Falsely accused of rape

[0990]

my ex gf has falsely accused me of rape, does any one know how long the cps take to make a decision , ive been on bail for four weeks ! due back next week

[RFLH]

they may charge you when you go back next week or they may well rebail you until they've checked everything out.

[Saffron]

Hi 0990 and welcome to the forum.

Well done for posting, sometimes that is the hardest step.
Perhaps if you give us a little more detail (Nothing identifying) we can give you a bit more advice. Please don't be scared. I posted up the whole story of my husband's situation...then I panicked and asked the webmaster to delete it all. Then I posted a more edited version! There is a lot of support to be had here, you just need to ask.

The CPS have been known to take more than a year to reach a decision....although if this happends you are well within your rights to argue an abuse of process. Four weeks is a relatively short period of time. Keep coming back and posting, we are all here to help.

Saffron

[0990]

Falsely accused of rape

dont know where to start !!!!!!! i didnt rape her she stayed over at my house after lying to me abour being pregnant only a month before , i wanted to end it , just sick of off her games . This was a revenge for me ending it , but the police or cps dont even look at this . i have no where to turn ! im down the predicable route of drugs ,but my doctor wont give me any more as he now fear im becoming addicted !!! the least of my problems

[RFLH]

Make a start by writing everything down in as much detail as you can, save texts/emails.

Have you got legal representation? Do you have people who have witnessed her unreasonable behaviour? If so get them to write statements. Do not give any of this to the police, its your evidence - not theirs.

[Saffron]

Good advice from RFLH.
Make a note of all her lies. Why do you think she lied about being pregnant? some people make up false allegations in order to gain sympathy - holding status as a "victim" is very powerful.
As RFLH says, get yourself good legal representation. There is not a lot a solicitor can do until you are charged, if it gets that far, but it is good to be prepared.
Ask your GP to refer you to a counsellor. Try to keep busy, it will take your mind off things. Cleaning is a good one - my house was sparkling clean in the run up to R's charge and trial!
Your ex has said she doesn't want to proceed with the case, so I would suggest that without her as a witness there is not much of a case. Fingers crossed common sense will prevail.
Keep coming back, you will get lots of support here.

Saffron

[0990]

Falsely accused of rape

thanks , this means a lot to me

[RFLH]

pleased that you found us!

[0990]

Falsely accused of rape

What happened to innocent till proven guilty , don’t seem to see any of that with the police or cps.

[Saffron]

Innocent until proven guilty is a myth I'm afraid! Particularly when it comes to alleged sex crimes. There is a public perception that no-one would make a false allegation of this nature - after all, you would have to be seriously twisted to make something like that up, right? So the automatic assumption by most people is that the defendant is guilty. Why would a "victim" put themselves through the trauma of a trial if s/he weren't telling the truth?

But, as i said before, if your ex has already withdrawn the complaint, I am hopeful your case will be NFAd when you answer bail. It may be that Plod haven't told your sol this because they are hoping you will change your statement and admit that you did something wrong, or that your ex will change her mind and choose to pursue the complaint.

R's accuser waited for the forensic results before she contacted the police and said she "couldn't be sure" she was actually raped. The police neglected to inform us of this for 14 weeks. And as R had admitted that they had had consensual sexual contact, the charge was eventually Indecent Assault. But he spent 14 weeks on bail thinking that he could be charged with rape.

Sit tight. Hopefully all will go well.

[1329]

a simular thing happened to me just last year. However this was with a girl that i met that night. I still have no idea to this day why she accused me of it. Its a terrible thing and people see you differently even thou you have done nothing wrong. My bail went on for 6 months, in this time i lost weight, lost appetite, lost all motivation, i wouldnt leave the house, i wouldnt even talk to other girls, spent these six months indoors. Only recently i have been working on getting my confidence back. For a 21 year old to not go out and party is a real disapointment. I used to be a really confident guy. As for the CPS. The police will see hundreds of false acusations every day. They have trained officers which deal with rape cases. They know what is a genuine case. Remember they are not looking to pin you up, they are also looking for you to be innocent.A small fraction of rape cases will go to court. Somewhere in the region of 2%. And that is if they have enough evidence. I was fortunate to have a friend who is a soliciter. You can get an hour free, call up an enquire. They will talk you through everything. I can assure you it wont even go to court. My advice is carry on with your life, dont let it get you down. The bail will come to an end, you'll go in the police station, they will just turn round and say its been dropped. However you may not hear anything, up until either that day or a few days before. Its a real eye opener as to what some people would do to ruin your life, or jus simply for attention. Its made me real careful of who i jump into bed with. Hope this was a help.

[Saffron]

Hi 1329 and welcome

I'm happy to hear that your case was NFAd.
I hate to be the harbinger of doom, but...
As far as I am aware the figure of 2-4% of cases making it to trial is based on some seriously manipulated figures, ie: a percentage of all the women who claim to have been raped. Of these, a very large number (not sure of specifics) did not even report it to police.
Once a case gets to trial the chance of conviction is far higher - about 60% (I have a friend who is a sex-crime solicitor for the CPS and he gave me that figure).
I am also not convinced that the police do actually *investigate* to find out if someone is innocent. My own experience has taught me that they are merely there to gather evidence that a crime *was* committed. They will be looking for anything that indicates that you are guilty, and will often ignore or worse "lose" any evidence that points to the contrary.

As for the losing weight thing - well, that was the only silver lining! I dropped from a size 12 to a size 6....a tad too scrawny really.

I hope you can find peace and I am really glad that this has made you more careful about casual sex. More men ought to be aware of the dangers that poses!

[1329]

The chances of getting to a trial is however quite low thou. It costs alot of money to setup a trial. If there is not sufficent evidence then it will not go any further. If it was likely to go to court often then any girl could claim rape.

I also lost a few stone from the whole situation. That bit was the least problem. I used to be a really outgoing person, friends everywhere, a real flirt. I used to love life. The whole thing took away my social life. I am now 22 years old and getting my life back on track. My case was minor compared to some of the cases which have happened to other people.

Is there anything we can do as far as maybe prosecuting her for a false acusation?

Although this has been over 9 months ago now, it is still bugging me inside. And i feel it wont rest until she feels some of the stress that i went through.

Not that I am vengeful or anything.

[Saffron]

Sorry 1329, I seem to be disagreeing with you again!
Currently Rape is a very hot potato politically speaking. the CPS are far more likely to "give it a whirl" than for other crimes. In some cases it is only the complainant's word that is required as evidence - and if s/he comes across as being credible, it's a done deal. That is the crux of the problem -violent stranger-rapes are extremely rare. Most rapes are committed by someone known to the victim. Hence the issue of consent. Which is why juries are now asked, not whether they feel guilt has been proved "beyond reasonable doubt" but merely that they are "sure" the defendant committed the offence.

Sorry if I sound argumentative, it's not intended.

[LS]

If it was likely to go to court often then any girl could claim rape.

Many do, on the basis that it will go to court.