The Video-Recorded Statement of a Witness under 18
Section 715 of the Criminal Code permits reception of a video-recorded statement (typically, the complainant’s statement to police) describing the relevant events by a person in a prescribed class of witness. Section 715.1 pertains to witnesses under the age of 18 at the time the offence is alleged to have occurred. Section 715.1 is a statutory exception to the rule that hearsay is inadmissible. It permits an out‑of‑court statement to be admitted for the truth of its contents, provided that certain conditions are met. Criminal Code Video-recorded Evidence Evidence of victim or witness under 18 715.1 (1) In any proceeding against an accused in which a victim or other witness was under the age of eighteen years at the time the offence is alleged to have been committed, a video recording made within a reasonable time after the alleged offence, in which the victim or witness describes the acts complained of, is admissible in evidence if the victim or...