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Justice and the Fifth Amendment
Collection StructureFiring Line broadcast records > Episode guide > Justice and the Fifth Amendment
Item Title Justice and the Fifth Amendment
Guest Williams, Edward Bennett
Host Buckley, William F., Jr. (1925-2008)
Date CreatedMay 03, 1974
Description

Political violence had died down with the "Vietnamization" of the war, but ordinary crime had risen, and the courts increasingly seemed unable to cope. "One suggested remedy," as Mr. Buckley frames the question, "is a drastic new look at the Fifth Amendment and its interpretation by the Supreme Court, and here to say, Leave it alone, is Edward Bennett Williams," whose clients had included Jimmy Hoffa and Frank Costello. A brilliant duel that takes the question far beyond the Warren Court--back to the beginnings of Anglo-American jurisprudence, and before that to the medieval Church and to the Talmud. "I think that in a free society it is essentially unfair and essentially unfree to confront one suspected of a crime with conviction if he confesses his guilt, perjury if he denies it, or contempt if he refuses to answer it. It seems to me it is essentially like saying to a small child who is suspected of taking your loose change ... 'If you admit it, you will be thrashed for stealing; if you deny it, you will be thrashed for lying; and if you refuse to answer, you will be punished for disobedience.'"

Language(s)
Country of Origin
Place RecordedWashington, District of Columbia, United States
DimensionsDuration: 60 minutes
FormatText
Medium television programs
Aspect Ratio
4:3
Color
color
Soundtrack
sound
Hoover IDProgram S0139
Record Number80040.377
NotesVideo available through special order.
RightsCopyright held by Stanford University. This copy is provided for educational and research purposes only. No publication, further reproduction, or reuse of copies, beyond fair use, may be made without the express written permission of the Hoover Institution Library & Archives on behalf of Stanford University.

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