United States v. Frank Costello

1. Judge HAND finds that the sole evidence before the grand jury was hearsay. Accordingly, we do not have a case where, in addition to hearsay, there was other evidence of an unimpeachable character. Judge HAND holds that, nevertheless, the indictment cannot be questioned. This leaves me in some doubt.

I entirely agree that the hearsay rule is undesirable. I think it would be well if the rule were revised so that, at a trial, the question of its admissibility would be left to the discretion of the trial judge. But, although courts may make desirable modifications of many of the exclusionary…