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The Fifth Amendment says that the accused "shall [not] be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against himself." This has been extended to allow someone to refuse to answer incriminating questions in any court proceeding. However, the questions must be incriminating. The Fifth Amendment does not provide any protection if you simply do not want to testify, or if testifying would incriminate a friend or family member. You can still be held in contempt and jailed for refusing to testify in those situations.

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