[jgaiser]

Originally Posted by ApK

And, for the sake of argument, even if one WERE to accept that there is no reason to take the 5th unless you were guilty, it doesn't not necessarily mean that you are guilty of what you are being accused of at the moment.
You might well take the 5th to avoid incriminating yourself in some unrelated matter that the court isn't even aware of.

ApK

SCOTUS agrees.

In the 2001 case Ohio v. Reiner, the U.S. Supreme Court held that “a witness may have a reasonable fear of prosecution and yet be innocent of any wrongdoing. The [Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination] serves to protect the innocent who otherwise might be ensnared by ambiguous circumstances.”