The 5th Amendment Protects you from being Compelled to Testify if that Testimony could Place you in Jeopardy of Criminal Prosecution.

But that Jeopardy is the key. You Cannot be Compelled to put Yourself at Risk. Remove the Risk, and you Can be Compelled to Testify.

The best example of how this works is with Immunity Agreements. If a Prosecutor puts a Witness on the Stand in a Trial, and asks a Question that might require the Witness to Incriminate themself, meaning their Statements could later be used as Evidence against Them, the Witness can Refuse to Answer. This is often called Pleading the 5th.

But if that same Prosecutor first gives the Witness an Immunity Agreement, Guaranteeing that they can NOT be Prosecuted, No matter what they say, then they Can be Compelled to Answer. The key is the Risk to Yourself. Once that Risk is Removed, the 5th Amendment No longer Applies.

A Presidential Pardon, particularly a Pre-Emptive Pardon like the one Ford gave to Nixon, which would Prevent future Prosecution, would have the Same Effect. So if the President Granted someone a Pre-Emptive Pardon, and then that Person was Subpoenaed to Testify, they would be in No Danger of Prosecution, and therefore would Not be able to Assert their 5th Amendment Right Not to Answer a Question on the Witness Stand.

It's worth noting this type of Pardons apply Only to Federal Crimes, not State Crimes, so if Testifying were to Place the Recipient of a Presidential Pardon at Risk of State Prosecution, the 5th Amendment would still Apply.










NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker