When a witness receives a subpoena and appears in court personally but has not been authorized to provide information, or has been granted authorization to provide testimony that has been limited in a manner that is expected to raise concerns with the court, it is essential that an Assistant United States Attorney or other Department attorney appear in court with the witness. In the event that the court orders the witness incarcerated for contempt, the Assistant United States Attorney or other Department attorney should immediately take appropriate steps, including petitioning for a writ of habeas corpus (28 U.S.C. §§ 2241, 2254). If the employee is in state custody, an alternative to habeas corpus is removal of the matter to federal court pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1442; removal is also an appropriate response to a contempt citation from a state court. It is expected that contempt citations will be extremely rare. Action by the United States Attorney or other Department attorney in such cases is expected to be quick and vigorous.

[Updated April 2018]