4 ms·

Critically, if the government gives you immunity, your 5th amendment protections vanish, and you can be compelled to testify. Since police officers enjoy bl

Critically, if the government gives you immunity, your 5th amendment protections vanish, and you can be compelled to testify. Since police officers enjoy blanket qualified immunity they absolutely do NOT have 5th amendment protections when it comes to their jobs.

lolinder 2y ago
While I agree with OP that this is a clear cut case of no 5th amendment protections, I can't agree with your reasoning: the fact that police officers have qualified immunity means that in theory they can, in fact, plead the 5th when charged with something that would fall outside of the qualified immunity. We've had several high-profile cases of police officers being charged with murder recently, and I don't believe a single one was compelled to testify against themselves.
- akira2501 2y ago
  > they can, in fact, plead the 5th when charged with something that would fall outside of the qualified immunity. True, but this is not an arbitrary process, it must actually be adjudicated, which is where I would expect the protections to apply. The judge could, after removing the immunity, then decide that the bodycamera of the incident cannot be submitted into evidence without further proceedings.
  - lolinder 2y ago
    Right, but that's where OP's point that these don't count as testimony comes in anyway. Qualified immunity does not imply no 5th amendment protection, so the question of whether these count as testimony will come up because pleading the 5th is possible.
- s3p 2y ago
  They weren't acting in the scope of the job that qualified them to have immunity. If they were, it would apply, and seemingly they could testify about that specific job duty that they are unable to be prosecuted for.
AdieuToLogic 2y ago
> Since police officers enjoy blanket qualified immunity they absolutely do NOT have 5th amendment protections when it comes to their jobs. Qualified immunity for police is a civil liability doctrine and not relevant to criminal charges. The 5th amendment most certainly applies to criminal charges brought against any citizen, police included. AFAIK, it is applicable in civil lawsuits as well in order to protect a defendant from testimony being used against them in future charges, although adverse inference can be surmised in civil cases.
- Tostino 2y ago
  Right, and then they just enjoy defacto immunity in the criminal system due to their proximity to the other arms of justice (judges, prosecutors, etc). So that hardly ever matters, even if it is technically possible.
mr_toad 2y ago
Infamously, a detective in the OJ Simpson murder trial pleaded the 5th when questioned about planting evidence. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-07-mn-43219-story.html https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-07-mn-43219-...

lolinder 2y ago

While I agree with OP that this is a clear cut case of no 5th amendment protections, I can't agree with your reasoning: the fact that police officers have qualified immunity means that in theory they can, in fact, plead the 5th when charged with something that would fall outside of the qualified immunity. We've had several high-profile cases of police officers being charged with murder recently, and I don't believe a single one was compelled to testify against themselves.

akira2501 2y ago
> they can, in fact, plead the 5th when charged with something that would fall outside of the qualified immunity. True, but this is not an arbitrary process, it must actually be adjudicated, which is where I would expect the protections to apply. The judge could, after removing the immunity, then decide that the bodycamera of the incident cannot be submitted into evidence without further proceedings.
- lolinder 2y ago
  Right, but that's where OP's point that these don't count as testimony comes in anyway. Qualified immunity does not imply no 5th amendment protection, so the question of whether these count as testimony will come up because pleading the 5th is possible.
s3p 2y ago
They weren't acting in the scope of the job that qualified them to have immunity. If they were, it would apply, and seemingly they could testify about that specific job duty that they are unable to be prosecuted for.

AdieuToLogic 2y ago

> Since police officers enjoy blanket qualified immunity they absolutely do NOT have 5th amendment protections when it comes to their jobs. Qualified immunity for police is a civil liability doctrine and not relevant to criminal charges. The 5th amendment most certainly applies to criminal charges brought against any citizen, police included. AFAIK, it is applicable in civil lawsuits as well in order to protect a defendant from testimony being used against them in future charges, although adverse inference can be surmised in civil cases.

Tostino 2y ago
Right, and then they just enjoy defacto immunity in the criminal system due to their proximity to the other arms of justice (judges, prosecutors, etc). So that hardly ever matters, even if it is technically possible.

mr_toad 2y ago

Infamously, a detective in the OJ Simpson murder trial pleaded the 5th when questioned about planting evidence. https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-07-mn-43219-story.html https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1995-09-07-mn-43219-...