Najam, J.
The parties do not dispute that Officer Simpson’s testimony contained hearsay; [footnote omitted] rather, the parties dispute only whether Stewart’s statements to Officer Simpson fall within an exception to the general rule that hearsay is not admissible, namely, the exception for present sense impressions. The exception for present sense impressions permits “[a] statement describing or explaining an event, condition or transaction, made while or immediately after the declarant perceived it.” Ind. Evidence Rule 803(1). On appeal, Mack argues that Stewart’s statements to Officer Simpson were not made “immediately after” his perception of Mack’s statements and, therefore, Stewart’s statements do not demonstrate a present sense impression. Reply Br. at 15. According to Officer Simpson, Stewart’s statements were made “a few minutes” after Stewart exited the residence. Tr. at 210. Further, Stewart was inside the residence for about ten minutes, and it is not clear at what point Stewart heard Mack’s statements while inside the residence.
We must agree with Mack that Stewart’s statements do not fall within the hearsay exception for present sense impressions. We first note that neither side cites factually analogous Indiana authority or foreign authority in support of their respective positions on this issue. [Footnote omitted.] Nonetheless, the Rule 803(1) requirement that a statement be made “immediately” after the declarant’s perception “is based on the assumption that the lack of time for deliberation provides reliability.” 13 Robert Lowell Miller, Jr., Ind. Prac. Ser. § 803.101 at 802 (3d ed. 2007). Here, “a few minutes,” and certainly “a few minutes” plus up to ten more minutes, Tr. at 210, is ample time for a declarant to deliberate and possibly fabricate a statement, especially where the declarant knows officers are looking for evidence of a particular type of crime and the declarant himself has been implicated in the commission of that crime. Thus, we hold that the trial court abused its discretion when it permitted Officer Simpson to testify to Stewart’s statements regarding whether Mack had discussed buying degreaser.
MATHIAS, J., and BRADFORD, J., concur.