A
party can call an adverse party to testify at trial except in a criminal case.
The Fifth Amendment says that “No
person. . . shall be compelled in any criminal case to be a witness against
himself.” As the Supreme Court has long held, “The privilege afforded not only
extends to answers that would in themselves support a conviction under a
federal criminal statute but likewise embraces those which would furnish a link
in the chain of evidence needed to prosecute the claimant for a federal crime.”
Hoffman v. United States, 341 U.S. 479, 486-487 (1951)
