The Role of the Ellipsis
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Three small dots can mean several different things in a transcript: a trailing, unfinished thought, an omitted section of speech, or simply a natural pause, and using the mark consistently for only one of these meanings avoids confusing a reader trying to interpret the text accurately. Consistency here rewards a careful reader considerably.
Where an ellipsis marks an omission rather than a natural pause, that distinction matters enormously for honesty. A reader has every right to assume that omitted material has not been selectively removed in a way that changes the meaning of what remains on the page.
The safest practice defines the convention clearly at the outset of a document and applies it without exception throughout, so the small mark never becomes a quiet, ambiguous tool for reshaping what a subject actually said. Defining the convention once, and holding to it throughout, keeps the small mark honest rather than ambiguous.