§ 701 Defendant a competent witness - Comment on failure to testify - Presumption.

If you're charged with a crime in Oklahoma, you have the right to testify at your own trial if you want to. But you can't be forced to testify, and no one can make you take the stand against your will.

If you choose not to testify, the jury cannot hold that against you. The judge, the prosecutor, and everyone else in the courtroom must treat your silence as if it means nothing at all. Staying quiet is not proof of guilt, and the law says people can't assume you're hiding something just because you didn't speak.

The rule also protects you from prosecutors bringing up your silence during the trial. If a lawyer points out to the jury that you didn't testify, that's a serious mistake. It gives you grounds to ask for a new trial, because the law says your choice not to testify should never be used against you in any way.