Perjury

Perjury is the crime committed by one who, when giving evidence on oath as a witness in a court of justice, or before some constituted authority of the same kind, gives evidence which he knows to be false. But in order to make the giving of false evidence a crime the evidence must be material—i.e. it must affect the decision of some question before the court. If the falsehood occurred as to some trifling or immaterial fact no crime is committed. Moreover, it is necessary, in proving the crime, that at least two persons should be able to testify to the falsehood of the matter, so that there might be a majority of oaths on the matter—there being then two oaths to one. But this rule is satisfied though both witnesses do not testify to one point. The perjury must also have taken place before some court or tribunal which had power to administer the oath (see OATH). Though in some courts affirmations are allowed instead of oaths, yet the punishment for false affirmation is made precisely the same as for false swearing. The punishment for perjury was, before the Conquest, sometimes death or cutting out the tongue; perjury is now a misdemeanour, punishable by imprisonment with hard labour. The crime of Subornation of Perjury—i.e. the persuading or procuring a person to give false evidence—is also punishable as a distinct offence; if the false evidence is not given the crime is incitement. In many states of the American Union the crime of false swearing, recognised by common law, is further particularly defined by statute. The violation of an oath of office is not perjury; nor is a false affidavit to an account rendered to an administrator technically perjury, nor false evidence in depositions taken by consent by unauthorised persons.