NCJ Number
133264
Journal
American Criminal Law Review Volume: 28 Issue: 3 Dated: special issue (1991) Pages: 619-635
Date Published
1991
Length
17 pages
Annotation
This review of Federal perjury statutes identifies elements of the offense, defenses to a charge of perjury, and procedural issues.
Abstract
Sections 1621 and 1623 of Title 18 of the U.S. Code defines the crime of perjury and the penalty for violation of the Federal perjury statutes which are designed to facilitate the efficient investigation of crime without the impediment of witness self-interest. Section 1621 applies to false statements made under oath before "a competent tribunal, officer or person" and 1623 to false statements made under oath before a court or a grand jury. The question arises whether the defense of recantation now available only under Section 1623 also should be available to defendants charged under Section 1621. Judge Spottswood Robinson, writing in Moore, maintained that Section 1623 "modified prior case law on the subject of recantation." Consequently, it can be argued that since Section 1623 was promulgated to encourage truth telling and since it has modified prior case law interpreting Section 1621, Section 1623 now has effectively superceded section 1621 for purposes of recantation. 127 footnotes