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What are my rights in this?

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Sherron Little

Guest
What is the name of your state? New Mexico
I have been served a supena (I know this is misspelled but I can't find my dictionary at the moment) to testify against a young man in June. I don't have any idea what they want to know but I do know that this young man is my son. We have different last names so I really don't think the US Attorney has a clue that this is the case. I was wondering if they can make me testify against my own son? He is charged with felon in possession of a firearm. His felony was 13 years old and he has not had any other convictions. I go to his house daily and have never seen a firearm in his home or in his possession. I was told that they can't make a wife testify against her husband so how can they make a mother testify against her son? He is to be represented by a public defender but has been in jail over 5 months and has not had an attorney work on his case yet so I can't ask his attorney. Does anyone out there know the answer to this?
 


I AM ALWAYS LIABLE

Senior Member
Sherron Little said:
What is the name of your state? New Mexico
I have been served a supena (I know this is misspelled but I can't find my dictionary at the moment) to testify against a young man in June. I don't have any idea what they want to know but I do know that this young man is my son. We have different last names so I really don't think the US Attorney has a clue that this is the case. I was wondering if they can make me testify against my own son? He is charged with felon in possession of a firearm. His felony was 13 years old and he has not had any other convictions. I go to his house daily and have never seen a firearm in his home or in his possession. I was told that they can't make a wife testify against her husband so how can they make a mother testify against her son? He is to be represented by a public defender but has been in jail over 5 months and has not had an attorney work on his case yet so I can't ask his attorney. Does anyone out there know the answer to this?
My response:

The law recognizes the attorney-client, the physician-patient, the psychotherapist-patient, and the priest-penitent privilege; i.e., the subject communications are generally "confidential".

The law does not recognize "parent-child" privilege.

You'll be testifying.

IAAL


P.S. The word is spelled SUBPOENA.
 
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Sherron Little

Guest
I want to be in the courtroom as a spectator so I will know just what it is that they think he has done and what kind of evidence they have . If I go as a witness I will be banned from the courtroom. Is this correct? Can I refuse to be a witness? Somebody said Hostile witness/ What is this?
 

JETX

Senior Member
"If I go as a witness I will be banned from the courtroom. Is this correct?"
*** Yes. It is called 'invoking the rule'. Simply, it is to prevent your testimony from being tainted by your hearing what others might say.

"Can I refuse to be a witness?"
*** Of course you can. Then, the court can order you to testify (since you have no immunity). And if you still refuse, you can be jailed for contempt.

"Somebody said Hostile witness/ What is this?"
*** A witness is `hostile' if his oral testimony is harmful to the side calling him, and in conflict with the expectations of that side, and he intends to harm the case. Suppose, for example, that a witness makes a statement to the police that supports a particular view of the facts surrounding an offense, and is later called as a witness to be examined on that view. If he then offers evidence that is in outright disagreement with his original statement, he may be declared hostile. The attorney may ask the court to declare the witness "hostile", after which, as an exception of the examination-in-chief rules, the lawyer may ask their own witness leading questions.
 
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Sherron Little

Guest
what do you mean in the last 3 lines "As an exception to ......"
 

JETX

Senior Member
Normally, an attorney is barred from asking 'leading' questions of the witness. However, if the court grants the request for 'hostile witness' status, the attorney can 'lead' the witness.
 
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Boxcarbill

Guest
JETX said:
Normally, an attorney is barred from asking 'leading' questions of the witness. However, if the court grants the request for 'hostile witness' status, the attorney can 'lead' the witness.
Just to clarify this point. It isn't that an attorney is barred from asking leading questions of the witness but rather that an attorney cannot ask leading questions of a witness that they have called to testify. An attorney does ask leading questions on cross-examintion. Cross-examination is done by the opposing counsel on witness called to the stand by the other attorney. So if the attorney calls the witness to the stand, the calling attorney does a direct examination (open ended question). Upon completion of the direct examination, the witness is then passed to the opposing counsel who then does the cross-examination (leading questions.)

Now, one of the exceptions to the rule that the attorney calling the witness cannot asking leading questions, i.e. conduct a cross-examination of the witness is if the witness is hostile. A witness who is the opposing party or who is so closely related to the opposing party as to make them hostile to the side which called them as a witness is said to be hostile. In that situation-- and the mother of the accused is certainly so closely related to the accused as to make her a hostile to the state-- then upon the prosecutor's request for the court to declare the witness hostile, the state may cross-examine you (ask leading questions.)

If a witness refuses to testify, the court can jail the witness on contempt and keep them in jail until the witness agrees to testify or until the trial in over.
 
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Sherron Little

Guest
When I was called into the local Police Station several months ago and guestioned I went freely and answered everything they ask me but when the disclosure was given to us they had taken nearly everything I had said and put it in totally different text. Example. They ask me if I would lie for my son to keep him out of trouble? Had he told me not to talk to them? He did not even know I was there. I told them that "No i wouldn't lie for him just to keep him out of trouble and if he knew I was even talking to them he would tell me to tell them if they wanted to know something to ask him and leave me out of it" On the disclosure papers they said , I said ,"My son told me not to tell you anything and not to get involved!" They told me during the talk we had that if my son had keys to my house , vehicle etc and I owned a gun then I aided and abetted a felon. I said "all of my children have keys to my house and car so I guess you can arrest me then. But you know I have my mother (who just had a massive stroke) and she is paralyzed so I need to make arrangements for her." They said "oh , we aren't going to arrest you today but when we do we can walk in and get you and leave your mother laying in the floor if we want to." I started crying and walked out which is what I should have done anyway. My son's attorney is the one who called and said they wanted me to go in for questioning and when he called to tell me they wanted to talk to me I asked him ''Why, and should I go ?" and he said "Sure go tell em what ever the hell it is they want to know. " One other question I was wondering about is..........If you own a gun do you have to have it registered in the National Firearms Registration and Transfer Record? I believe that if you buy a gun since the Brady Bill, the answer would be yes ,but if you had the gun prior to then would that be the case? Thanks for helping me understand all this........
 

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