Villanueva Vs Sec. of Justice
Villanueva Vs Sec. of Justice
SECRETARY OF JUSTICE
G.R. No. 162187. November 18, 2005.
Facts:
Held: No. The accused were not able to prove the elements needed to prove
that perjury did exist.
Perjury is the willful and corrupt assertion of a falsehood under oath or
affirmation administered by authority of law on a material matter. The
elements of the felony are:
(a) That the accused made a statement under oath or executed an affidavit
upon a material matter.
(b) That the statement or affidavit was made before a competent officer,
authorized to receive and administer oath.
(c) That in that statement or affidavit, the accused made a willful and
deliberate assertion of a falsehood.
(d) That the sworn statement or affidavit containing the falsity is required by
law or made for a legal purpose.
There are two essential elements of proof for perjury: (1) the statement
made by the defendants must be proven false; and (2) it must be proven
that the defendant did not believe those statements to be true.