12.1-11 Perjury - Falsification - Breach of Duty

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CHAPTER 12.1-11PERJURY - FALSIFICATION - BREACH OF DUTY12.1-11-01. Perjury.1.A person is guilty of perjury, a class C felony, if, in an official proceeding, he makes<br>a false statement under oath or equivalent affirmation, or swears or affirms the truth<br>of a false statement previously made, when the statement is material and he does<br>not believe it to be true.2.Commission of perjury need not be proved by any particular number of witnesses or<br>by documentary or other types of evidence.3.Where in the course of one or more official proceedings, the defendant made a<br>statement under oath or equivalent affirmation inconsistent with another statement<br>made by him under oath or equivalent affirmation to the degree that one of them is<br>necessarily false, both having been made within the period of the statute of<br>limitations, the prosecution may set forth the statements in a single count alleging in<br>the alternative that one or the other was false and not believed by the defendant to<br>be true. Proof that the defendant made such statements shall constitute a prima<br>facie case that one or the other of the statements was false, but in the absence of<br>sufficient proof of which statement was false, the defendant may be convicted under<br>this section only if each of such statements was material to the official proceeding in<br>which it was made.12.1-11-02. False statements.1.A person is guilty of a class A misdemeanor if, in an official proceeding, he makes a<br>false statement, whether or not material, under oath or equivalent affirmation, or<br>swears or affirms the truth of such a statement previously made, if he does not<br>believe the statement to be true.2.A person is guilty of a class A misdemeanor if, in a governmental matter, he:a.Makes a false written statement, when the statement is material and he does<br>not believe it to be true;b.Intentionally creates a false impression in a written application for a pecuniary<br>or other benefit, by omitting information necessary to prevent a material<br>statement therein from being misleading;c.Submits or invites reliance on any material writing which he knows to be forged,<br>altered, or otherwise lacking in authenticity;d.Submits or invites reliance on any sample, specimen, map, boundarymark, or<br>other object which he knows to be false in a material respect; ore.Uses a trick, scheme, or device which he knows to be misleading in a material<br>respect.3.This section does not apply to information given during the course of an investigation<br>into possible commission of an offense unless the information is given in an official<br>proceeding or the declarant is otherwise under a legal duty to give the information.<br>Inapplicability under this subsection is a defense.4.A matter is a &quot;governmental matter&quot; if it is within the jurisdiction of a government<br>office or agency, or of an office, agency, or other establishment in the legislative or<br>the judicial branch of government.Page No. 112.1-11-03.False information or report to law enforcement officers or securityofficials. A person is guilty of a class A misdemeanor if that person:1.Gives false information or a false report to a law enforcement officer which that<br>person knows to be false, and the information or report may interfere with an<br>investigation or may materially mislead a law enforcement officer; or2.Falsely reports to a law enforcement officer or other security official the occurrence<br>of a crime of violence or other incident calling for an emergency response when that<br>person knows that the incident did not occur.&quot;Security official&quot; means a publicservant responsible for averting or dealing with emergencies involving public safety.12.1-11-04. General provisions.1.Falsification is material under sections 12.1-11-01, 12.1-11-02, and 12.1-11-03<br>regardless of the admissibility of the statement under rules of evidence, if it could<br>have affected the course or outcome of the official proceeding or the disposition of<br>the matter in which the statement is made. Whether a falsification is material in a<br>given factual situation is a question of law.It is no defense that the declarantmistakenly believed the falsification to be immaterial.2.It is no defense to a prosecution under sections 12.1-11-01 or 12.1-11-02 that the<br>oath or affirmation was administered or taken in an irregular manner or that the<br>declarant was not competent to make the statement. A document purporting to be<br>made upon oath or affirmation at a time when the actor represents it as being so<br>verified shall be deemed to have been duly sworn or affirmed.3.It is a defense to a prosecution under sections 12.1-11-01, 12.1-11-02, or 12.1-11-03<br>that the actor retracted the falsification in the course of the official proceeding or<br>matter in which it was made, if in fact he did so before it became manifest that the<br>falsification was or would be exposed and before the falsification substantially<br>affected the proceeding or the matter.4.In sections 12.1-11-01 and 12.1-11-02, &quot;statement&quot; means any representation but<br>includes a representation of opinion, belief, or other state of mind only if the<br>representation clearly relates to state of mind apart from or in addition to any facts<br>which are the subject of the representation.12.1-11-05. Tampering with public records.1.A person is guilty of an offense if he:a.Knowingly makes a false entry in or false alteration of a government record; orb.Knowingly, without lawful authority, destroys, conceals, removes, or otherwise<br>impairs the verity or availability of a government record.2.The offense is:a.A class C felony if committed by a public servant who has custody of the<br>government record.b.A class A misdemeanor if committed by any other person.3.In this section &quot;government record&quot; means:a.Any record, document, or thing belonging to, or received or kept by the<br>government for information or record.Page No. 2b.Any other record, document, or thing required to be kept by law, pursuant, in<br>fact, to a statute which expressly invokes the sanctions of this section.12.1-11-06.Public servant refusing to perform duty.Any public servant whoknowingly refuses to perform any duty imposed upon him by law is guilty of a class A<br>misdemeanor.12.1-11-07.Fraudulent practice in urine testing.A person is guilty of a class Amisdemeanor if that person willfully defrauds a urine test and the test is designed to detect the<br>presence of a chemical substance or a controlled substance. A person is guilty of a class A<br>misdemeanor if that person knowingly possesses, distributes, or assists in the use of a device,<br>chemical, or real or artificial urine advertised or intended to be used to alter the outcome of a<br>urine test.Page No. 3Document Outlinechapter 12.1-11 perjury - falsification - breach of duty