Legal Question in Criminal Law in California

D.A. threatning perjury for not testify on their behalf

My spouse & I had a fallout, nothing physical just exchange of words and the police were called to my mothers home. Both my mother & I gave our statements to the police, but my husband was denied to give his side and he was arrested for criminal threats. On the following Monday the D.A. phoned me at work to go over what happened and when I told him I did not recall, he then told me exactly what was on the police report and what I told the police word for word, when I told him I did not believe this to be true, he then said I lied to a cop and this is a crime. He also told me that if my husband was pressuring me to change my testamony because he has 2 strikes, he was lying. I believed the D.A. even though I still believed what the officer wrote down was not the true statement, I went along all the way to the prelimery hearing because I felt backed into a corner and threatened with perjury. This officer that took both my mothers statement and mine talked to us together, therefor our statements were exactly the same. This is going to jury trial because my husband feels he is innocent which both my mother and I agree, but feel the D.A. had us scared from the beginning that we did what they wanted us to do. What can we do?


Asked on 5/29/06, 12:30 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
Stephen Sitkoff Takakjian & Sitkoff, LLP

Re: D.A. threatning perjury for not testify on their behalf

iT WOULD BE MUCH EASIER TO ANSWER YOUR QUESTIONS BY TELEPHONE. PLEASE E-MAIL MIKE NAVARRO WITH OUR FIRM AT [email protected] . Please provide a telephone number where he can reach you.

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Answered on 5/29/06, 7:31 pm
Edward Hoffman Law Offices of Edward A. Hoffman

Re: D.A. threatning perjury for not testify on their behalf

You need a lawyer immediately, and your mother probably needs one too. If you testified falsely at the prelim then you did indeed commit perjury, and walking into court and saying so now will get you into a world of trouble.

Of course, the real problem is why you and your mother implicated your husband in the first place. The only plausible reason is that you were telling the truth. Police seldom make the kind of mistake you claim they made here, and witnesses seldom have memory lapses like the one you claim after just a few days. For two witnesses to have such a lapse at the same time about the same recent incident is almost inconceivable. It is surely no coincidence that these things supposedly happened while your husband is facing a three-strikes sentence.

It sounds like you haven't committed perjury yet but plan to do so by denying the truth of what you initially told the police. Juries are seldom fooled by such trickery, and judges and prosecutors are fooled even less often.

You need to have a long heart-to-heart with a lawyer before you testify. And you also have to consider the real possibility that both you and your husband will be sent to prison -- him for what he did, and you for perjury. At least you might have your mother there for company.

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Answered on 5/29/06, 1:26 am


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