Supreme Court of Louisiana
State v. Perniciaro
September 4, 1979374 So. 2d 1244
Summary
The court held that the job-title entry on the defendant's payroll ledger was hearsay and did not qualify for the restrictive business-records exception because the records were not shown to be reliable or properly prepared. The error was prejudicial because the prosecution relied heavily on the entry to prove that the defendant was paid as a courthouse custodian. The conviction and sentence were therefore reversed, and the case was remanded for a new trial without the inadmissible evidence.
Holding
- Whether the job-title entry was hearsay. The job-title entry was hearsay because it was an out-of-court assertion offered to prove that the defendant was to be paid for performing services as courthouse custodian, and its value depended on the credibility of an out-of-court asserter.
- Whether the entry qualified for the business-records exception and whether its admission was harmless. The entry was inadmissible under the business-records exception because the payroll records were not kept with sufficient habit, system, regularity, and continuity, and the state failed to establish the recorder's personal knowledge or a business-duty source for the information. Its admission was prejudicial rather than harmless, requiring reversal and a new trial.
Docket 64152
Cited authorities
- 33 La. L. Rev. 306