Hawkins v. United States

Background

A man was convicted under the Mann Act for driving a girl from Arkansas to Oklahoma for immoral purposes. At trial the Government put the man’s wife, identified in court as “Jane Wilson,” on the stand to describe her and the girl’s activities. The wife testified she was his spouse and had been a prostitute, and the defendant objected to her testifying against him, but the trial judge allowed it and the jury convicted him.

Reasoning

The Court reviewed the long common-law rule that generally prevents a husband or wife from testifying against the other to protect family peace. While earlier decisions had removed the ban on spouses testifying for each other, the Court declined to eliminate the rule that bars one spouse from giving adverse testimony against the other. The Justices concluded that family harmony and the public interest still support keeping the rule, and they found that the wife’s testimony in this case was not harmless error because the central issue was the defendant’s intent on the trip and the wife’s statements could have tipped the jury.

Real world impact

The Court reversed the conviction because the wife’s testimony was wrongly admitted and likely affected the verdict. The decision keeps in place the rule that spouses generally may not be used as adverse witnesses unless the law is changed, and it leaves open the possibility that Congress or the Court could alter the rule later based on experience.

Dissents or concurrances

A concurring Justice urged re-examination of the rule and noted the wife may not have testified voluntarily, since she was held as a material witness and released on bond, supporting the Court’s result.