6.1 Periods, Question Marks & Exclamation Points
Key Takeaways
The Guide to Judiciary Policy requires that a question in Q and A that is indeed a question be followed by a question mark.
A statement delivered as a question on cross-examination takes a question mark; the same words delivered as an assertion take a period.
An indirect question ("He asked whether I was there") ends with a period, not a question mark.
Exclamation points are rare in transcripts and are used only for genuine exclamations, never to show the transcriber's view of emphasis.
Speech arrives without punctuation. The transcriber decides where each sentence ends and what kind of sentence it is. Blueprint topics 20201 to 20203 cover the period, the question mark and the exclamation point.
The period
Use a period to end:
- statements: I'm the officer in charge.
- commands and instructions: Madam, please state your name and spell your last name for the record. (Scalini key)
- fragments that stand as complete answers: City of Williston Police Officer. 30 years. Correct.
- one-word rulings and responses: Sustained. Overruled. Yes.
- indirect questions, which report a question rather than ask it: I asked her if he had any weapons in the house.
Periods after Q and A are optional under both the Guide to Judiciary Policy (§ 520.36.35) and AAERT's sample pages. Use one style consistently.
One period only at the end of a sentence that ends in an abbreviation: He arrived at 3:30 p.m.
The question mark
The Guide to Judiciary Policy (§ 520.36.45) gives the basic rule: "if a question in Q and A is indeed a question, it must be followed by a question mark."
Use a question mark for:
- direct questions: What was your shift that day?
- tag questions: You were there, weren't you? ...; is that correct?
- statements asked as questions. On cross-examination, attorneys often ask by stating a fact with a questioning delivery, and the witness answers it as a question.
Declarative questions: listen to the delivery
AAERT's Scalini key shows both treatments:
Q. And he was just basically complying with your requests?
A. Yes.
Q. And you didn't arrest him that night.
A. Correct.
The first line was delivered as a question (rising, asking); the second as an assertion for the witness to confirm. The words alone do not decide it. The delivery and the exchange do. When you truly cannot tell, most transcribers use a question mark if the witness answers it as a question.
Several questions in one breath
Attorneys stack questions. Give each complete question its own question mark:
Are you familiar with the substance of this complaint? In fact, you filed it, correct? Wasn't that in 2001? (AAERT examination sample)
Polite requests
A request phrased as a question may take a question mark or a period depending on delivery. Would you repeat the question, please? (Scalini key, asked as a question). Will you please state your name for the record. is often written with a period when it is a formal instruction. Keep a consistent style.
Question marks inside sentences
When a quoted question sits inside a statement, the question mark goes with the question: I thought, why did someone bring a gun? When the whole sentence is the question, the question mark goes outside any closing quotation mark: Did he say "confidential"?
The exclamation point
Exclamation points are rare in legal transcripts. Use one only when the speaker clearly exclaims, as in a shouted warning or a sudden outburst:
- THE BAILIFF: Stop!
- A. He yelled, "Get down!"
Do not use an exclamation point to show that the transcriber thinks a statement is surprising, angry or important. A loud objection is still Objection, Your Honor. Adding "!" characterizes the speaker, which a neutral transcriber does not do.
Trailing, interrupted and fragmentary endings
Not every utterance ends cleanly:
| Ending | Punctuation | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Interrupted by someone else | Double dash | Q. And what is -- |
| Speaker breaks off, changes course | Double dash | It's the -- actually, it's the identification area. |
| A finished fragment | Period | Not at that time. |
| An unfinished question left hanging | Double dash, not a question mark | Q. Did you ever -- |
Chapter 7 covers dashes in detail.
Worked example
Unpunctuated audio:
did you see a Fenway cab I did tell us what happened it didn't pull into the yard
Transcript:
Q. Did you see a Fenway cab?
A. I did.
Q. Tell us what happened.
A. It didn't pull into the yard.
"Tell us what happened" is an instruction, not a question, so it ends with a period.
A longer practice passage
Audio:
and he was cooperative with you throughout the evening yes the 20 or 30 minutes you were with him yes okay he didn't say that he came to hurt Officer Dundee or anything of that nature no he did not say that
Transcript (compare with AAERT's Scalini key):
Q. And he was cooperative with you throughout the evening?
A. Yes.
Q. The 20 or 30 minutes you were with him?
A. Yes.
Q. Okay. He didn't say that he came to hurt Officer Dundee
or anything of that nature.
A. No, he did not say that.
Points to notice:
- And he was cooperative... is a declarative sentence asked as a question, so it takes a question mark.
- The 20 or 30 minutes you were with him? is a fragment, but it is still a question in the exchange.
- Okay. stands as its own acknowledgment, so it takes a period.
- He didn't say... was delivered as an assertion for the witness to confirm, so it ends with a period.
- Two spaces after a period are traditional in fixed-pitch transcripts and appear in AAERT's samples. One space is also widely accepted. Be consistent.
Exam traps
| Trap | Correct form |
|---|---|
| A question mark after an indirect question | He asked whether I was there. |
| A period after a true direct question because "it's the attorney talking" | Where did Corporal Dundee approach you? |
| An exclamation point to show anger | Objection, Your Honor. |
| A question mark on an interrupted question | Q. Did you ever -- |
| Two periods after an abbreviation at sentence end | He left at 5 p.m. |
Under the Guide to Judiciary Policy, how must a Q and A line that is actually a question be punctuated?
It must end with a period, because all Q lines are statements
It must end with a colon to introduce the answer
It may end with either mark at the transcriber's preference
It must end with a question mark
On cross-examination, counsel says in a flat, asserting tone, "And you didn't arrest him that night," and the witness replies, "Correct." How does AAERT's Scalini key punctuate counsel's line?
With a question mark, because every Q line must end with one
With a period, because it was delivered as an assertion for the witness to confirm
With an exclamation point, because it is an accusation
With a double dash, because the witness answered
Which sentence is punctuated correctly?
I asked her if he had any weapons in the house.
I asked her if he had any weapons in the house?
I asked her, if he had any weapons in the house?
I asked her if he had any weapons in the house!
Sections you finish are checked off in the contents.