For those who are hung up on "Hearsay", here are the definitions we have been asked to look at. Please click here for verification:

* rumor: gossip (usually a mixture of truth and untruth) passed around by word of mouth
heard through another rather than directly; "hearsay information"
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn

Hearsay in its most general and oldest meaning is a term used in the law of evidence to describe an out of court statement offered to establish the facts asserted in that statement. Hearsay is generally not admissible in common law courts because it is of suspect value, but there are many exceptions to this prohibition. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearsay

Second-hand evidence, generally consisting of a witness's testimony that he/she heard someone else say something. http://www.utcourts.gov/resources/glossary.htm

Evidence based on what the witness has heard someone else say, rather than what he/she has personally experienced.www.sedgwickcounty.org/da/legal_terms

Statements made out of court by someone other than the person testifying in court, which are offered to prove a matter in court. juryduty.nashville.gov/pls/portal/url/page/juryDuty/glossary/

Evidence presented by a witness who did not see or hear the incident in question but heard about it from someone else. With some exceptions, hearsay generally is not admissible as evidence at trial. http://www.uscourts.gov/journalistguide/glossary

Information given to a witness by another person. The witness did not see the information first hand. The witness does not have personal knowledge of the original event. Hearsay is not admissible in court. http://www.saskjustice.gov.sk.ca/courts/court_terms/court_terms.shtml

Testimony of an individual that is not from his or her personal knowledge, but from what the witness has heard another person say. mova.missouri.org/cjterms.htm

An out of court statement made by the declarant offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted. http://www.theoclawyer.com/criminal-terminalogy

Refers to statements made by persons other than the person testifying. The statement is a mere repetition of what the witness has heard others say out of court, and is offered as proof in the matter on which the witness is testifying. Generally, hearsay evidence is not admissible and is excluded from consideration by the trier of fact; however, there are numerous exceptions. … http://www.adlergiersch.com/legal.cfm

Testimony by a witness who relates, not what he/she knows personally, but what others have told him/her or what he/she has heard said by others. Generally such testimony is not admissible in evidence although there are numerous exceptions to this general rule.
dsf.chesco.org/courts/cwp/view.asp

Evidence which does not proceed from the personal knowledge of the witness, but is a repetition of an out-of-court statement and is offered to prove the truth of the matter asserted. The general rule, subject to various exceptions, is that such statements are inadmissible because they rely on the truth and veracity of outside persons not present for cross-examination.
www5.aaos.org/oko/vb/online_pubs/professional_liability/glossary.cfm

– Written by Fiona