Legal Definitions - consonant statement

A consonant statement is a type of statement that is made by a witness and is testified to by another person. It is only allowed into evidence after the witness's testimony has been impeached. This type of evidence would be inadmissible hearsay if the witness had not been impeached.

For example, if a witness testifies in court that they did not see the defendant at the scene of the crime, but a prior statement made by the witness to someone else says that they did see the defendant, that prior statement is a consonant statement. It can only be used as evidence after the witness's testimony has been impeached.

Another example of a consonant statement is when a witness makes a statement to the police during their investigation of a crime. This statement can only be used as evidence if the witness is unavailable to testify in court.