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said A. B., to wit, on the

day of

at

C. D.

unlawfully, wilfully and corruptly did cause and procure the said A. B. to do and commit the said offence in the manner and form aforesaid.

As perjury, subornation of perjury is now triable at Quarter Sessions.

Indictment quashed, (for perjury) none of the formalities required by section 140 of the Procedure Act having been complied with: R. v. Granger, 7 L. N. 247.

These formalities are now required in all indictments, section 641.

A person accused of perjury cannot have accomplices, and is alone responsible for the crime of which he is accused: R. v. Pelletier, 1 R. L. 565.

Including two charges of perjury in one indictment would not be ground for quashing it. An indictment that follows the form given by the statute is sufficient: R. v. Bain, Ramsay's App. Cas. 191.

The non-production by the prosecution, on a trial for perjury, of the plea which was filed in the civil suit wherein the defendant is alleged to have given false testimony, is not material when the assignment of perjury has no reference to the pleading, but the defendant may, if he wishes, in case the plea is not produced, prove its contents by secondary evidence. It is not essential to prove that the facts sworn to by the defendant, as alleged in the indictment, were material to the issue in the cause in which the defendant was examined: R. v. Ross, M. L. R. 1 Q. B. 227; 28 L. C. J. 261.

As to stenographer's notes and sufficiency of evidence in perjury: see Downie v. R., 15 S. C. R. 358, M. L. R. 3 Q. B. 360; R. v. Murphy, 9 L. N. 95; R. v. Evans, 17 Cox, 37; R. v. Bird, 17 Cox, 387.

PUNISHMENT.

146. Every one is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to fourteen years' imprisonment who commits perjury or subornation of perjury.

CRIM. LAW-7

2. If the crime is committed in order to procure the conviction of a person for any crime punishable by death or imprisonment for seven years or more, the punishment may be imprisonment for life. R. S. C. c. 154, s. 1.

The words in italics are new: see section 221, post.

The following section of c. 154 R. S. C. is unrepealed.

4. Any judge of any court of record, or any commissioner before whom any inquiry or trial is held, and which he is by law required or authorized to hold, may, if it appears to him that any person has been guilty of wilful and corrupt perjury in any evidence given, or in any affidavit, affirmation, declaration, deposition, examination, answer or other proceeding made or taken before him, direct such person to be prosecuted for such perjury, if there appears to such judge or commissioner a reasonable cause for such prosecution,- and may commit such person so directed to be prosecuted until the next term, sittings or session of any court having power to try for perjury in the jurisdiction within which such perjury was committed, or permit such person to enter into a recognizance, with one or more sufficient sureties, conditioned for the appearance of such person at such next term, sittings or session, and that he will then surrender and take his trial and not depart the court without leave,and may require any person such judge or commissioner thinks fit, to enter into a recognizance conditioned to prosecute or give evidence against such person so directed to be prosecuted as aforesaid.

See remarks under preceding section. A form of indictment under sub-section 2 of this section 146 is given in schedule one, form F. F. post, under s. 611, but the words, "penal servitude" therein are a gross error. Section 684, post, applies to this section 146. See MacDaniel's Case, Fost. 121.

FALSE OATHS. (New).

147. Every one is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to seven years' imprisonment who, being required or authorized by law to make any statement on oath, affirmation or solemn declaration, thereupon makes a statement which would amount to perjury if made in a judicial proceeding.

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This is at most a common law misdemeanour in cases not specially provided for by statute, of which there are a considerable number."-Imp. Comm. Rep.

This enactment seems unnecessary. It is covered by sub-section 3 of section 145, ante.: section 616, post applies.

FALSE OATH, OTHER CASES.

148. Every one is guilty of perjury who

(a) Having taken or made any oath, affirmation, solemn declaration or affidavit whereby any Act or law in force in Canada, or in any province of

Canada, it is required or permitted that facts, matters or things be verified, or otherwise assured or ascertained by or upon the oath, affirmation, declaration or affidavit of any person, wilfully and corruptly, upon such oath, affirmation, declaration or affidavit, deposes, swears to, or makes any false statement as to any such fact, matter or thing; or

(b) Knowingly, wilfully and corruptly, upon oath, affirmation, or solemn declaration, affirms, declares, or deposes to the truth of any statement for so verifying, assuring or ascertaining any such fact, matter or thing, or purporting so to do, or knowingly, wilfully and corruptly takes, makes, signs or subscribes any such affirmation, declaration or affidavit, as to any such fact, matter or thing, such statement, affidavit, affirmation or declaration being untrue, in the whole or any part thereof; R. S. C. c. 154, s. 2.

See notes under sections 145 & 146, ante.

FALSE AFFIDAVIT OUT OF PROVINCE WHERE IT IS USED.

149. Every person who wilfully and corruptly makes any false affidavit, affirmation or solemn declaration, out of the province in which it is to be used but within Canada, before any person authorized to take the same, for the purpose of being used in any province of Canada, is guilty of perjury in like manner as if such false affidavit, affirmation or declaration were made before a competent authority in the province in which it is used or intended to be used. R. S. C. c. 154, s. 3.

FALSE STATEMENTS. (New).

150. Every one is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to two years' imprisonment who, upon any occasion on which he is permitted by law to make any statement or declaration before any officer authorized by law to permit it to be made before him, or before any notary public to be certified by him as such notary, makes a statement which would amount to perjury if made on oath in a judicial proceeding.

Section 616 applies. Fine or sureties, section 958.

It may be doubtful whether this is at present even a common law misdemeanour, but we feel no doubt that it ought to be made indictable."-Imp. Comm. Rep.

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151. Every one is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to severi years' imprisonment who, with intent to mislead any court of justice or person holding any such judicial proceeding as aforesaid, fabricates evidence by any means other than perjury or subornation of perjury,

Section 616 applies. A verdict of attempt to commit the offence may be given, section 711.

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Fabricating evidence is an offence which is not so common as perjury, but which does occur, and is sometimes detected. An instance occurred a few years ago in a trial for shooting at a man with intent to murder him, where the defence was that,

though the accused did fire off a pistol it was not loaded with ball, and the only intent was to frighten. Evidence was given that a pistol ball was found lodged in the trunk of a tree nearly in the line from where the accused fired to where the prosecutor stood. It was afterwards discovered that the ball had been placed in the tree by those concerned in the prosecution in order to supply the missing link in the evidence. Such an offence is as wicked and as dangerous as perjury, but the punishment as a common law offence (if, irrespective of conspiracy, it be an offence), is only fine and imprisonment."-Imp. Comm. Rep.

To mislead a court by the manufacture of false evidence is a misdemeanour. An attempt to do so is also an offence, although in point of fact the court was not misled: R. v. Vreones, 17 Cox, 267, [1891] 1 Q. B. 360.

CONSPIRACY TO BRING FALSE ACCUSATION. (New).

152. Every one is guilty of an indictable offence who conspires to prosecute any person for any alleged offence, knowing such person to be innocent thereof, and shall be liable to the following punishment :

(a) To imprisonment for fourteen years if such person might, upon convic tion for the alleged offence, be sentenced to death or imprisonment for life;

(b) To imprisonment for ten years if such person might, upon conviction for the alleged offence, be sentenced to imprisonment for any term less than life.

A common law misdemeanour. applies.

Section 616, post,

Indictment.-That A. B. and C. D., being evil-disposed persons, and wickedly devising, and intending to deprive one E. F. of his good name, fame, and reputation, and subject him without just cause to the pains and penalties inflicted by law upon persons guilty of an assault, on , did unlawfully conspire, combine, confederate, and agree, wilfully, unlawfully, and without any reasonable or probable cause in that behalf, to charge and accuse the said E. F. of the crime of indecently and unlawfully assaulting the said A. B., knowing the said E. F. to be innocent thereof. And the jurors aforesaid further present, that the said A. B. and C. D., in pursuance of the said conspiracy, combination, confederacy, and agreement on the day aforesaid, falsely

and maliciously did cause and procure the said E. F. to be apprehended and taken into custody by one E. H., then being one of the constables of the police force, and to be conveyed in custody to a certain prison and police-station, and there to be imprisoned.

ADMINISTERING OATHS WITHOUT AUTHORITY.

153. Every justice of the peace or other person who administers, or causes or allows to be administered, or receives or causes or allows to be received any oath or affirmation touching any matter or thing whereof such justice or other person has not jurisdiction or cognizance by some law in force at the time being, or authorized or required by any such law, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to a fine not exceeding fifty dollars, or to imprisonment for any term not exceeding three months.

2. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to extend to any oath or affirmation before any justice in any matter or thing touching the preservation of the peace, or the prosecution, trial or punishment of any offence, or to any oath or affirmation required or authorized by any law of Canada, or by any law of the province wherein such oath or affirmation is received or administered, or is to be used, or to any oath or affirmation which is required or authorized by the laws of any foreign country to give validity to an instrument in writing or to evidence designed or intended to be used in such foreign country. R. S. C. c. 141, ss. 1, 2.

Sections 26 and 27 of the Canada Evidence Act of 1893 re-enact sections 3 & 4 of the Act respecting Extra Judicial Oaths, c. 141, R. S. C.

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Section 153 is taken from section 13 of 5 & 6 W. IV, c. 62, of the Imperial Statutes, the preamble of which reads thus: Whereas a practice has prevailed of administering and receiving oaths and affidavits voluntarily taken and made in matters not the subject of any judicial inquiry, nor in any wise required or authorized by any law; and whereas doubts have arisen whether or not such proceeding is illegal ; for the suppression of such practice and removing such doubts, Her Majesty," etc.

Sir William Blackstone, before this statute, had said (Vol. IV, p. 137): "The law takes no notice of any perjury but such as is committed in some court of justice having power to administer an oath; or before some magistrate or proper officer, invested with a similar authority, in some proceedings relative to a civil suit or a criminal prosecu

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