Schmerber v. California (1965)
- Docket
- 658
- Decided
- 1965-01-01
Summary
Question: Did the blood test violate the Fifth Amendment guarantee against self-incrimination? Conclusion: No. Justice Brennan argued for a 5-4 majority that the protection against self-incrimination applied specifically to compelled communications or testimony. Since the results of the blood test were neither "testimony nor evidence relating to some communicative act or writing by the petitioner, it was not inadmissible on privilege grounds."