ARTICLE
VI.



WITNESSES



 



Rule 601  General rule of competency. 
Every person is competent to be a witness except as otherwise provided in these
rules. [L 1980, c 164, pt of §1]



 



RULE 601 COMMENTARY



 



  This rule is identical with the first sentence of Fed.
R. Evid. 601.  The second sentence of Fed. R. Evid. 601, providing that
"in civil actions and proceedings, with respect to an element of a claim
or defense as to which State law supplies the rule of decision, the competency
of a witness shall be determined in accordance with State law," has been
omitted as extraneous.



  The rule embodies the intent expressed in the Advisory
Committee's Note to Fed. R. Evid. 601 to abolish "religious belief,
conviction of crime, and connection with the litigation as a party or
interested person or spouse of a party or interested person" as bases for
disqualification of a witness.  Proper grounds for witness disqualification are
set forth in Rules 602 and 603.1 infra.



  Although earlier Hawaii statute and case law preserved some
of the traditional common-law witness disqualifications, see, e.g., The King v.
Brown, 3 H. 114 (1869) (parties in interest), these disqualifications were
eliminated by later statutes.  See, e.g., Hawaii Rev. Stat. §§621-14, 621-17
(1976) (repealed 1980) (originally enacted as L 1876, c 32, §§49, 51; am L
1943, c 146, §1; am L 1972, c 104, §1(i), (j), (l)).  Thus, Rule 601 effects no
change in existing Hawaii law.



  This rule is subject to Rule 505 supra, providing that
"the spouse of the accused [in a criminal case] has a privilege not to
testify against the accused."  In addition, conviction of crime and
interest in the litigation may be provable under Rules 609 and 609.1 infra, to
impeach the credibility of witnesses.



 



Case Notes



 



  Witness incompetent to testify as to all matters dealt with
in hypnotherapy sessions.  Hypnotically induced recollection held per se
inadmissible.  68 H. 233, 709 P.2d 103.



  Trial court did not err in allowing witness to testify
regarding witness's religious beliefs where prosecution did not inquire into
witness's religious beliefs for the purpose of enhancing witness's credibility
but was instead seeking to establish why witness did not murder person
defendant sought to have witness murder.  99 H. 390, 56 P.3d 692.



  Where evidence was insufficient to find officer had present
recollection of field sobriety test, officer not qualified to testify as
witness to that matter.  80 H. 138 (App.), 906 P.2d 624.