Mont. Code Ann. » TITLE 45. CRIMES · CHAPTER 7. OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION · Part 2. Perjury and Other Falsification in Official Matters
Montana Code Annotated

Mont. Code Ann. § 45-7-201 (2026)

Perjury

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  1. MCA Contents
  2. TITLE 45
  3. CHAPTER 7
  4. Part 2
  5. 45-7-201 Perjury

TITLE 45. CRIMES

CHAPTER 7. OFFENSES AGAINST PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION

Part 2. Perjury and Other Falsification in Official Matters

Perjury

45-7-201. Perjury. (1) A person commits the offense of perjury if in any official proceeding the person knowingly makes a false statement under oath or equivalent affirmation or swears or affirms the truth of a statement previously made when the statement is material.

(2) A person convicted of perjury shall be punished by imprisonment in the state prison for any term not to exceed 10 years or be punished by a fine of not more than $50,000, or both.

(3) Falsification is material, regardless of the admissibility of the statement under rules of evidence, if it could have affected the course or outcome of the proceeding. It is no defense that the declarant mistakenly believed the falsification to be immaterial. Whether a falsification is material in a given factual situation is a question of law.

(4) It is not a defense to prosecution under this section that the oath or affirmation was administered or taken in an irregular manner or that the declarant was not competent to make the statement. A document purporting to be made upon oath or affirmation at any time when the offender presents it as being so verified must be considered to have been sworn or affirmed.

(5) A person may not be guilty of an offense under this section if the person retracted the falsification in the course of the proceeding in which it was made before it became manifest that the falsification was or would be exposed and before the falsification substantially affected the proceeding.

(6) When the defendant made inconsistent statements under oath or equivalent affirmation, both having been made within the period of the statute of limitations, the prosecution may proceed by setting forth the inconsistent statements in a single count alleging in the alternative that one or the other was false and not believed by the defendant. In that case, it is not necessary for the prosecution to prove which statement was false but only that one or the other was false and not believed by the defendant to be true.

(7) A person may not be convicted of an offense under this section when proof of falsity rests solely upon the testimony of a single person other than the defendant.

History: En. 94-7-202 by Sec. 1, Ch. 513, L. 1973; R.C.M. 1947, 94-7-202; amd. Sec. 7, Ch. 198, L. 1981; amd. Sec. 1679, Ch. 56, L. 2009.

Notes of Decisions
Cited in 9 cases (2 in the last 5 years), 1989–2021 · leading case: State v. Trull, 2006 MT 119, 136 P.3d 551.
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State v. Trull, 2006 MT 119, 136 P.3d 551. · cites it 6× “” Section 45-7-201(1), MCA. A false statement “is material, regardless of the admissibility of the statement under rules of evidence, if it could have affected the course or outcome of the proceeding.”
State v. Stillings, 778 P.2d 406 (Mont. 1989). · cites it 19× “On September 25, 1987, the Cascade County Attorney filed an information against Michael Stillings charging that Stillings committed perjury by making two, inconsistent, material statements under oath in violation of § 45-7-201, MCA (1987). Stillings filed a motion to dismiss the…”
State v. Eaton, 2004 MT 283, 99 P.3d 661. · cites it 2× “¶9 On March 29, 2002, the Gallatin County Attorney charged Eaton with two counts of felony theft, common scheme, in violation of § 45-7-301, MCA; one count of perjury, in violation of § 45-7-201, MCA; and one count of tampering with or fabricating physical evidence, in violation…”
Harris v. State, 2003 MT 258, 77 P.3d 272. · cites it 2× “Thus, Harris has failed to establish peijury and, in any event, peijury is a criminal offense-see § 45-7-201, MCA-not a postconviction claim.”
State v. Carson, 2002 MT 234, 56 P.3d 844. · cites it 4× “Therefore, on December 23, 1997, the State charged Carson, by information, with: (1) perjury, a felony, in violation of § 45-7-201(1), MCA; (2) unsworn falsification to authorities, a misdemeanor, in violation of § 45-7-203(1)(a), MCA; and (3) obstructing a peace officer or…”
Mack v. Anderson, 2021 MT 25. · cites it 2× “” The Amendment which is signed by the Macks provides: “I declare under penalty of perjury (§ 45-7-201, MCA) under the laws of the state of Montana that the foregoing content of this form is true and correct.”
O'Sullivan v. State, 265 A.3d 1015 (Md. 2021). “070 (2021); Mont. Code Ann. § 45-7-201 (7) (2021); Neb.”
Alvarado, 26 I. & N. Dec. 895 (BIA 2016). “040 (West 1996); Mont. Code Ann. § 45-7-201 (West 1996); Neb.”
State v. Duval, 2006 MT 231N. · cites it 3× “” Section 45-7-201(1), MCA. ¶24 Both the State and Duval agree that the evidence is insufficient to sustain a charge of perjury against Day.”
Mont. Code Ann. § 45-7-201(1): 4 cases
State v. Trull, 2006 MT 119, 136 P.3d 551. “” Section 45-7-201(1), MCA. A false statement “is material, regardless of the admissibility of the statement under rules of evidence, if it could have affected the course or outcome of the proceeding.”
State v. Stillings, 778 P.2d 406 (Mont. 1989). “On September 25, 1987, the Cascade County Attorney filed an information against Michael Stillings charging that Stillings committed perjury by making two, inconsistent, material statements under oath in violation of § 45-7-201, MCA (1987). Stillings filed a motion to dismiss the…”
State v. Carson, 2002 MT 234, 56 P.3d 844. “Therefore, on December 23, 1997, the State charged Carson, by information, with: (1) perjury, a felony, in violation of § 45-7-201(1), MCA; (2) unsworn falsification to authorities, a misdemeanor, in violation of § 45-7-203(1)(a), MCA; and (3) obstructing a peace officer or…”
State v. Duval, 2006 MT 231N. “” Section 45-7-201(1), MCA. ¶24 Both the State and Duval agree that the evidence is insufficient to sustain a charge of perjury against Day.”
Mont. Code Ann. § 45-7-201(3): 1 case
State v. Trull, 2006 MT 119, 136 P.3d 551. “” Section 45-7-201(1), MCA. A false statement “is material, regardless of the admissibility of the statement under rules of evidence, if it could have affected the course or outcome of the proceeding.”
Mont. Code Ann. § 45-7-201(6): 1 case
State v. Stillings, 778 P.2d 406 (Mont. 1989). “On September 25, 1987, the Cascade County Attorney filed an information against Michael Stillings charging that Stillings committed perjury by making two, inconsistent, material statements under oath in violation of § 45-7-201, MCA (1987). Stillings filed a motion to dismiss the…”
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