---
kind: "section"
citation: "10 U.S.C. § 931d"
title: "10"
title_heading: "Armed Forces"
number: "931d"
heading: "Art. 131d. Wrongful refusal to testify"
release: "119-102"
date: "2026-07-12"
url: "https://uscodex.org/usc/10/931d"
units:
  - "Subtitle A — General Military Law"
  - "Part II — Personnel"
  - "Chapter 47 — Uniform Code of Military Justice"
  - "Subchapter X — Punitive Articles"
---

# §931d. Art. 131d. Wrongful refusal to testify


Any [person](/usc/10/2700.md?p=2) subject to this chapter who, in the presence of a court-martial, a board of [officers](/usc/10/101.md?p=b-1), a [military](/usc/10/801.md?p=8) commission, a court of inquiry, a preliminary hearing, or an [officer](/usc/10/101.md?p=b-1) taking a deposition, of or for the [United States](/usc/10/101.md?p=a-1), wrongfully refuses to qualify as a witness or to answer a question after having been directed to do so by the [person](/usc/10/2700.md?p=2) presiding shall be punished as a court-martial may direct.


## Source credit

(Added Pub. L. 114–328, div. E, title LX, § 5447, Dec. 23, 2016, 130 Stat. 2957.)

## Notes

### Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Effective Date

Section effective on Jan. 1, 2019, as designated by the President, with implementing regulations and provisions relating to applicability to various situations, see section 5542 of Pub. L. 114–328 and Ex. Ord. No. 13825, set out as notes under section 801 of this title.