M Civ JI 4.04 Witness Willfully False [ Recommend No Instruction ]

Comment

The committee recommends that no instruction on the “willfully false witness” be given. An instruction of this type is not necessary where M Civ JI 4.01 is given, as that instruction adequately covers credibility factors.

The Michigan Supreme Court has approved an instruction that if the jury finds that a witness has willfully sworn falsely as to a material fact, and the jury should be of the opinion that such false swearing rendered the witness incredible as a whole, they have a right to disregard his or her entire testimony. O’Rourke v O’Rourke, 43 Mich 58; 4 NW 531 (1880). One case held it is error to refuse such an instruction where the evidence supports it. Ketchum v Fillingham, 162 Mich 704; 127 NW 702 (1910).

The instruction, however, has been criticized on the basis that questions concerning credibility of witnesses are the sole province of the jury; if the instruction is given, the jury should also be instructed that no rule of law prevents their giving credit to parts of a witness’s testimony they believe to be true. Hillman v Schwenk, 68 Mich 293; 36 NW 77 (1888); see also Jewell v Kelley, 155 Mich 301; 118 NW 987 (1909).

History

M Civ JI 4.04 was SJI 2.04.