Joey Gallo Takes The Fifth Amendment
Crazy Joe Gallo comes right from central casting here, as your stereotypical mobster. Taking the Fifth Amendment.
By: The National Crime Syndicate
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Joey Gallo Takes The Fifth Amendment - Video
The Commander Cody Band - Take The Fifth Amendment - 8/5/1977 - Convention Hall (Official)
The Commander Cody Band - Take The Fifth Amendment Recorded Live: 8/5/1977 - Convention Hall - Asbury Park, NJ More The Commander Cody Band at Music Vault: h...
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The Commander Cody Band - Take The Fifth Amendment - 8/5/1977 - Convention Hall (Official) - Video
In any court proceeding, witness testimony can be an important source of evidence.
It follows, then, that courts take calling witnesses pretty seriously. How seriously? Seriously enough that those who refuse to testify can, in some situations, be held in contempt of court, which may result in penalties including fines and even jail time.
What are the rules for testifying in court and how can you keep yourself from running afoul of them?
Fifth Amendment Right against Self-Incrimination
One person who can generally never be forced to testify in court is a criminal defendant. Under the Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution, no person "shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself." This means that a defendant that is charged with a crime can choose whether or not to testify in court. However, if the defendant does choose to testify, he generally cannot choose which questions to answer.
The Fifth Amendment also extends to other witnesses in criminal and civil proceedings; any time a witness' testimony might incriminate him or her in a crime, the witness can choose not to testify by invoking their Fifth Amendment rights. Unlike a criminal defendant, however, these witnesses can generally invoke their Fifth Amendment rights selectively during their testimony.
Being Subpoenaed to Testify
However, witnesses other than criminal defendants may also be compelled to testify in the form of a subpoena issued by a court. A subpoena may request a person to testify, provide documents, or bring other evidence to a court. If a person fails to obey the subpoena, they can be held in contempt and subject to fines, jail, or both.
There are several other types of witness who may be excused from testifying, even if they are subpoenaed:
Learn more about what happens in the courtroom and get some general tips for navigating a court proceeding at FindLaw's Learn About the Law section on Going to Court.
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Can You Go to Jail for Refusing to Testify?
For Congress, Lois Lerner pleaded the Fifth, but for Politico, the embattled ex-IRS director gave a breezy biographical sketch that included her insistence that she had nothing to apologize for and that she did nothing wrong. Now Republicans are fuming.
Her decision to make unsubstantiated claims to a media outlet while claiming Fifth Amendment protections from answering Congress questions is telling, said House Oversight Chairman Darrell Issa, who headed up a panel to quiz Ms. Lerner about her agencys delay of nonprofit applications to tea party groups, Politico reported.
She appears to have great confidence that her allies in the Obama Administration will not consider legal action after she resigned and declined to discuss the IRS actions against private citizens, Mr. Issa went on, Politico reported.
Ms. Lerner admitted her division had paid extra attention to applications from groups with tea party in their names at the request of her boss, Politico reported. But she denied that her Democratic leanings influenced her scrutiny of conservative groups though Republicans have released emails showing that perhaps the opposite, in some cases, was true, Politico reported.
Mr. Issa is not the only Republican to criticize Ms. Lerner for speaking to the press, rather than Congress.
House Speaker John Boehners staff posted a blog blasting her claim to Politico that shes not sorry for anything I did, she said, in the article.
Thanks to President Obama and his cadre of cover-up artists, we still dont know what exactly that entailed, Mr. Boehners blog read, Politico reported.
And Rep. Jim Jordan, who chairs the IRS Oversight subcommittee, said Ms. Lerners interview with Politico was a poke in the eye to the American citizens who were targeted by the IRS, Politico reported.
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GOP fumes as Lois Lerner talks to press but snubs Congress