Perhaps it’s a nod to the social media era of constant status updates and play-by-plays of our lives or maybe it’s human nature, but it seems that people tend to “word vomit” when they get on the witness stand. An attorney asks a simple question, maybe even one calling for a “yes” or “no,” and five minutes later the witness stops talking.
A word of advice: bite your tongue. The more information you volunteer, the more ammunition you’re going to give the other side to use against you in cross-examination. Thus, if you’re asked who did something, answer “who” and stop. If you’re asked when something took place, answer “when” and stop. You get the idea. If you’re asked an open-ended question, such as a “why” question, or if you’re given an open-ended prompt, such as “explain to the court…,” then you need to provide the simplest and shortest answer possible.
It’s the attorneys’ jobs to pull more information out of you, if needed. In bench trials or normal hearings, the judge may do this, too. But, it’s unwise to volunteer too much information. Many times, that extra information shoots you in the foot and creates more problems than it solves.
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