PROSECUTOR SAYS HE IS TOUGH ON PERJURY

Prosecution of perjury is never easy, but it isn't impossible, Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Morley Swingle told members of the Cape Girardeau Lions Club Wednesday.

Backed by projected reproduction of a recent Time magazine cover showing Bill Clinton and Monica Lewinsky, Swingle said allegations concerning the president and former White House intern have brought the issue of perjury into the national spotlight.

Perjury, or lying under oath, is a serious crime, Swingle said, because the whole American legal system is based on two sides coming together and telling their different versions of a story. If the witnesses for one side testify falsely, the entire legal system is undermined, Swingle said.

Swingle said his office has vigorously prosecuted perjury. Twelve cases have been taken to court since he took office in 1987, he said. Ten cases resulted in convictions, one was dismissed and one is pending, he said.

In addition, his office has filed four false affidavit cases.

In a letter to judges and attorneys in the county last week, Swingle asked for assistance in identifying provable perjury or false affidavit cases. Similar letters were sent in 1987 and 1991, Swingle said.

"The Statue of Liberty says, 'Send me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses.' We are telling the local bar, 'Send us your liars, your fibbers, your stretchers of truth,'" he said.

In the most recent case in Cape Girardeau County, Margaret Rose Gilmore has been accused of testifying falsely under oath at a hearing in front of Judge Peter Statler. At the hearing, Gilmore denied entering a person's home other than stepping briefly inside. Prosecutors contend evidence will show that Gilmore did more than step briefly inside.

A hearing in Gilmore's perjury case was held before Judge John Grimm in Cape Girardeau County Circuit Court Wednesday. Defense attorneys argued that the charges should be dismissed because, although Gilmore testified falsely under oath, what she said was not material to the case.

State statute says that a person commits perjury if he testifies falsely under oath. But it also says that the false testimony must be material to the case. Testimony is material only if it can substantially affect the course or outcome of a case.

The question of whether false testimony is material could become an issue in the Clinton-Lewinsky matter, Swingle said Wednesday.

The president testified in a deposition given in the Paula Jones civil suit that he had never had a sexual relationship with Lewinsky. If the president lied under oath, he would not necessarily be guilty of perjury, Swingle said. Prosecutors would have to show that any false testimony could have substantially affected the outcome of the civil suit.

Quoting former President Richard Nixon, Swingle said, "Perjury is a tough rap to prove."

Swingle also quoted Lewinsky, who said, "Perjury in civil cases is rarely prosecuted."

In the 12 perjury cases prosecuted by Swingle, nine stemmed from testimony given in criminal cases, one from grand jury testimony, one from a civil case and one from a divorce. Once the false testimony is given under oath, the perjury becomes a criminal offense.

"The bottom line in Cape Girardeau County is that perjury is never in the headlines, but it is still something we will pursue," Swingle said.