Shevuot 40: Questioning the Witness

The rabbis share a new Mishna: There are seven chakirot, basic questions regarding witness testimony:

• which shemita cycle of the yovel when/where they saw the testimony
• which year of the shemita cycle was it
• which month
• which day of the month
• which day of the week
• which hour of the day
• where were you

Rabbi Yosi says that only the day, hour, and location are asked.  We should also ask questions including did you recognize the victim of the crime?  Did you warn the transgressor if he served idolatry?  In that case, which idol did he serve and in what way?  

Others suggest that the more bedikot, deeper investigatory questions we ask, the better.  A case where one was murdered under a fig tree is used as an example of asking multiple questions.  Ben Zakai asked the witness if the figs had large or small stems.  We learn that the basic questions must be answered affirmatively for the witness testimony to be valid.  The more detailed questions need not be answered for the testimony to be valid.  

We learn what to do when chakirot and bedikot contradict each other.  Is all testimony disqualified?  Through examples, we are taught that the rabbis consider a one-hour discrepancy between two witness accounts is permitted.  However, the sun is at a different place in the sky when there is a two-hour difference in witness accounts, and thus their testimony is invalid.

The rabbis walk us through the process whereby a verdict is decided upon.  They continually lean toward believing witness testimony.   For example, if witnesses seem honourable, a student is silenced if he attempts to give a reason that judges are obligated to listen to other reasoning.   Cases are heard and decided upon on the same day.  If absolutely necessary judges will carry the case over to the following day.  However, they are not permitted to drink wine at all over that time period.

The Gemara discusses the source for the seven overriding questions for witnesses.  Rav Yehuda answerers with the city destroyed because of the majority of people were serving adultery.  Much energy is spent disputing the validity of the source of this assertion.  

A berate teaches about Rabbi Yosi's question to the Sages: if a witness said "he killed him yesterday", do we still have to ask which shemita, which year, which month, and which day?  What if it was not yesterday but "just now"?  The Sages agree that the basic questions are still asked in this case.   As well, recognizing the victim could mean knowing his/her name; it could mean knowing whether s/he was Jewish or not.  And while  they were at it, the judges could ask about whether or not there was a warning.  They could also ask the witness about what type of idolatry might have been followed.