- self-incrimination
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n.The act of testifying against oneself or implicating oneself in a crime, which the Fifth Amendment forbids the government to require of anyone.
The Essential Law Dictionary. — Sphinx Publishing, An imprint of Sourcebooks, Inc. Amy Hackney Blackwell. 2008.
- self-incrimination
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the giving of evidence, by testimony or otherwise, by a witness that incriminates him. In many systems a person does not have to answer a question that, if truly answered, would tend to incriminate. See right to silence.
Collins dictionary of law. W. J. Stewart. 2001.
- self-incrimination
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The making of statements that might expose the maker to criminal prosecution, either now or in the future. The Fifth Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prohibits the government from forcing a person to provide evidence (as in answering questions) that might lead to prosecution for a crime.Category: Criminal LawCategory: Small Claims Court & Lawsuits
Nolo’s Plain-English Law Dictionary. Gerald N. Hill, Kathleen Thompson Hill. 2009.
- self-incrimination
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Giving testimony in a trial or other legal proceeding that could subject one to criminal prosecution.
Dictionary from West's Encyclopedia of American Law. 2005.
- self-incrimination
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I
Giving testimony in a trial or other legal proceeding that could subject one to criminal prosecution.II (privilege against self-incrimination) The constitutional right of people to refuse to give testimony against themselves that could subject them to criminal prosecution. The right is guaranteed in the Fifth Amendment to the United States Constitution . Asserting the right is often referred to as "taking the Fifth."
Short Dictionary of (mostly American) Legal Terms and Abbreviations.
- self-incrimination
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n.making statements or producing evidence which tends to prove that one is guilty of a crime. The 5th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution guarantees that one cannot "be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself:" and the 14th Amendment applies that guarantee to state cases. Thus refusing to testify in court on the basis that the testimony may be self-incriminating is called "taking the Fifth."
Law dictionary. EdwART. 2013.