privilege against self-incrimination
1
8.5
- noun
- /ˈprɪvɪlɪdʒ əˈɡɛnst sɛlf ɪnˈkrɪmɪneɪʃən/
- Specialized
:
privilegio contra la autoincriminación
- In addition, a witness before a grand jury who is a criminal suspect must be advised of his or her constitutional privilege against self-incrimination.
- Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination
- constitutional privilege against self-incrimination
Examples
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Then it tells us on the third page that the Court granted certiorari "in order further to explore some facets of the problems of applying the privilege against self-incrimination to in-custody interrogation and to give concrete constitutional guidelines for law enforcement agencies and courts to follow."
Academic text (2001) -
This warning would alert the person both to the possibility of criminal charges and to the privilege against self-incrimination.
Academic text (2003) -
If a person exercises his or her Sixth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination and refuses to answer questions, then that refusal cannot be mentioned at a trial.
Academic text (2003) -
First amendment, privacy of the home, third amendment, privacy of the person, fourth and fifth, privilege against self-incrimination, but nowhere does it say, "You have the inalienable right to privacy."
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Congress did not completely abandon the central holding of Miranda, i.e., the four warnings are important safeguards in protecting the Fifth Amendment privilege against self-incrimination.
Academic text (2001) -
During the court case, the defendant decided to exercise his privilege against self-incrimination by remaining silent when questioned.
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A witness must be informed of their privilege against self-incrimination before being asked potentially dangerous questions.
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The attorney advised her client to use the privilege against self-incrimination to avoid answering questions that could damage his case.
Synonyms
The right to refuse to answer questions that could show you committed a crime
Antonyms
Surface Forms
Morphology
privilege + against + self-incrimination
The phrase is largely compositional: 'privilege' (a legal right) + 'against' (protecting from) + 'self-incrimination' (making oneself appear guilty) together yield the right to refuse to give information that would incriminate oneself. However, this is a specialized legal formulation and the key constituent 'self-incrimination' is complex and likely unfamiliar to B1 learners, so the meaning is only partially predictable without prior exposure.
Etymology
Privilege against self-incrimination comes from the simple idea that a person has a special right — a privilege — not to give answers that cause self-incrimination, that is, 'make them look guilty'. So in court someone can 'refuse' to answer questions to avoid 'admitting guilt'.