Ask Lemmy

26276 readers

1498 users here now

A Fediverse community for open-ended, thought provoking questions

Rules: (interactive)

1) Be nice and; have fun

Doxxing, trolling, sealioning, racism, and toxicity are not welcomed in AskLemmy. Remember what your mother said: if you can't say something nice, don't say anything at all. In addition, the site-wide Lemmy.world terms of service also apply here. Please familiarize yourself with them

2) All posts must end with a '?'

This is sort of like Jeopardy. Please phrase all post titles in the form of a proper question ending with ?

3) No spam

Please do not flood the community with nonsense. Actual suspected spammers will be banned on site. No astroturfing.

4) NSFW is okay, within reason

Just remember to tag posts with either a content warning or a [NSFW] tag. Overtly sexual posts are not allowed, please direct them to either !asklemmyafterdark@lemmy.world or !asklemmynsfw@lemmynsfw.com. NSFW comments should be restricted to posts tagged [NSFW].

5) This is not a support community.

It is not a place for 'how do I?', type questions. If you have any questions regarding the site itself or would like to report a community, please direct them to Lemmy.world Support or email info@lemmy.world. For other questions check our partnered communities list, or use the search function.

Reminder: The terms of service apply here too.

Partnered Communities:

Logo design credit goes to: tubbadu

founded 1 year ago

MODERATORS

Bluetreefrog@lemmy.world

candyman337@lemmy.world

TheSaneWriter@lemm.ee

TheSaneWriter@lemmy.thesanewriter.com

candyman337@sh.itjust.works

Asudox@lemmy.world

can@lemmy.ca

lemmy_bot@lemmy.world

beefbaby182@lemmy.world

AsudoxDev@programming.dev

-7

How do you feel about the penalties that exist for witnesses who refuse to testify in court? (lemmy.world)

submitted 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) by MediaSensationalism@lemmy.world to c/asklemmy@lemmy.world

13 comments fedilink hide all child comments

Do you feel that the 4th amendment should protect them? Or perhaps a new amendment should be written to protect them and abolish power of subpoena?

I'm slightly biased as I ask this. I feel that the mind is "sacred" in a sense, that it should be considered a fundamental human right for an individual to be able to preserve privacy over their internally held thoughts and memories, and that the ability of the court to force an individual to speak or disclose part of their mind is a wild overreach of power and an affront to the personal liberty of the innocent.

you are viewing a single comment's thread
view the rest of the comments

[–] originalucifer@moist.catsweat.com 11 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or otherwise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of War or public danger; nor shall any person be subject for the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb; nor shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law; nor shall private property be taken for public use, without just compensation.

furthermore, you can always say 'i dont recall'. no amendment required

[–] MediaSensationalism@lemmy.world 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

A witness can still be punished if the court can prove that claims of poor recollection are being abused.

[–] originalucifer@moist.catsweat.com 6 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

you mean like when an ex president gets on the stand and says i dont recall to very obvious things he should know?? like that?

[–] MediaSensationalism@lemmy.world 0 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Yes, exactly like that.

Of course, it depends on whether the court can prove their recollection whether or not they can be punished, but the bottom line is that it's still illegal and the court remains legally entitled to forcefully procure truthful thoughts and memories from a person.

I don't support any suggestion that updating the law doesn't matter because it is sometimes difficult to enforce, if that was your intention.