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Alcorta v. Texas

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Alcorta v. Texas
Decided November 12, 1957
Full case nameAlcorta v. Texas
Citations355 U.S. 28 (more)
Holding
Perjury from a prosecution witness is a due process violation when the prosecutor knows the witness testimony is false.
Court membership
Chief Justice
Earl Warren
Associate Justices
Hugo Black · Felix Frankfurter
William O. Douglas · Harold H. Burton
Tom C. Clark · John M. Harlan II
William J. Brennan Jr. · Charles E. Whittaker
Case opinion
Per curiam

Alcorta v. Texas, 355 U.S. 28 (1957), was a United States Supreme Court case in which the Court held that perjury from a prosecution witness is a due process violation when the prosecutor knows the witness testimony is false.[1]

Description

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The prosecutor in this case told the witness to withhold information about a serious romantic relationship unless specifically asked about it, so the witness falsely claimed that the relationship was casual. The false statement was irrelevant to the prosecution's case and would have only gone to the witness's credibility; even so, the case was tainted such that the Supreme Court reversed the defendant's conviction.[2]

References

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  1. ^ Alcorta v. Texas, 355 U.S. 28 (1957)
  2. ^ Lieberman, Jethro K. (1999). "Perjured Testimony". A Practical Companion to the Constitution. p. 347.
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