A spontaneous exclamation is a sudden statement uttered as a reaction to a surprising, startling or shocking event, or having suffered an injury. It is an exception to the hearsay evidence rule, which prohibits introduction of evidence in court of out of court statements when the person who made statement is not available. Such statements are admitted as an exception to hearsay on the theory that the spontaneous nature of the statement lacks planning and therefore may be relied on for truthfulness.
A spontaneous exclamation is also called an excited uttereance or spontaneous utterance. It is within the judge's discretion to determine on a case by case basis whether a statement offered as evidence qualifies a spontaneous exclamation.
