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Wyatt v. United States, 362 U.S. 525 (1960)
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General SummaryThis case is from a collection containing the full text of over 16,000 Supreme Court cases from 1793 to the present. The body of Supreme Court decisions are, effectively, the final interpretation of the Constitution. Only an amendment to the Constitution can permanently overturn an interpretation and this has happened only four times in American history.
Wyatt v. United States, 362 U.S. 525 (1960)
Wyatt v. United States No. 119 Argued January 13, 1960 Decided May 16, 1960 362 U.S. 525
CERTIORARI TO THE UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS
FOR THE FIFTH CIRCUIT
Syllabus
Petitioner was tried and convicted in a Federal District Court of knowingly transporting a woman in interstate commerce for the purpose of prostitution, in violation of 18 U.S.C. § 2421. At the trial, the woman, who had married petitioner since the date of the offense, was ordered over her objection and that of petitioner to testify for the prosecution.
Held: the ruling was correct, and the judgment is affirmed. Pp. 525-531.
(a) Though the common law rule of evidence ordinarily permitting a defendant to exclude the adverse testimony of his or her spouse still applies in the federal courts, there is an exception which permits the defendant’s wife to testify against him when she was the victim of a violation of § 2421. Pp. 526-527.
(b) The privilege accorded by the general rule resides in the witness, as well as in the defendant. Pp. 527-529.
(c) In view of the purpose of § 2421, a prostituted witness-wife may not protect her husband by declining to testify against him. Pp. 529-530.
(d) A different conclusion is not required by the fact that the marriage took place after the commission of the offense. Pp. 530-531.
263 F.2d 304, affirmed.
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Chicago: U.S. Supreme Court, "Syllabus," Wyatt v. United States, 362 U.S. 525 (1960) in 362 U.S. 525 Original Sources, accessed November 24, 2024, http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=J5V1N1LVR18VL11.
MLA: U.S. Supreme Court. "Syllabus." Wyatt v. United States, 362 U.S. 525 (1960), in 362 U.S. 525, Original Sources. 24 Nov. 2024. http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=J5V1N1LVR18VL11.
Harvard: U.S. Supreme Court, 'Syllabus' in Wyatt v. United States, 362 U.S. 525 (1960). cited in 1960, 362 U.S. 525. Original Sources, retrieved 24 November 2024, from http://originalsources.com/Document.aspx?DocID=J5V1N1LVR18VL11.
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