Section 25.8 Defendant’s Spouse

• Library: Criminal Practice 2012 Supp

2. (§25.8) Defendant’s Spouse

Failure of a defendant’s spouse to testify cannot be argued. Rule 27.05; State v. Baldwin, 358 S.W.2d 18 (Mo. 1962). But see State v. Frankoviglia, 514 S.W.2d 536 (Mo. 1974), in which the Court said that the referral to the accused’s failure to testify must be “direct, nonambiguous and unequivocal” in order to be reversible error. Also, in Frankoviglia, the Court considered...