IEA Section 80 — Presumption as to documents produced as record of evidence

Summary

If a document is presented in court that appears to be a written record of a witness's testimony, or a statement or confession from a prisoner or accused person, and it was taken according to law and signed by a judge, magistrate, or other authorized officer, the court must accept that document as genuine. The court must also accept as true any notes written by the signing officer about how the record was made, and must accept that the testimony, statement, or confession was properly taken.

Official Text

Whenever any document is produced before any Court, purporting to be a record or memorandum of the evidence, or of any part of the evidence, given by a witness in a judicial proceedings or before any officer authorised by law to take such evidence or to be a statement or confession by any prisoner or accused person, taken in accordance with law, and purporting to be signed by any judge or Magistrate or by any such officer as aforesaid the Court shall presume—
that the document is genuine; that any statements as to the circumstances under which it was taken, purporting to be made by the person signing it, are true, and that such evidence, statement or confession was duly taken.

Old <-> New Code Mapping

• BSA §79 — Presumption as to documents produced as record of evidence, etc