Wrongley accused and setup by a child

[heartbroke]

Hi, my son was falsely accused of rape when he was 14 and we had just moved away but it didn't come out until two and half years ago. It?s been to court several times and at the time it was going to trial the barrister scared my son so much he told him if he didn't admit to it he was looking at 5 to 10 yrs in prison because they would find him guilty before the even met him. He had no choice but to admit it. We were all so scared - his dad my brother etc. He is now due for sentencing in two weeks. I?m at my wits end. I?ve nearly had a nervous break down and I?m getting over bowel cancer ...
My son was due to join the police force just before this all came out. This girl has accused 3 people that we know of and the 2 forensic reports came back that she had never been touched so they dropped that charge and changed it to 3 indecent assault charges. This girl has got away with this knowing that it?s untrue. Please help me - what can I do? Will the judge ask my son again if he is guilty? Will he be able to change his plea - he wanted to before but he has run out of legal aid and we don't have any money. My son is now 22 and never ever been in trouble, he is a wonderful out going popular kind man who has his own house and been with his fianc?e for five yrs. He will lose everything and will also be put of the paedophile list. I?m so distraught - this has destroyed us. My son is now getting chest pains and bad nerves, I can't sleep, I just don?t know what to do. Please help us. WILL HE GO TO PRISON?
Many thanks

[Heidi]

Hello,
My heart goes out to you & your son, unfortunately you have had bad representation from your solicitor/barrister who should have done the ground work before you got to trial stage. A couple of questions I need to ask:
1) Did these other three guys get accused at the same time as your son or on different occasions?
2) Were there any witnesses? Or was it her word against his?
I imagine if the allegation was made 2 1/2 years after there was no DNA/FORENSICS from this girl.
I am utterly disgusted that the barrister told your son to plead guilty. It is such a serious charge to be found guilty of due to the consequences and stigma that is attached to rape itself. Were the other lads found guilty of Indecent assault?
My boyfriend who is 26 is currently serving 4 years 6 months for a rape he didn't commit due to being badly represented by his solicitors and barrister. Unlike your son he did not plead guilty and we are currently perusing an appeal to get this conviction overturned. I don't know where you stand with the fact that your son has pleaded guilty, & you would have to contact someone with more experience to the law. There is a group called FASO and there number is 0870 241 6650. They?re very supportive & maybe able to point you in the right direction. Please be strong for your son, I will wait for my partner to be released from prison and will fight for him no matter how long it takes. If your sons girlfriend loves him she will also be there through thick and thin. I hate to be the bearer of bad news but your son will get a prison term for this offence, whether you plead guilty or not. Minimum is going to be 5 years realistically. If your son is of good nature & not been in trouble before (which I imagine is the case due to him joining the police force) then that will be taken in to consideration along with that he pleaded guilty, so he will probably get less than 5 years. It is difficult to say what the prison term will be. If the sentencing doesn't take place until two weeks speak to his solicitors and tell them that you feel your son has been forced into pleading guilty because he was scared of going to prison for that length of time, & that you didn't realise what this meant if he was found guilty e.g. paedophile register etc. If you read further down this website I have pointed out the stigma attached to rape to another man who was falsely accused. If you get no joy from this solicitor FASO will give you a solicitor who specialises in this area who is in your area. Ask them for a second opinion before sentencing takes place because if this can be turned around now is the time to do it - act immediately. You may be able to sack your solicitors. Like I say my heart goes out to you both but be strong & if you need anymore info please don't hesitate to ask. I look at this site on a daily basis so it will be an immediate response. Take care and keep strong.

[hello heidi]

This girl was suppose to have been 5 yrs old her mother goes around with another women that has done this sort of thing before - twice in fact so we know that she has told this girl what to say and what to do. My son is of very good character and never been in trouble with the law. I?m at my wits end I don't know how you have coped with your boyfriend - my nerves are in shreds. Where is the justice system? Is it to late to try turn this around? He is in court in 11 days for sentencing.
Please help

[Heidi]

We don't know who these other men are and yes it was her word against his but like his barrister said they will believe a child over a 22 yr old man

[Mary]

Kids do tell lies
especially teenagers
they do it for attention and money
I can prove it
My family are going through this hell too
Fight for justice which is what I am doing now

(My email is mary545@hotmail.com)

[Heidi]

Originally posted by hello heidi@Jul 24 2004, 09:48 PM
This girl was suppose to have been 5 yrs old her mother goes around with another women that has done this sort of thing before - twice in fact so we know that she has told this girl what to say and what to do. My son is of very good character and never been in trouble with the law. I?m at my wits end I don't know how you have coped with your boyfriend - my nerves are in shreds. Where is the justice system? Is it to late to try turn this around? He is in court in 11 days for sentencing.
Please help

Hello again,
So from what I understand your son was meant to have committed this when he was 14 and the girl was 5? Your solicitor should have investigated the other allegations and dug up all the dirt on this woman as possible. I cannot tell you if this can be turned around now as I have no law experience, only what I know from what my partner has been through. You really need to contact another solicitor to give you a second opinion. Phone FASO they will give you details of a solicitor in your area who specialises in this. They did for me and the first consultation was free. At least then you will know where you stand and whether it can be changed before sentencing. Don't let your own solicitors fob you off. Believe me if we had the information that we had now we would have done all of it differently. Please don't put yourself and your son in the situation of not seeing anyone only to think afterwards what if's and maybe's. There is no Justice system to support men from false allegations taking place. Hopefully someone will make a stance for the right of the falsely accused one day. I have written to Mens magazines so they will hopefully publish an article about this as it seems to be rife. My heart goes out to the women & girls who are genuine as it?s these evil people who make it harder for them. Keep strong and please keep me informed of your progress.

My thoughts are with you all.

[diana_holbourn]

Children can make all kinds of false allegations under pressure from an adult. See, for instance:

HOW CHILDREN DISCLOSE SEXUAL ABUSE
http://www.religioustolerance.org/chil_int.htm
45 indictments in child abuse case dropped
http://www.chron.com/content/chronicle/met.../07/gilmer.html

There is a psychological condition, and there may be more than one, that makes adults more likely to make false allegations of sexual abuse. Barristers can sometimes abuse the system by bringing up things from a person's medical records that wouldn't in reality make them more likely to make a false accusation, but some things definitely would. For instance, the site www.stopbadtherapy.com contains stories and information about how people became convinced they had been sexually abused by family members after therapy that implanted false memories in their minds by the suggestions of therapists while they were being treated by hypnosis and things like that. That might not help in this particular case, but it might in some.

[Donna]

Hi,

I'm really sorry to hear what your son and your family are going through. I read Heidi's reply as to what action that you could take now. Have you contacted a new solicitor to see if it is possible for your son to change his plea so near to sentencing?

I can understand the anxiety and stress that you are all going through. In June last year my brother was falsely accused of rape. The end of November my brother was found guilty of rape and was sentenced to 4yrs 6months mid December. Since then I have watched my dad break down on several occasions (even though he has never been an emotional person), my mom has gone on anti depressants along with sleeping tablets to help her sleep at night. I have watched my brother get sent to prison for a crime he has not committed, he was then beaten up 2 weeks later after other in mates found out why he was in there. He has now been moved to the VP wing for protection.

With the nature of the crime we often think that the best thing we can do is keep quiet about the charge to save any stigma being attached to the accused. We honestly believed that we had nothing to worry about, as it was only her word against his - purely down to consent. He stayed with the same solicitor that he was given when arrested. The police told my brother to keep his head up and that he had nothing really to worry about. His solicitor then told him the same - he had nothing to worry about. With this information he only told immediate family and thought that he would be found not guilty. No one cold believe the outcome. We have since found a new solicitor; we are trying to get an appeal to over turn the conviction. Looking back now there are so many things that we would have done differently. But the main thing I wish we could change is that we had told people. Especially his girlfriend, which he met in August. Although she only knew him for a short time she never once doubted his innocence, and has been a great support to my brother, myself and my family.

I really hope that you are able to do something to change your sons present situation, and that you have a more positive out come.

We were foolish enough to believe that justice would prevail.

Edit from webmaster: No offence, but please don't post using all-caps. It's hard to read!
Thanks!
I've re-formatted this post.

[Snoopyseed]

Sometimes these things happen and there isn?t anything we can do about them as they are out of our hands and in the laws hands. The first thing you need to do is to try for free legal aid, if you are unemployed or on benefits then you should be entitled, your local citizens advice bureau is the best place to start. Write a whole list of questions and go to them to find answers, the number is in your local yellow pages. Also I urge you to go and see a GP - he may only be 22 but severe stress can have a big impact on your health even if you are young and healthy. There are a whole host of support services out there and there are also organisations that help people falsely accused of rape. If you believe without conviction that your son is innocent, and these things do happen, then I urge you to look at a solicitor where you feel comfortable and they have some experience with these types of cases. If indeed there is no forensic evidence and your son is innocent then plead innocent, don?t give in to the CPS, who will pressurise for a plea bargain. Ask what evidence there is and if there is no evidence and your son really is innocent then do not plead guilty. To plead guilty to something that you are not guilty of doing is the worst thing that you could do. If the child is lying, then she needs serious, serious help. This needs to be pointed out. On the other hand and I?m playing devils advocate here, why would a child lie?
I?m not saying your son is either guilty or innocent all I?m saying here is that all the facts don?t add up and I think it would be in everyone?s interest if a lot of professionals got involved; counsellors, DSS, Police, GP, Victim Support, and any organisations that the citizens advice bureau suggest. Good luck. I hope that there will be a conclusion soon.

[Mary]

If you have been falsely accused by a child or teenager, which I agree is an easy thing to happen in the UK. Feel free to contact me as my family are going through it right now.
We can fight this thing together.
Join me in my fight for justice for the falsely accused.

My email is mary545@hotmail.com

[Saffron]

Donna

The same thing has happened to me. In my husband's case, he was orginally accused of rape, and then his accuser decided (3 months later) that she hadn't been raped at all. Howevcer, she still pressed charges of indecent assault. She dropped the rape charge after the police told her there was no forensic evidence to prove intercourse had even taken place. The CPS case was simply her word against his. We truly thought that no charges would be brought, and when they were, we honestly believed that justice would prevail. The CPS barrister was allowed to ask my husband ANYTHING about his sexual history, how many one night stands he had had, how many sexual partners etc etc. Our barrister was not allowed to ask her ANYTHING about her sex life (which by all accounts was incredibly diverse and her sexual partners numerous) While we waited for the verdict, I genuinely could not see how the jury could return a guilty verdict. BEYOND ALL REASONABLE DOUBT remember!

The guilty verdict was returned in only 20 minutes. Even the judge said during closed court that he did not believe the jury had fully considered all the evidence, and that in his opinion there were plenty grounds for reasonable doubt. However, this is not admissable in appeal as it was said during closed court.

My husband is now a VP as well, in a prison miles away from our home. The case was all over the local papers,a nd our home has since been broken into. Our 4 year old son thinks his daddy is away for work, and telling him the truth would break his heart.

OUR JUSTICE SYSTEM STINKS.

Like you, I was stupid enough to trust our justice system. TRIAL BY JURY DOES NOT WORK! Without wishing to sound elitist, I believe a jury should consist of well-educated, reasonable individuals, not sheep who just want to get an early finish on the last friday afternoon of their jury service. there should be some sort of intelligence test before you are allowed to sit on a jury.

Incidentally, the judge did not put my husband on the sex offenders register because he said it was not appropriate. That just about sums up the whole thing.

[DEBBIE IN OHIO]

The law seems to do well for some and terrible for others. Times are scary, what ever happened to "innocent till proven guilty." That doesn't seem to be the way it is any longer. How sad we have become a nation to punish innocent people and let the true criminal go free.

[scorpion]

please read

Hi, my son was falsely accused of rape when he was 14 and we had just moved away but it didn't come out until two and half years ago. It?s been to court several times and at the time it was going to trial the barrister scared my son so much he told him if he didn't admit to it he was looking at 5 to 10 yrs in prison because they would find him guilty before the even met him. He had no choice but to admit it. We were all so scared - his dad my brother etc. He is now due for sentencing in two weeks. I?m at my wits end. I?ve nearly had a nervous break down and I?m getting over bowel cancer ...
My son was due to join the police force just before this all came out. This girl has accused 3 people that we know of and the 2 forensic reports came back that she had never been touched so they dropped that charge and changed it to 3 indecent assault charges. This girl has got away with this knowing that it?s untrue. Please help me - what can I do? Will the judge ask my son again if he is guilty? Will he be able to change his plea - he wanted to before but he has run out of legal aid and we don't have any money. My son is now 22 and never ever been in trouble, he is a wonderful out going popular kind man who has his own house and been with his fianc?e for five yrs. He will lose everything and will also be put of the paedophile list. I?m so distraught - this has destroyed us. My son is now getting chest pains and bad nerves, I can't sleep, I just don?t know what to do. Please help us. WILL HE GO TO PRISON?
Many thanks

first of all yes he can change his plea explain to the judge that the representive urged him to plead guilty on grounds that he was going to be convicted any way number 2 go to the local mp explain you have no funds avalible and whats happend he may fund it or write a letter to the police and /or judge explaining the situation i wish you all the best of luck and i know that its hard right now iv been through it twice and third now words of untrue thing is the people who accused me addmitted lying but no action was taken against them

[Faith]

This thread is from 2004