Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/boundvolumes/524bv.pdf
Page Number: 722.0

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Unit: $U97

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Cite as: 524 U. S. 666 (1998)

677

Opinion of the Court

the Fifth Amendment rests, does not protect witnesses
against disclosing offenses in violation of the laws of
another country. King of the Two Sicilies v. Willcox,
7 State Trials (N. S.) 1049, 1068. Queen v. Boyes, 1
B. & S., at 330[, 121 Eng. Rep., at 738]. This court has
held that immunity against state prosecution is not es-
sential to the validity of federal statutes declaring that
a witness shall not be excused from giving evidence on
the ground that it will incriminate him, and also that
the lack of state power to give witnesses protection
against federal prosecution does not defeat a state im-
munity statute. The principle established is that full
and complete immunity against prosecution by the gov-
ernment compelling the witness to answer is equivalent
to the protection furnished by the rule against compul-
sory self-incrimination. Counselman v. Hitchcock, 142
U. S. 547. Brown v. Walker, 161 U. S. 591, 606. Jack
v. Kansas, 199 U. S. 372, 381. Hale v. Henkel, 201 U. S.
43, 68. As appellee at the hearing did not invoke pro-
tection against federal prosecution, his plea is without
merit and the government’s demurrer should have been
sustained.” Murdock, 284 U. S., at 149.

Murdock’s resolution of the question received a subse-
quent complement when we afﬁrmed again that a State could
compel a witness to give testimony that might incriminate
him under federal law, see Knapp v. Schweitzer, 357 U. S.
371 (1958), overruled by Murphy v. Waterfront Comm’n of
N. Y. Harbor, 378 U. S. 52 (1964), testimony that we had pre-
viously held to be admissible into evidence in the federal
courts, see Feldman v. United States, 322 U. S. 487 (1944),
overruled by Murphy, supra, at 80.

B

It has been suggested here that our precedent addressing
fear of prosecution by a government other than the compel-
ling authority fails to reﬂect the Murdock rule uniformly.