Franklin v. State

The question presented by this appeal is whether a defendant in a criminal case may be impeached as a witness at the trial on the merits by his silence as a witness at pre-trial hearings about his defense of alibi1 when he was called to testify for the limited purpose of those hearings in accordance with the trial court’s rulings.

Appellant testified at the pre-trial hearing to determine his competency to stand trial. He testified again in hearings on motions to suppress evidence of a search and seizure and to suppress a possible future in-court identification which he claimed was tainted. He…