What are the penalties for lying to a grand jury? Why is it such a serious crime?
As a part of the ongoing scandal related to Penn State University, the topic of lying to a grand jury has been in the news. Two members of Penn State’s administration—Tim Curley, Athletic Director, and Gary Schultz, Vice President for Finance and Business—were arrested in part for lying to the grand jury. You may be wondering why lying to a grand jury is such a big deal and what punishments they may face as a result. A grand jury is a body of people who are selected much like a jury for a trial, as they are pulled from the same pool of possible jurors (e.g., registered voters, those with drivers licenses) and are sworn in. Rather than hearing evidence to render a verdict about whether a defendant is guilty or not guilty, the grand jury serves the purpose of hearing evidence to determine if there is enough proof such that criminal charges should be filed against someone. Usually a prosecutor from the attorney general’s office is responsible for assembling a grand jury and presenting evidence to them. The evidence presented to a grand jury can and often does include testimony from witnesses. A witness before the grand jury is sworn in, which means that the witness swears to tell the truth to the grand jury in all matters relevant to the case. The court can compel a witness to testify before a grand jury, which means that the witness must answer the questions of the prosecutor before the grand jury or be willing to face the penalties. A witness who is unwilling to testify before a grand jury can be found in contempt of court and be placed in jail. As a witness before a grand jury is not generally the one who the grand jury is hearing testimony about (i.e., the witness did not commit a crime, they are just telling what they know about a possible crime committed by someone else), the witness cannot “plead the Fifth.” The Fifth Amendment to the Constitution is reserved only for people who are on trial for a crime, allowing them to refuse to give testimony that may help the case of the prosecution and thereby send that witness to jail. If a witness is found to have lied to a grand jury, the witness has committed the crime known as perjury. Perjury is a serious legal matter, and it is considered a felony. When a witness before a grand jury does not tell the truth, the grand jury may choose not to have the prosecutor go forward with filing charges against the defendant. This is effectively giving the witness the power to allow a defendant to go free, rather than a court of law making that decision as it rightly should. Perjury is punishable by a prison sentence of up to five years. If you are being investigated for a crime, you should seek the help of a criminal defense attorney right away. Depending on the nature of the crime, it can carry serious penalties. Therefore, defending yourself against charges of a crime is not something you would be wise to do on your own. And involving a criminal defense attorney as early in the process as you can will give the attorney more time to gather evidence and understand the case to mount an adequate defense. If you need help from an attorney, please complete the short form found at http://www.criminaldefensehome.com/eval_bar.php. A criminal defense attorney will review your case free of charge and with no further obligation to you. This review and discussion about your case is also completely confidential. Therefore, please get help today with whatever legal issue you are facing.
What should I do if a matter in which I am involved is going before a grand jury?
