(1) When a witness is examined concerning the witness’s prior written statement or concerning an oral statement that has been reduced to writing, the court, on motion of the adverse party, shall order the statement to be shown to the witness or its contents disclosed to him or her.
(2) Extrinsic evidence of a prior inconsistent statement by a witness is inadmissible unless the witness is first afforded an opportunity to explain or deny the prior statement and the opposing party is afforded an opportunity to interrogate the witness on it, or the interests of justice otherwise require. If a witness denies making or does not distinctly admit making the prior inconsistent statement, extrinsic evidence of such statement is admissible. This subsection is not applicable to admissions of a party-opponent as defined in s. 90.803(18).
Using a Witness's Own Words: This statute sets out the procedural rules for using a witness's own prior statements to question them at trial, most often for impeachment.
(1) Confronting the Witness with Their Statement:
If a lawyer is questioning a witness about a prior statement they made in writing, the opposing lawyer can demand that the statement be shown to the witness. The judge must grant this request. This prevents the witness from being misled about what their own prior statement says.
(2) Proving the Prior Statement (Laying the Foundation):
This is a critical rule for impeachment. "Extrinsic evidence" means any proof of the statement other than the witness's own admission (e.g., the document itself or testimony from another person who heard the statement).
Before a party can introduce extrinsic evidence that a witness made a prior statement that is inconsistent with their trial testimony, the party **must** first give the witness a chance to **explain or deny** the statement. This is called "laying the foundation."
Example:
1. Lay the Foundation: A lawyer asks, "Isn't it true that on May 5th, you told Officer Smith that the getaway car was blue?"
2. Witness Denies: The witness says, "No, I never said that."
3. Introduce Extrinsic Evidence: Because the witness denied the statement, the lawyer has now laid the proper foundation to later call Officer Smith to the stand to testify, "The witness told me the car was blue."
This requirement does not apply to statements made by the opposing party in the lawsuit.
