When a person commits burglary, they likely know how serious it is. However, many people who commit perjury have no idea how serious this is. For example, they don’t know that in California it’s always charged as a felony – that means at least a year in jail and significant fines. The good news is that Chambers Law Firm is here to defend you against a charge of perjury.
What exactly is perjury?
First of all, let’s cover what perjury is. The courts define it as providing information that you know is false while you’re under oath. One example is when a person lies when they’re testifying in court, but it can also apply to signed documents and even DMV applications. Additional crimes can stem from perjury, such as subornation to perjury, which is defined as one person convincing another person to commit perjury.
There is a common defense to a charge of perjury
In order for the prosecution to get a guilty verdict from a judge or jury, they don’t just have to prove that the information given was false – they must prove that it was deliberately given with the full knowledge that it was false. This can be very hard to prove, and the first move of your attorney is likely to try and find the holes in the prosecution’s case. We will work tirelessly to find ways to prevent the prosecution from proving intent.
The potential consequences for perjury
As we said above, perjury is always charged as a felony, except in one specific case: DMV perjury. This refers to putting false information on a document at the DMV. It can be charged as a separate charge (DMV perjury) which is charged as a misdemeanor. The consequences for a guilty verdict on this charge is up to six months in jail and up to $1,000 in fines.
On the other hand, felony perjury can result in up to four years in state prison and fines of up to $10,000. Judges can also choose to sentence the convicted to probation instead of prison, or one year in county jail and probation following that.
You need an attorney who can help with creative sentencing
If you are not guilty of perjury then you can count on Chambers Law Firm to work tirelessly to defend you. However, if you did commit perjury and there is a mountain of evidence against you, then the best way forward may be to find the best possible outcome. This could mean having some charges dropped, pleading guilty to a lesser charge, or arguing that you should receive probation instead of jail time.
These cases can be complicated but one thing is for sure: Chambers Law Firm is here and ready to help. Call our offices at 714-760-4088 right now to set up your free case evaluation.
