The defendant’s lie: A right or a sanctionable conduct?

Abstract

The accused, as a passive party in criminal proceedings, is the holder of the right of defence recognised in Article 24 of the Spanish Constitution. This, in turn, encompasses other rights, including, for its importance, the right to remain silent and the right not to testify against oneself and not to confess guilty. These are therefore two different rights, the exercise of which by the defendant entails different conducts. Moreover, the first of them, since its enshrinement, has generated a doctrinal and jurisprudential debate that, over the years, continues unresolved. The question is whether the accused in criminal proceedings has the right to lie or, on the contrary, from his or her mendacious statement can lead to harmful consequences for him in the proceedings.