What if someone&#39;s testimonial account changes and contradicts itself?
<p>I am curious to know what happens if someone gives testimony in Court 2 times, and there are contradictions or discrepancies between the two statements.</p>
<p>As an example, how might the following two statements be reconciled or handled in Court?</p>
<blockquote>
<p><em>Statement #1</em>: I was jogging along a trail when all of a sudden in
became foggy, I was able to see a man who threatened a lady and
punched her.  The other 3 people with me couldn't see anything, but
they did hear the lady yell.  Once the man ran away, I fainted and
within a few minutes I woke up.</p>
<p><em>Statement #2</em>: I was jogging along a trail when all of a sudden in
became foggy, I was able to see a man who threatened a lady and
punched her.  The other 3 people could see what I saw, but they didn't
hear anything.  Once the man ran away, I fainted and after 1 hour I
woke up.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Assume this is the <em>only</em> testimony of the event.</p>
<p>Would this witness's testimony still hold up in court?</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><strong>Yes. It will hold up in court.</strong></p>
  
  <p><em>IMHO, there is no difference in the admissible portions of the two testimonies.</em></p>
</blockquote>

<h3>"Few minutes" vs. "One hour" is immaterial</h3>

<p>The difference between "a few minutes" and "one hour" IMHO is <strong><em>immaterial</em></strong> given:</p>

<ol>
<li>the witness was unconscious and</li>
<li>say, between 45 and 60 minutes would match both descriptions of the time interval.</li>
</ol>

<h3>What other people saw and heard is hearsay</h3>

<p>Testimony about what other people saw and heard (with a few notable exceptions) is <strong><em><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearsay" rel="nofollow">hearsay</a></em></strong> and not allowed into evidence because it is generally <strong><em>unreliable</em></strong> and not subject to <strong><em>cross-examination</em></strong>. </p>

<p>So after the rejection of the hearsay portions, there is no difference in the admissible portions of the two versions.</p>

<h3>Qualification</h3>

<p>By "hold up in court," I mean it will be allowed as evidence. The weight and veracity of the testimony would be determined by the (judge or) jury after <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cross-examination" rel="nofollow">cross-examination</a>.</p>

evidence trial