Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.31141/zrpfs.2021.58.139.211
A false testimony vs. right to forget: are witnesses entitled to forget and mistake in criminal proceedings
Lucija Sokanović
; Pravni fakultet Sveučilišta u Splitu, Split, Hrvatska
Abstract
The intriguing legal issues prompted by the decisions of the competent courts in 2018 engaged scientific curiosity in the analysis of the criminal offense of false testimony. The aim of the paper was to clarify who and when can commit this offense, whether it can be committed by silence, when is the offence completed, how to prove a lie, how statute of limitations affects the effective processing of this offense. The analysis of the nature and persecution of the criminal offense of false testimony indicates the importance of an integral approach to the reality of the criminal offenses. The offense may be committed by a witness, expert witness, translator, interpreter and a party to the proceedings other than the defendant. The offence can also be committed by silence, because the testimony of the witness must be circumstantial, credible and true. Unlike witnesses, the defendant can lie in his testimony because he is not obliged to testify, so he is not obliged to testify truthfully. A possible lie is extremely difficult to prove, especially when the statement refers to the memory of an event. False testimony is a formal criminal offense that is completed at the time the testimony is given.
Keywords
false testimony; witness; criminal proceedings; sports; dismissal of indictment
Hrčak ID:
252090
URI
Publication date:
9.2.2021.
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