Attorney represents defendants charged with perjury
Stephen A. Gravatt, Esq.
Attorney
565 NJ 35
Middletown, New Jersey 07748
(732)-337-7922
email: pipking@comcast.net
2C:28-1 PERJURY—NJ
Perjury NJ
if YOU HAVE BEEN CHARGED WITH VIOLATION OF 2C:28-1 Perjury, you may have exposure to jail time from a minimum of 3 years to a maximum of 5 years, fines of up to $15,000.00, criminal record. I have been practicing criminal law for 26 plus years and I can help you possibly avoid these consequences. Please contact me at (732)-337-7922 for an evaluation of your circumstances and vigorous and competent representation.
ILLUSTRATIVE EXAMPLE OF WHAT CONDUCT CONSTITUTES OFFENSE:
You have just been elected to the City Board of Education and you and three (3) other Board members have been invited to attend an orientation gala affair at the prestigious Frobisher Estate. You and your colleagues have a lavish dinner and drinks which you pay for with “the Board’s” credit card. The bill comes to a fantastic $1,500.00. A few weeks later you are confronted by the Chairman who informs you that it is Board policy that you must reimburse the Board for those expenses. You refuse to consider doing so. In a subsequent prosecution for theft from the Board, you testify under oath that the Chairman never informed you that you had to pay that money back to the Board (when you know he did). Thankfully, after hearing your testimony, the jury finds you “not guilty” of theft. But, have you just committed a serious criminal offense?
THE ACTUAL LAW…2C:28-1 PERJURY NJ
a. “Offense defined. A person is guilty of a crime of the third degree, if in any official proceeding he makes a false statement under oath or equivalent affirmation, or swears or affirms the truth of a statement previously made, when the statement is material and he does not believe it to be true.
b. Materiality. Falsification is material, regardless of the admissibility of the
statement under rules of evidence, if it could have affected the course or outcome
of the proceeding or the disposition of the matter. It is no defense that the
declarant mistakenly believed the falsification to be immaterial. Whether a
falsification is material is a question of law.
c. Irregularities no defense. It is not a defense to prosecution under this section
that the oath or affirmation was taken in an irregular manner. A document
purporting to be made upon oath or affirmation at any time when the actor
presents it as being so verified shall be deemed to have been duly sworn or
affirmed.
d. Retraction. It is an affirmative defense under this section that the actor retracted
the falsification in the course of the proceeding or matter in which it was made
prior to the termination of the proceeding or matter without having caused irreparable harm to any party.
e. Corroboration. No person shall be convicted of an offense under this section
where proof of falsity rests solely upon contradiction by testimony of a single
person other than the defendant.”
The answer to the question is YES. State v. Renard Neal, 361 N.J. Super 522 (App. Div. 2003). The statement was under oath, you knew it was a false statement and it was arguably material inasmuch as it could have affected the outcome of the proceeding against you. Under these circumstances, you would be guilty of a third degree crime, punishable, if convicted, by the imposition of monetary fines up to $15,000.00, plus jail time for a minimum of three (3) years and a maximum of five (5) years, presumptive four (4) years, plus a criminal record. N.J.S.A. 2C:43-3(b)
If you have been charged with perjury nj, you need to retain a skilled and experienced attorney to get the charges downgraded or obtain an acquittal.
