Opinion ID: 3016722
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 4

Heading: Cross-examination of Eugene Samuel

Text: Samuel was Benjamin’s supervisor at Forth Monmouth and, at the time that he was subpoenaed by Benjamin to testify, he was the plaintiff in a civil employment discrimination suit against the Department of Defense. According to Benjamin, the Court “severely hampered Benjamin’s ability to elicit information from Samuel, and violated his Sixth Amendment right to call a witness in his defense” by permitting the government to threaten to cross-examine Samuel about matters that might lead him to invoke his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination. Benjamin also believes that the District Court abused its discretion by not requiring the government to state on the record, outside the presence of the jury, the supposed incriminating questions it wished to ask Samuel. We are frankly mystified by these arguments. It appears that Samuel had a prior suspension for sexual harassment that he might have been trying to avoid being brought to light. He may also have been worried that he would be cross-examined in such a way that he would be implicated in criminal activity related to the charges against Benjamin. To allay these concerns, the District Court informed Samuel that he could invoke his Fifth Amendment right to silence and that if he was concerned that a particular question “might implicate [his] own rights,” he should err “on the side of just quietly saying I think I would like to have a recess now.” These considerations do not render the actions of the 7 District Court erroneous. Benjamin also claims that “Samuel’s concern over the government’s threatening cross-examination ballooned into anxiety about whether his direct testimony violated his security clearance.” (Benjamin Br. at 21.) But this contention makes little sense, especially in light of the District Court’s caution in this area. It seems that no questions were asked that would have constrained Samuel to invoke his Fifth Amendment rights. In sum, we fail to see where there was any conflict between Benjamin’s Sixth Amendment right to procure testimony and Samuel’s Fifth Amendment right not to incriminate himself.