Blind Justice

A blind man sitting at a bar feels someone trying to steal his wallet from his back pocket. He whirls on the thief and grabs him by his chest in a vice-like grip. "Call the police," he says to the bartender, who does so. Some minutes later a policeman arrives. The blind man, still holding the thief by the chest, hands the thief to the policeman, saying, "Here is the man who tried to steal my wallet." At trial of the thief for attempted larceny, the blind man tells this story. When the prosecutor asks him if he sees the thief in the courtroom, the bind man replies negatively. The prosecutor next calls the policeman who took the thief into custody. When the prosecutor asks him whether he sees the person he arrested in the courtroom, the policeman points to the defendant. The prosecutor then asks, "What did the blind man say to you when he delivered the defendant to you?" Defense counsel objects on grounds of hearsay. What ruling and why?