Legal Misrepresentation in Criminal Cases
The criminal justice system depends upon the integrity of the defense and prosecution. If either side withholds information or lies outright, they diminish the chances of a proper verdict. Legal misrepresentation occurs when someone violates his oath to supply truthful information. For instance, a criminal may lie on the stand about her involvement in a murder. Likewise, a prosecutor may withhold exonerating evidence in order to secure a conviction. These acts often carry legal consequences.
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Types of Legal Misrepresentation
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Misrepresentation can happen in several ways. Innocent misrepresentation happens when an attorney or accused criminal makes an honest mistake at trial. For instance, a prosecutor might receive faulty information about a piece of evidence from a forensics lab and present it as valid. Negligent misrepresentation occurs when someone fails to perform due diligence before stating an argument. For instance, a public defender might fall asleep at a trial and not offer a proper refutation of a prosecutor's case. Fraudulent misrepresentation means what it sounds like-- someone intentionally provides false information.
Perjury
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The crime of perjury occurs when someone in a trial commits fraudulent misrepresentation. Since it may be difficult to distinguish innocent and negligent gaffes from fraudulent ones, prosecutors often decline to try perjury cases -- except in egregious instances. Another possible result of fraudulent misrepresentation involves subornation of perjury. Subornation occurs when an attorney or another party causes perjury to be committed.
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Attorney-Client Privilege
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Determining whether misrepresentation is fraudulent may be difficult to prove in the case of the accused and his attorney. Because of attorney-client privilege, the court is not privy to exchanges between the parties. As a result, a defense attorney could coach his client to lie on the stand without being caught. However, if this act can be proven, the lawyer may be liable for subornation of perjury.
Appeal
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All types of legal misrepresentation on the part of the prosecution allow the accused to appeal a guilty verdict. However, higher courts often deny the appeal. The type of misrepresentation may have little effect on their decisions. Even if a witness commits perjury on the stand, as long as the appeals court finds the testimony to be irrelevant in the finding of the lower court, the conviction will stand. On the other hand, withheld evidence often merits a new trial -- though it may not ultimately reverse the previous verdict.
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