Cumulative Evidence - evidence of the same kind and to the same state of facts.

27. Curative Admissibility – this doctrine treats upon the right of a party to introduce
incompetent evidence in his behalf where the court has admitted the same kind of
evidence adduced by the adverse party.

28. Criminal Summons - An order commanding an accused to appear in court.

29. Cross-Examination - The questioning of a witness produced by the other side.

30. Custody - Detaining of a person by lawful process or authority to assure his or her
appearance to any hearing; the jailing or imprisonment of a person convicted of a crime.

31. Deferred Sentence - Postponement or delay of a sentence to a future date.

32. Disclosure - The making known of a fact that had previously been hidden.

33. Discovery - The pre-trial devices that can be used by one party to obtain facts and
information about the case from the other party in order to assist the party’s preparation
for trial.

34. Dismissal - The termination of formal charges.

35. Demonstrative Evidence - is a piece of tangible evidence that merely illustrates a matter
of importance in the litigation such as maps, diagrams, models, summaries and other
materials created especially for litigation.

36. Deposition – a sworn statement gathered from a witness who cannot be on a witness
stand for a valid reason.

37. Direct Evidence - that which proves the fact in dispute without the aid of any inference or
presumption.

38. Discretionary – those matters (without necessity of hearing):

39. Doctrine Of Processual Presumption - absent any of the evidence or admission, the
foreign law is presumed to be the same as that in the Philippines.

40. Document - any substance having any matter expressed or described upon it by marks
capable of being read. - is a deed, instrument or other duly authorized appear by which
something is proved, evidenced or set forth.
41. Documentary Evidence - evidence supplied by written instruments or derived from
conventional symbols, such as letters, by which ideas are represented on material
substances.

42. Dying Declaration - The ante-mortem statements made by a person after the mortal
wound has been inflicted under the belief that the death is certain, stating the fact
concerning the cause of and the circumstances surrounding the attack.

43. Equipoise Rule - Where the evidence gives rise to two probabilities, one consistent with
the defendant’s innocence, and another indicative of his guilt, that which is favorable to
the accused should be considered.

44. Estoppel By Deed – the tenant is not permitted to deny the title of his landlord at the time
of the commencement of the landlord tenant relationship. If the title asserted is one that
is alleged to have been acquired subsequent to the commencement of that relation, the
presumption will not apply.

45. Estoppel In Pais - whenever a party has, by his own declaration, act, or omission,
intentionally and deliberately lead another to believe a particular thing to be true and act
upon such belief, he cannot, in any litigation arising out of such declaration, act or
omission, be permitted to falsify it.

46. Expert Witness - one who belongs to the profession or calling to which the subject
matter of the inquiry relates to and who possesses special knowledge on questions on
which he proposes to express an opinion.

47. EXPERT EVIDENCE - the testimony of one possessing with regards with a particular
subject or department of human activity whose knowledge is not necessarily acquired by
other person.

48. Express Admissions - are those made in definite, certain and unequivocal language.

49. Extra-Judicial Admissions - are those made out of court, or in a judicial proceeding other
than the one under consideration.

50. Extra Judicial Confession - one made in any other place or occasion and cannot sustain
a conviction unless corroborated by evidence of the corpus delicti. This section refers to
extrajudicial confessions.

51. Evidence - is the means, sanctioned by these rules, of ascertaining in a judicial

proceeding the truth respecting a matter of fact.

52. Fact - thing done or existing.

53. Facts In Issue - are those facts which the plaintiff must prove in order to establish his
claim and those facts which the defendant must prove in order to establish a defense set
up by him, but only when the fact alleged by the one party is not admitted by the other
party.

54. Facts Relevant To The Issue - are those facts which render the probable existence or
non-existence of a fact in issue, or some other relevant fact.

55. Factum Probandum - the ultimate fact or the fact sought to be established.
- Refers to proposition

56. Factum Probans - is the evidentiary fact or the fact by which the factum probandum is to
be established. Materials which establish the proposition.

57. Hearsay Rule - Any evidence, whether oral or documentary is hearsay if its probative
value is not based on the personal knowledge of the witness but on the knowledge of
some other person not on the witness stand.

58. Impeaching Evidence - a proper foundation must be laid for the impeaching questions,
by calling the attention of such party to his former statement so as to give him an
opportunity to explain before such admissions are offered in evidence.

59. Implied Admissions - are those which may be inferred from the acts, declarations or
omission of a party. Therefore, admission may be implied from conduct, statement of the
silence of a party.

60. Independent Evidence - admissions are original evidence and no foundation is

necessary for their introduction in evidence

61. Intermediate Ambiguity - a situation where an ambiguity partakes of the nature of both
patent and latent. In this, the words are seemingly clear and with a settled meaning, is
actually equivocal and admits of two interpretations. Here, parol evidence is admissible
to clarify the ambiguity provided that the matter is put in issue by the pleader. Example:
Dollars, tons and ounces.

62. Issue - is the point or points in question, at the conclusion of the pleadings which one
side affirms, and the other side denies.

63. Judicial Admissions - are those so made in the pleadings filed or in the progress of a
trial.
- It is one made in connection with a judicial proceeding in which it is offered,
while an extrajudicial admission is any other admission.
64. Judicial Confession - one made before a court in which the case is pending and in the
course of legal proceedings therein and, by itself, can sustain a conviction even in
capital offenses.

65. Judicial Notice - no more than that the court will bring to its aid and consider, without
proof of the facts, its knowledge of those matters of public concern which are known by
all well-informed persons.
- cognizance of certain facts which judges may take and act on without proof
because they are already known to them.

66. Material Evidence - evidence directed to prove a fact in issue as determined by the rules
of substantive law and pleadings. The test is whether the fact it intends to prove is an
issue or not. AS to whether a fact is an issue or not is in turn determined by the
substantive law, the pleadings, the pre-trial order and by the admissions or confessions
on file. Consequently, evidence may be relevant but may be immaterial in the case.

67. Mandatory – without need to introduce evidence.

68. Mistake - refers only to mistake of FACT, not mistake in law.

69. Moral turpitude - has been defined as everything which is done contrary to justice,
modesty, or good morals.

70. Multiple Admissibility – when the evidence is relevant and competent for two or more
purposes. E.g.. A dying declaration may also be part of res gestae.

71. Negative Evidence - when the witness did not see or know of the occurrence of a fact.
There is a total disclaimer of personal knowledge, hence without any representation or
disavowal that the fact in question could or could not have existed or happened. It is
admissible only if it tends to contradict positive evidence of the other side or would tend
to exclude the existence of fact sworn to by the other side.

72. Object Evidence - is a tangible object that played some actual role on the matter that
gave rise to the litigation. For instance, a knife.

73. Objective or Real Evidence - directly addressed to the senses of the court and consist of
tangible things exhibited or demonstrated in open court, in an ocular inspection, or a
place designated by the court for its view or observation of an exhibition, experiment or
demonstration. This is referred to as an autoptic preference.

74. Omnia praesumuntur rite et solemniter esse acta donec probetur in contrarium – all
things are presumed to have been done regularly and with due formality until the
contrary is proved.
75. Opinion - an inference or conclusion drawn from facts observed.

76. Ordinary Opinion Evidence - that which is given by a witness who is of ordinary capacity
and who has by opportunity acquired a particular knowledge which is outside the limits
of common observation and which may be of value in elucidating a matter under
consideration.

77. Parol Evidence - any evidence aliunde, whether oral or written, which is intended or
tends to vary or contradict a complete and enforceable agreement embodied in a
document.

78. Patent or Extrinsic Ambiguity - is such ambiguity which is apparent on the face of the
writing itself and requires something to be added in order to ascertain the meaning of the
words used. In this case, parol evidence is not admissible, otherwise, the court would be
creating a contract between the parties.

79. Pedigree - includes relationship, family genealogy, birth, marriage, death, the dates
when, and the placer where these facts occurred and the names of their relatives. It
embraces also facts of family history intimately connected with pedigree.

80. Positive Evidence - when the witness affirms that a fact did or did not occur. Entitled to a
greater weight since the witness represents his personal knowledge the presence or
absence of a fact.

81. Presumption - An inference as to the existence or non-existence of a fact which courts

are permitted to draw from the proof of other facts.

82. Presumption Juris Or Of Law – is a deduction which the law expressly directs to be
made from particular facts.

83. Presumption Hominis Or Of Fact – is a deduction which reason draws from facts
proved without an express direction from the law to that effect.

84. Prima Facie Evidence - that which is standing alone, unexplained or uncontradicted, is
sufficient to maintain the proposition affirmed.

85. Primary Evidence - that which the law regards as affording the greatest certainty of the
fact in question. Also referred to as the best evidence.

86. Privies - those who have a mutual or successive relationship to the same right of
property or subject matter, such as “personal representatives, heirs, devisees, legatees,
assigns, voluntary grantee or judgment creditors or purchasers from them without
notices to the fact.
87. Privity - the mutual succession of relationship to the same rights of property.

88. Proof - the result or effect of evidence. When the requisite quantum of evidence of a
particular fact has been duly admitted and given weight, the result is called the proof of
such fact.

89. Rebuttal – (denial, negation, disproof) that which is given to explain, repel, counteract or
disprove facts given by the evidence of the other party.

90. Sun rebuttal – is that evidence which refutes rebuttal evidence.

91. Relevant Evidence - evidence having any value in reason as tending to prove any matter
provable in an action. The test is the logical relation of the evidentiary fact to the fact in
issue, whether the former tends to establish the probability or improbability of the latter.

92. Res Gestae - literally means things done; it includes circumstances, facts, and
declarations incidental to the main facts or transaction necessary to illustrate its
character and also includes acts, words, or declarations which are closely connected
therewith as to constitute part of the transaction.

93. Rule Of Exclusion - that which is secondary evidence cannot inceptively be introduced
as the original writing itself must be produced in court, except in the four instances
mentioned in Section 3.

94. Secondary Evidence - that which is inferior to the primary evidence and is permitted by
law only when the best evidence is not available. Known as the substitutionary evidence.
- shows that better or primary evidence exists as to the proof of the fact in
question. It is deemed less reliable.

95. Self Serving Declaration - is one which has been made extrajudicially by the party to
favor his interests. It is not admissible in evidence.

96. Sworn statement - a testimonial evidence, written statement as it is but made under
oath, only transcribed as a transcript or cumulative evidence.

97. Testimonial Evidence - is that which is submitted to the court through the testimony or
deposition of a witness.

98. TESTIMONIAL PRIVILEGE – no person may be compelled to testify against his parents,
other direct ascendants, children or other direct descendants

99. Unsound Mind - any mental aberration, whether organic or functional or induced by
drugs or hypnosis.
100. Witness - a reference to a person who testifies in a case or gives evidence
before a judicial tribunal.