What is the rationale behind the Fifth Amendment?

Question

Specifically, the right against self-incrimination?

I am curious as to what you folks think.

Thanks.

Any other thoughts on the right would also be welcome.

Answer 1

If you're speaking of the Fifth Amendment's privilege against self-incrimination, it's to prevent torture. The rationale is that, if a person has the right not to incriminate himself, then it's less likely that the authorities will try to knock the snot out of him.

Answer 2

A defendant in this country is innocent until proven guilty; it is the governments burden to prove guilt and every defendant is especially protected by the fifth amendment because we hold the right not to self incriminate against ourselves and also pleading the fifth is not an admission of guilt and should never be held against us in a court of law.

Answer 3

fifth amendment was passed because in colonial times the suspect was required to testify at his/her trial, regardless of whether or not they could mount a credible defense. this caused many people to be found guilty by virtue of the fact that they could not talk thier way out of the charges. in our justice system you are innocent till proven guilty therefore if the prosecutor cannot meet the burden of proof you can just keep your mouth shut and walk, many a person has been convicted because they took the stand and talked themselves into a guilty verdict when they couldn't answer the questions posed by the states attorney.

Answer 4

Simply put, as you know, anyone can ask a question of you on a given topic or subject, and in a court of Law, can instruct you or force you to answer either yes or no without benefit of explanation. For example; 'are you still beating your wife'? Either a yes or no answer without explanation will result in an incorrect reply. Yes answer is obvious, but if you answered simply no, it automatically implies that you once did beat your wife, but no longer do so. ' I have never hit my wife', would be disallowed in court, as it did not fall into the yes or no category. It was instituted in the constitution as a protection against the common useage of coercion and/or torture to confess to a crime you did not commit. Hope this clears it up for you.

Answer 5

In a free country a person should not be made to testify against himself as it is the responsibilty of the government to prove that this person is guilty. Remember that a person is innocent until proven guilty and that is the way it should be in our justice system. It is the only way that justice can be applied fairly. .

Answer 6

You may not be compelled to self-incriminate. It is up to the state to prove a case against you - you cannot be forced to be honest about your own guilt.