Commonwealth v. Coleman

*811Nolan, J.

(dissenting, with whom Lynch, J., joins). I dissent. The court today has held that a trial judge may not consider perjury committed by a defendant, who has elected to take the witness stand, as a factor in his sentencing. The result is disturbing. Every jurisdiction which has considered the issue (there are twelve) holds to the contrary, i.e., a trial judge may consider a defendant’s perjury, among other things, as a factor in assessing his character and disposition for rehabilitation.1

The court asserts that the judge should not have considered the perjury of the defendant “without…