Latest news with #perjury
CTV News
a day ago
- CTV News
Witness under oath allegedly provides conflicting, unreliable info during criminal trial
After looking into testimonies given during a court proceeding, Alliston police have charged a witness with perjury. During a recent criminal trial, Nottawasaga Ontario Provincial Police entered into a perjury investigation. Police allege that during the court proceedings, a witness under oath provided conflicting and unreliable information. As a result of the investigation, a 37-year-old Bradford resident was charged with perjury. The accused is scheduled to appear before the courts at a later date. Police remind everyone that providing false testimony under oath is a serious criminal offence that undermines the integrity of the justice system. 'Under section 131(1) of the Criminal Code of Canada, perjury happens when someone knowingly lies under oath, or in a sworn statement, with the intention of misleading the court or another legal authority,' concluded police in a Thursday release.
BBC News
4 days ago
- Politics
- BBC News
Tommy Sheridan: I'm being victimised for my political past
Former MSP Tommy Sheridan says he is being "victimised" for his political past by Glasgow City Council, after he was rejected for a job as a social city's Health and Social Care Partnership told Mr Sheridan that all future applications for jobs would be rejected due to him serving jail time for Sheridan told BBC Scotland News that his gender critical views on trans rights were a factor in the decision by the SNP-run City Council declined to comment as there is an ongoing case over the issue at the Court of Session. The socialist politician said he felt "aggrieved" by the situation and was now seeking to enter politics again as a candidate for the Alba Sheridan told BBC Scotland's Scotcast podcast that he had "no doubt whatsoever" that he was being blacklisted by the said: "I don't think it chimes with the spirit of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act to hold against someone a 15-year-old conviction."Particularly when I've already had to go through a vetting process, a very stiff vetting process from the body that was set up to regulate social care." Mr Sheridan went to Scotland's highest civil court after he received a rejection letter in August last year, in a bid to get the decision Court of Session heard last month that Glasgow City Council (GCC) refused him a job because of the "unacceptable level of risk" of his perjury 2011, Mr Sheridan was found to have had lied under oath during a £200,000 defamation action against the News of the World was sentenced to three years in jail."If I was applying for a job in the PR dept that may have been a consideration," he said."But dealing with people who have got social problems, trying to help people, trying to use your values, your skills, your knowledge, trying to make people's lives better. I don't understand it at all." Gender critical views Mr Sheridan believes that a factor is his rejection for a social work job was that his views on transgender issues put him at odds with the SNP-run city said: "I think being a socialist is always difficult for some of the SNP councillors, but I think the biggest area would be my gender critical views."I don't share the SNP's position that someone can declare that they're a man or a woman. I believe in biology, I believe in science, and so does the law now."It's very unusual that the Supreme Court agrees with me, but there you go. I agree with the Supreme court."Now, those are gender critical views that Glasgow City Council SNP group don't agree with. So I've got no doubt in my mind that that's part of the package." Mr Sheridan previously led the Scottish Socialist Party at Holyrood, which won several seats in 1999 and 2003 before the party fell apart during the high-profile News of the World court has remained involved in politics as a supporter of Scottish independence group Hope over Fear and became a founding member of the Alba has retrained as a social worker, graduating from Glasgow Caledonian University after a two-year master's Sheridan said his own "lived experience" behind bars made him an ideal candidate for a youth social work job in criminal justice."I come from a very working class background, brought up in a housing scheme, having been in and around jails for the best part of 20-odd years."I have intimate knowledge of the processes, challenges and what prison is really like." 'Prison was powder keg' Mr Sheridan, who rose to prominence as an anti-Poll Tax campaigner, was behind bars in 1992 when he was first elected to Glasgow City Council as an independent was jailed for breaking a court order that banned him from attending a warrant sale to recover a poll tax Sheridan said it was a "horrible place to be" and a recalled how a fellow inmate urged him not to "romanticise this place" when he was released."That's always stuck with me and I don't think anybody realises how hard prison is until you've been in prison," he said"The fact that you can be locked up 23 hours a day and all you've got if you're lucky it's a wee telly - it can be a very lonely experience."It can also be a very tough experience because there's a lot of damaged people there, it can become a very violent place."I've seen several very messy assaults and it could be a powder keg. The tension in there is horrible." Mr Sheridan says he feels "a wee bit aggrieved" by the rejection from Glasgow City Council."I feel as though I did everything right. I retrained, I studied, I worked hard. "I got the qualification and then they've turned around and said, 'no, we're not going to employ you'."So I feel politics is calling out for me again, because I feel that, okay, they don't want me."Mr Sheridan has now put his name forward in the hope of being selected as an Alba candidate for the Scottish added: "Why don't I go back into politics and start using the skills I have to communicate, to advocate, to try and promote independence."But also to rage against some of the injustices in our world just now, of which there are far too many." Mr Sheridan is still awaiting a decision on his action at the Court of lawyer said the council acted unlawfully in its decision to permanently exclude him from social work said the body which regulates social work in Scotland - the Scottish Social Services Council (SCCC) - had assessed him as being a suitable candidate. Glasgow City Council's lawyer Paul Reid KC told the court the local authority acted lawfully and were legally entitled to refuse said the matter was an employment decision and could not be challenged by judicial Young said he would issue a verdict in the near What Tommy Sheridan did next is available now on BBC Sounds.
The Guardian
6 days ago
- The Guardian
Perjury cases are rare in family law in Australia. Experts say courts need to be better at cracking down on lying
In the family court several years ago, a man wove a web of deceit. He forged bank records and other documents in a lie that would later unravel. He had launched a case seeking property orders after splitting with his partner. He later made claims to the court, backed up by documents, about when he sold his business. The claims were strongly in his favour. But after the original documents were sought, the judge discovered the man had lied, altering dates on bank documents and lying about other matters. The man's deceit was referred to police and he was charged with giving false testimony and fabricating evidence in court. The man was subsequently sentenced to more than a year in jail in a state court. Prosecutions for perjury – when someone lies under oath to the court – are 'extremely rare' in family court cases, experts say. One lawyer says she hopes the above case will deter people from being deceptive in court in the future. But experts say courts need to be better at cracking down on people who bend the truth for personal gain – and refer cases to police when perjury is suspected, especially in domestic and family violence matters. Vivian Galanis, the managing principal solicitor at Wallumatta Legal, says perjury before the family court often involves selective disclosure, omissions or inconsistencies that can be difficult to untangle. 'In my experience, dishonesty often comes up around financial disclosure where one party may downplay assets, debts or income,' she says. 'It's hard to say how often perjury actually happens because unless the other party has the means to investigate and contradict the evidence, it tends to go unchallenged.' Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email The family court can't investigate perjury allegations – they need to be referred to the Australian federal police, and someone found guilty faces up to five years in prison. But there are other powers available to the family court if a judge suspects a party hasn't met their obligation of making a 'full and frank' disclosure, such as the judge awarding a greater share of the assets to the person they believe has told the truth. They can also allow certain documents to be subpoenaed. Galanis said even when there is a strong suspicion of dishonesty, formal referrals to police are extremely rare in the case of family court cases, and prosecutions for perjury rarer still. From 2014 to 2019, there were no court referrals to investigate potential perjury offences in the family court, according to a 2021 government report on the family law system. There were no prosecutions for perjury in relation to family court cases during that time. The same report stated that many submissions to the review suggested there needed to be tougher penalties for false allegations or providing false evidence. But while the report noted concerns about perjury in family court cases were widespread, it said actual cases were relatively rare. However, Justin Dowd, who is now semi-retired after working in family law for 50 years, says: 'I think sadly the court has, over time, become immune, if not to people telling outright lies, then certainly bending the truth to advance their case. 'Various times when people have lied to the court, particularly by underestimating their finances, the court had penalised them financially, but not referred it on.' Dowd says even if it is referred, it doesn't mean the AFP will investigate. Sometimes, there are other higher priority investigations. Resourcing was raised as an issue in the judgment for the man convicted of perjury over his family court case. The investigation began several years after it was referred to the police by the court. The federal police said the delay was due to the pandemic and the redirection of resources. The judge considered the impact on his family when sentencing the man after receiving character references from other people. Galanis says dishonesty in the family court is a particular issue for women who have experienced coercive control or financial abuse. 'The family law process can become another battleground,' she says. 'When an ex-partner continues to lie, hide assets or withholds information, it doesn't just undermine the legal process, it re-traumatises, reinforcing the same dynamics of power and control they have fought so hard to escape. 'These clients are often faced with a difficult choice: whether to invest more time, money, and emotional energy in uncovering financial dishonesty, or to accept an outcome that may be incomplete, but allows them to move on. It's a compromise no one should be forced to make, but many do.' Jess de Vries, director of legal services at Women's Legal Service Victoria, agrees that alleged perpetrators can manipulate the system to their advantage. 'We need the court to be relying on their enforcement mechanisms,' she says. 'We also need to know where there are real concerns about potential perjury, that it is referred to the AFP.' A woman currently involved in an asset dispute before the family court told Guardian Australia that she suspects her former partner is not being upfront about his earnings – and alleges this is a continuation of his controlling behaviour. She alleges he claimed in court he has not earned any money since they separated two years ago. However, due to being familiar with the nature of his work as a 'successful businessman' from the time they were together, she doesn't think that can be true. 'The narrative doesn't make sense,' she says. Getting to the bottom of such disputes can be costly – it can cost thousands of dollars to get financial records subpoenaed. On Tuesday, there were changes to the Family Law Act so that the duty of separating couples to disclose their finances now falls under that law. Before this, it sat under rules that guide how family law policies are applied. But de Vries is uncertain about how much of a difference this will make. 'The nature of the duty of financial disclosure will not change, and the consequences for non-compliance have not been updated as part of the amendments,' she says. She thinks the perjury case outlined above could have consequences, though. 'People are clearer on what the impacts can be if they perjure themselves, and that it can mean prison.'
News24
10-06-2025
- Business
- News24
‘Mantashe is a liar': Zuma to file perjury case over R40m ex-mine workers' claim
Zuma tells City Press he will file a perjury case against Mantashe, accusing him of lying under oath. Mantashe responded with a crimen injuria charge against Zuma, calling the allegations defamatory. The dispute involves a payout from East Rand Property Mines liquidation in 1999, which mineworkers say was never delivered. Mining rights activist Zakhele Zuma says he plans to lay a perjury charge against Mineral Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe, accusing him of giving false testimony in a sworn police statement. Zuma alleged that Mantashe, in the police statement, denied claims that he mishandled R40 million owed to former East Rand Property Mines (ERPM) mine workers. 'He lied under oath,' Zuma told City Press. 'This is about accountability, not politics. Instead of addressing the workers' concerns, the minister is using legal tactics to avoid the truth.' Zakhele Zuma WATCH: Ex-mine workers and families accuse Mantashe, NUM of betrayal, demand 'R40m, with interest' Earlier this month, Mantashe opened a crimen injuria case against Zuma at the Brooklyn Police Station in Pretoria, after Zuma publicly accused him of failing to pay out the R40 million. When the ERPM was liquidated in 1999, at least 4 000 workers were affected. Many had worked deep underground for years, often in unsafe conditions. In the aftermath of the mine's closure, workers say they were told that the National Union of Mineworkers (NUM), then under the leadership of its general secretary, Mantashe, had received their settlement packages and would invest the money on their behalf. Zuma claims Mantashe assured workers their money would be invested for ten years, but no returns have materialised. Mantashe denied the allegations in an interview with City Press: 'I do not know this man personally, and these claims are false and defamatory. I will pursue legal action because I will not allow my name to be dragged through the mud.' Mantashe further told City Press that he believed Zuma was not acting independently, but is part of a broader political agenda, adding that while he does not know Zuma personally, he sees 'clear political motives' behind the activist's allegations. Mahlatsi Moleya WATCH: Paul Mashatile defends spending millions on overseas trips The core of the dispute concerns mostly elderly, uneducated mineworkers who say they trusted Mantashe's promise that their payout would be managed responsibly—something they say never happened. Both parties now find themselves in a legal battle, with Zuma preparing to charge Mantashe with perjury, while Mantashe continues to press charges for crimen injuria against Zuma.
CBS News
09-06-2025
- Politics
- CBS News
Perjury charge dropped against ex-Broward Superintendent Robert Runcie
On the day jury selection was set to begin for his trial, a felony perjury charge against former Broward County Public Schools Superintendent Robert Runcie was dropped by the state attorney's office. Runcie was indicted in April 2021 for allegedly lying to a statewide grand jury that investigated events surrounding the 2018 Parkland high school shooting, which left 17 dead. The case against Runcie stemmed from questions over his management of a $1 billion bond issue that passed four years before the Marjory Stoneman Douglas High massacre. Runcie and other bond supporters had said its primary focus would be to improve school safety. But the grand jurors in their final report accused Runcie and school board members of making "uninformed or even misinformed decisions, incompetent management and lack of meaningful oversight" in the bond's implementation. Runcie accused of making false statements Prosecutors had contended that Runcie lied repeatedly to the grand jury when asked about the criminal case against his former technology chief, Tony Hunter. The grand jury indicted Hunter earlier in 2021 on charges he took a bribe from a vendor to rig a contract that came from the bond issue. Hunter pleaded not guilty. Last year, a judge dismissed Hunter's case on jurisdictional grounds. Prosecutors said Runcie told the grand jury he had not contacted anyone about the Hunter case and his only knowledge of the contract was from a presentation given years earlier. In fact, prosecutors said, Runcie had contacted others, including former procurement director Mary Coker, about the contract just days before he testified. In April, 2023, Circuit Judge Martin Fein dismissed the perjury charge, agreeing with defense attorneys that state law only gives it jurisdiction over crimes that occurred in multiple counties. Runcie only testified in one. His attorneys argued that if the statewide grand jury had evidence of Runcie committing perjury, it should have turned that over to the Broward County grand jury or the local state attorney's office for consideration. The state appealed and in October, 2024, three-judge panel of the 4th District Court of Appeal overturned Fein's decision to dismiss the charge.
