Aggravated Perjury :: Tennessee Criminal Lawyer Blog

Very often, the punishment for a certain type of conduct is determined as much by the circumstances surrounding the conduct as the actual conduct itself. For example, driving a car twenty miles in excess of the speed limit on the interstate is not punished the same as driving a car twenty miles in excess of the speed limit in a school or construction zone. In the same way, the offense of perjury can actually be enhanced to the crime of aggravated perjury if a person commits perjury under a certain set of circumstances.

The crime of aggravated perjury is defined as follows:

(a) A person commits an offense who, with intent to deceive:
(1) Commits perjury as defined in § 39-16-702;

(2) The false statement is made during or in connection with an official proceeding; and

(3) The false statement is material.

This definition, then, begs the question of what constitutes an official proceeding, since it is perjury in an official proceeding that distinguishes standard perjury from aggravated perjury. Luckily, that question is answered in the definitions section of the perjury statutes:

"Official proceeding" means any type of administrative, executive, judicial, or legislative proceeding that is conducted before a public servant authorized by law to take statements under oath in that proceeding;

Basically, then the crime of perjury is aggravated when someone commits perjury in connection with a court proceeding and the subject matter about which that person lies is material to the case. Unfortunately, much of the perjury that is committed in the course of a courtroom proceeding happens to be related to issues that are material to the case, since that is generally what one party feels is worth lying about. Thus, much of the perjury committed in a courtroom setting will be aggravated perjury.

One natural defense to this charge would seem to be that the person who made the false statement did not believe the statement to be material to the proceedings, but the statute makes it clear that such a defense does not apply to this charge. Under the definitions section of the perjury statutes, a statement that can affect the course of a proceeding is "material" regardless of the mindset of the person making the statement.

Aggravated perjury is a Class D felony, meaning that an individual convicted of this offense could receive up to twelve years in prison. Individuals preparing to testify ina ny courtroom proceeding should consult with an attorney prior to giving such testimony in order to determine how to proceed. East Tennesseans who have been charged in connection with an appearance in court should contact an experienced criminal defense attorney for help with fighting the charges.