Under A.R.S. § 13-2702, perjury is a class 4 felony, and a conviction could lead to a sentence of up to 3.75 years in prison. A person commits perjury by lying under oath about an issue material to a case. A person also commits perjury by lying about a material issue while not under oath if the statement is given under penalty of perjury (in an affidavit, for example). If a person lies under oath about an issue that is not material to a case, they commit the crime of "false swearing" under A.R.S. § 13-2703. False swearing is a class 6 felony, and a conviction carries a sentence of up to 2 years in prison. If a person lies to an official in connection with an official proceeding about an issue that is material to a case while not under oath or penalty of perjury, they commit "unsworn falsification" under A.R.S. § 13-2704. Unsworn falsification is a class 6 felony, and a conviction carries a sentence of up to 2 years in prison. A person also commits "unsworn falsification" if they lie about a material issue while not under oath or penalty of perjury to an official in connection with an application for a benefit or license; this type of unsworn falsification is treated as a misdemeanor.
Read more: http://www.justanswer.com/criminal-law/1s8hp-penalty-purgery-mesa-arizona-commited.html#ixzz3QAjeWi4Y
Although the elements of perjury vary between individual states and federal law, the elements of perjury are similar. In order for a person to be charged with perjury, he or she generally must have 1) been sworn in or made a solemn legal promise to tell the truth; and 2) made a false statement or told a lie on purpose. Prosecutors can sometimes prove that a defendant lied by showing inconsistency in prior statements made by the defendant. For instance, if a person testifies one way in a deposition and another way in court, and the statements conflict with one another, this is solid evidence of perjury even if the prosecutor cannot prove which of the statements was untrue.
Most states and the federal government have an additional requirement, that the misstatement was material or important to the proceedings in which it was made. If a witness was testifying in case about a robbery of a diner, for example, lying about whether he saw the defendant at the diner would be material since seeing the defendant at the scene of the crime would be relevant to the defendant's guilt or innocence. Lying about what he ate for breakfast, on the other hand, usually wouldn't be a material misstatement that would result in a charge of perjury.
Witnesses who are not the lawyer’s client
In a civil or criminal trial, if the witness who intends to give false testimony is not the attorney’s client, the attorney is duty-bound not to call that witness. No matter how much the attorney’s client wants that person to testify, the lawyer can just say no.
Witnesses who are criminal defendants
But what happens when the witness is the defendant himself in a criminal case? In a criminal trial, defendants have the absolute right to testify, even over their attorney’s objections. Because a lawyer cannot stop a client from getting on the stand and lying, many lawyers will move to withdraw from the case. But judges will want to know why the attorney is making this request, and here is where the attorney faces a difficult choice. Divulging his client’s plans may amount to a violation of the attorney-client privilege; but if the attorney refuses to give a reason for his request to withdraw, the court may not grant it.
In such a situation, the attorney may be required to call the client to the stand, knowing he or she will lie. If this happens, the attorney must simply allow the client to testify in narrative fashion and not ask questions or otherwise guide or direct the testimony (this is the ABA “model rule”). That way, the attorney avoids participating in the perjured testimony.
