AKOÈN MARTYREIN
AKOÈN MARTYREIN (
ἀκοὴν μαρτυρεῖν).
The general rule of Athenian, as of English jurisprudence, was against the
admission of hearsay evidence. The one exception was the attested
declaration of a deceased person, which was carefully distinguished from the
ἐκμαρτυρία or written deposition of an
absent witness [EKMARTYRIA]. The law is expressed
in Demosth. ii.
Steph. p. 1130.8,
ἀκοὴν δ᾽οὐκ ἐῶσι ζῶντος μαρτυρεῖν, ἀλλὰ τεθνεῶτος, τῶν δὲ
ἀδυνάτων καὶ ὑπερορίων, ἐκμαρτυρίαν γεγραμμένην σ᾿ν
γραμματείῳ. As regards the living,
οὐδὲ μαρτυρεῖν ἀκοὴν ἐῶσιν οἱ νόμοι, οὐδ᾽ ἐπὶ τοῖς πάνυ
φαύλοις ἐγκλ:ήμασιν, εἰκότως (id.
c.
Eubul. p. 1300, §§ 6, 7, where the reasons for the
prohibition are given at length; comp.
c. Leochar. p.
1097.55). Will cases would naturally often turn on the evidence of the dead;
hence the phrase
ἀκοὴν μαρτυρεῖν is of
frequent occurrence in the extant speeches of Isaeus (e.g.
Philoct. § 64;
Ciron,
§§ 8, 18, 38).
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