There are several categories of evidence. How is a witness’s oral testimony categorized?

A.
Best evidence

B.
Secondary evidence

C.
Circumstantial evidence

D.
Conclusive evidence

Explanation:
B: Several types of evidence can be used in a trial, such as written, oral, computer-generated, and visual or audio. Oral evidence is testimony of a
witness. Visual or audio is usually a captured event during the crime or right after it. Not all evidence is equal in the eyes of the law and some types of
evidence have more clout, or weight, than others. Secondary evidence is not viewed as reliable and strong in proving innocence or guilt (or liability in civil
cases) when compared to best evidence. Oral evidence, such as a witness’s testimony, and copies of original documents are placed in the secondary
evidence category.
A is incorrect because there is no firsthand reliable proof that supports oral evidence’s validity. Best evidence is the primary evidence used in a trial
because it provides the most reliability. An example of something that would be categorized as best evidence is an original signed contract.
C is incorrect because circumstantial evidence can prove an intermediate fact that can then be used to deduce or assume the existence of another fact.
This type of fact is used so the judge or jury will logically assume the existence of a primary fact. For example, if a suspect told a friend he was going to
bring down eBay’s Web site, a case could not rest on that piece of evidence alone because it is circumstantial. However, this evidence can cause the jury
to assume that because the suspect said he was going to do it, and hours later it happened, maybe he was the one who did the crime.
D is incorrect because conclusive evidence is irrefutable and cannot be contradicted. A witness’s testimony can be refuted. Conclusive evidence is very
strong all by itself and does not require corroboration.