Rule 1005. Official Records

Authentication. An official record kept within the State, or an entry therein, when admissible for any purpose, may be evidenced by an official publication thereof or by a copy attested by the officer having legal custody of the record, or by that officer’s deputy.

Lack of Record. A written statement that after diligent search no record or entry of a specified tenor is found to exist in the records designated by the statement is admissible as evidence that the records contain no such record or entry.

Other Proof. This section does not prevent the proof, by any other method authorized by law, of the existence of, or the lack of, an official record, or of entry, or lack of entry therein.

Records of the Courts. A record of the Supreme Court, the Superior Court, the Magistrate Court, or an Administrative Court is proved by a copy certified by the Clerk of that court or by a deputy clerk, or by a copy bearing the seal of the court. The Clerk of the Superior Court records and certifies all orders, judgments, and decrees of the Superior Court, the Magistrate Court, and the Administrative Courts, as 3 R. Stat. § 131.102 provides. A record so proved is self-authenticating under Rule 902(1), Rule 902(6), or Rule 902(7).

Records of the Electronic Filing System. The docket of a case, a filing upon that docket, and a document comprising such a filing are official records of the court and may be proved by a document produced by the electronic filing system, self-authenticating under Rule 902(8), or by a certificate of the Clerk under Rule 902(7).

In-Game Records of the State. An in-game record generated or maintained by an agency of the State is an official record within this rule where it is a record of a primary fact made by a public officer, or caused to be made by a public officer, in the performance of an official duty. It may be proved by a capture or export of the record together with the foundation required by Rule 1108(3)(e), or by the attestation of the officer having legal custody of the record. Rule 803(3) governs the use of such a record to prove the truth of the facts it states, and Rule 803(3)(c) governs a record of an investigation or inquiry.

Warrants; Return and Inventory. The written warrant issued by a justice, judge, or magistrate, the entry of that warrant in the in-game warrants system in the format prescribed by Rid. R. Crim. P. 6(1)(c) or Rid. R. Crim. P. 44(8), the return made to the issuing court, and the inventory of property taken under a search warrant are official records within this rule. The inventory shall bear the affidavit which 6 R. Stat. § 131.016 requires of the executing officer, sworn before the issuing officer or before another officer authorized to administer oaths, that the inventory contains a true and detailed account of all the property taken under the warrant. A copy of the warrant and inventory left with the owner of the searched premises, as 6 R. Stat. § 131.014 requires, is a duplicate under Rule 1003.

Absence of an Official Record. A statement under Rule 1005(2) shall identify the records searched, the person who conducted the search, and the time in Coordinated Universal Time at which the search was made. Rule 803(4) governs the admissibility of such a statement to prove that a matter did not occur or exist.

Attestation. An attestation under this rule shall state that the copy is a true copy of the record in the attesting officer’s legal custody, shall identify the record, and shall bear the officer’s signature and, where the officer has one, the seal of the office.

Hearsay. This rule governs the manner of proving an official record. Whether the contents of that record are admissible to prove the truth of what they state is governed by Rule 802, Rule 803(3), and Rule 803(4).