Wilson v. United States

SCHWELB, Associate Judge:

This case presents a collision between the right of a criminal defendant to call a witness in his own defense and the privilege of that witness not to incriminate himself. Appellant Leon A. Wilson asks us to set aside his conviction of taking property without right (TPWR) in violation of D.C. Code § 22-3816 (1987 Supp.). He contends that the trial judge committed reversible error by sustaining a blanket invocation of the privilege against self-incrimination by a prospective defense witness, Samuel Lee, and by permitting Lee not to take the witness stand at all, thus…