Statement against penal interest

In United States law, a statement against penal interest is a statement that puts the statement-maker at risk of prosecution. It is the criminal equivalent of a statement against interest, a statement a person would not normally make, which would put them in a disadvantaged position to that they would have had if they had not made the statement in the first place.

Not to be confused with penal interest.

In certain circumstances, it can be a factor in allowing as evidence statements that would otherwise be excluded through the law of hearsay.[1]

References
  1. See Fed. R. Evid. 804(b)(4), available at https://www.law.cornell.edu/rules/fre


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