To Testify or Not to Testify?

That is the question! Of course no one ever has to testify in a court proceeding where they're the defendant, but there are different reasons and strategies as to why someone may, or may not choose to testify on their own behalf.

First, let's start with the obvious: the jury wants to hear your story. You have been accused of something--what do you have to say about that? Are you believable? Do you seem as if you are lying, or do you seem as if you're a straight-up person with nothing to hide?

The problem of course is that lawyers are tricky. We're trained in how to argue. Many people think they're good speakers, and maybe under normal circumstances they are, but here you have an adversary that is trying to make you look bad, trip you up, find inconsistencies in your words. You're nervous, and maybe you end up looking bad. You could easily hurt your case. This is all the more true if you are not a practiced public speaker, or if you don't have a good educational background.

You also have the issue of whether or not the state has presented a strong case or not. If the state hasn't, you can easily decide that there is no need for you to take the stand. If the prosecution has failed to put on a case worthy of a conviction, why give them a second chance at making you look bad? Anytime the defendant takes the stand there are new issues surrounding what might be admissible, what witnesses could be called to rebut the defendant's testimony, etc.

From a trial strategy perspective, this could be a very difficult decision to make--yet it could be crucial to the outcome. In the trial I am involved with now, the lead defense attorney made the decision for the Defendant to NOT take the stand. Was this the right decision? If the jury comes back with an acquittal, then of course there was no harm in him not saying anything. However, if he is convicted, he will always have to live with the knowledge that he could have said something on his behalf, but didn't.

My own position is that if it was me, I would take the stand. Of course, I am a lawyer, and I am comfortable with speaking in my own defense--or for someone else. I totally understand why other people may not have the same view. At the end of the day, each case has its own unique facts, its own defendant, and there is no easy "right or wrong" answer as to whether or not someone should testify.