§ 716 Disobedience to subpoena.

If someone gets a subpoena to testify or bring documents to court and they ignore it, the court can punish them for contempt. The same thing applies if a witness shows up but refuses to take an oath or refuses to answer questions on the stand.

The judge handles this punishment the same way contempt is handled in civil court cases. This means the court has the power to make people follow through on a subpoena. It cannot be ignored without facing consequences.

The point of this rule is to make sure courts can get the testimony and evidence they need to do their job. Witnesses cannot simply skip court or clam up once they arrive. If they do, the judge can step in and issue penalties to enforce their legal duty to participate.