What happens if the witness invokes the Fifth Amendment?
The Fifth Amendment provides witnesses with a right to remain silent if their testimony would incriminate them in any way. If a witness invokes the Fifth Amendment, a judge must determine whether there is a valid Fifth Amendment claim. If the judge determines that the claim is invalid, then the person must testify or he may be jailed for contempt. If the claim is valid, then the government must either release the witness or offer him immunity for his testimony. If immunity is granted and the witness still refuses to testify, then he may be jailed for contempt. Are material witness proceedings open to the public? Grand jury proceedings are normally closed to the public, so witnesses’ testimony to the grand jury would be closed. However, the other court proceedings, such as the hearing to determine whether the witness should be detained or whether the witness has a valid Fifth Amendment privilege, are ordinary court proceedings. Therefore, those proceedings should be presumed open to the
