There are some hypothetical and unrealistic situations in which I might lie under oath - I’d probably lie about “Did you give Jane a ride to the abortion clinic” but me being asked that under oath isn’t a very realistic situation , not unless Jane is suspected of bombing the clinic or something , in which case I would not lie.( I live in NY , which codified Roe in 2019 and I think the closest state where abortion would be banned is West Virginia. )
In general, I don’t see myself lying under oath, but anything’s possible. I am overall an honest person, but I don’t find unwavering honesty to be something deeply important to me.
Whether the truth would be unpleasant or not, “That’s the sort of question that fully deserves the wrong answer” usually works.
In some of the circumstances mentioned in this thread, certainly!
Right, and that is the best way out of it. Just say you do not remember. It might salve your conscious to know that memories are quite unreliable.
Oaths are meaningless superstitions to me, so I’ll lie or not lie as I choose, without the oath affecting that decision at all.
As others have said, I do not lie. I never thought the George Washington childhood story to be that outlandish. My personal self respect and dignity is what makes me honest, not an oath.
Very diplomatic.
On a practical note is it conceivable for someone to be prosecuted for perjury, if the facts are such that there is no way they could forget the events in question? Or is it practically impossible to prove beyond reasonable doubt someone couldn’t have forgotten something?
I was once called on to give a basic accounting of my life story, and managed to leave out an entire marriage… in that moment, I had literally forgotten about it.
If it was to defend my son and keep him out of jail, and a likelihood that I wouldn’t be exposed and senteced, yes.
I think this misses the point of the OP.
Can you imagine a situation where it is hard not to lie?
Let’s say your son is about to be arrested and sent to jail because the police found 10 grams of marijuana on him. Maybe it is a third strike offense and he will spend the rest of his life in prison (such things have really happened).
You can lie and say it is yours or, tell the truth and see your son in jail forever.
I am with you on what you said (I too had the same revelation when I was a lot younger) but I can certainly imagine a circumstance where I might be inclined to lie.
One scenario is being in the wrong place at the wrong time, so that some prosecutor falsely believes I committed a crime. If given a choice between a month in jail, and risking a tenner at trial, and depending on what my lawyer said, I might lie and say I did it.
Nolo contendre, or Alford plea? It’s possible in Pennsylvania, but the judge may force me to choose between lying and risking many years in prison…
I think there is a different between this and other cases. I’d certainly do that but I’d recognize it a morally a bit dubious (assuming it was something I think should be a crime, albeit not one someone should be going to prison for life for), I’m lying because its my son ultimately not for any higher moral principles.
As opposed to a case where the “crime” itself should not be one, and prosecution itself is act of injustice. In which case there is a moral imperative to lie.
I identify as Chaotic Good. I generally try to do the right thing and ensure the most good for the most people. Sometimes, the cause of good is better served by a lie than the truth.
Neither of these is likely to be under oath - entering a plea, and even allocution is not normally done under oath, and you won’t be under oath when you tell the police the pot is yours.
Great way to miss the point.
I won’t bother with concocting a hypothetical that you will not nitpick.
I’m with you on that. Sometimes the ethical thing to do may be to lie. (Although I’m normally an honest person and would be a terrible liar.)
A friend did something similar. He was a biker in his twenties. He was at a party where a guy had illegally modified guns hidden. The house was raided and a two time felon arrested, the guns seized.
Rather than see another biker sentenced to life, my friend stepped forward and falsely confessed. IIRC he was sentenced to 5-7 years and served three. The real gun owner never visited him, and moved away/disappeared.
The felony conviction followed him the rest of his life. He died a few years ago with liver cancer, likely caused by the hepatitis he acquired in prison.
My son? I’ve proactively taught my kids that the police are not their friends and they should demand a lawyer rather than talk to the police. My son works in a prison and likely knows more about this than his dad.
I was all ready to lie under oath. I was at the court, the trial was about to begin, and the charges were dropped.
It was my brother, it was drug related, and sending him off to more jail time would have achieved absolutely nothing and wasted taxpayer money. So I do not feel like I would have been doing the wrong thing. I feel it would have been the right thing to do.
I like to think that my being prepared to do that without a moment’s hesitation played some small part in him getting clean again having some more good years before he died. I know he did appreciate it.