Falsely Accused of rape

[AB]

My husband was accused of rape in July 2010 whilst we were both at a party. We are seperated but have a good relationship. The woman who is accusing my husband of rape is known to me. They had been flirting at the party and my husband alleges that she came on to him upstairs in one of the bedrooms and he described a fumble without penetration. She has alleged that she woke up with him on top of her, and inside her and that he ejaculated.

The next day my husband was taken in for questioning and charged with rape. He has now been in touch with his solicitor almost every week asking what is happening because he has not been up in court and does not know what happens next. He claims he is completely innocent of her allegations and is 100% confident that the Forensic evidence will corroborate his story. I have since heard that the women now claims to not remember much about the incident but is not withdrawing her allegations of rape. My husband is devastated at being accused of this abhorrent crime and has lost 3 stones in weight and has contemplated suicide. He is distraught about his name being dragged through the media and the effect this would have on his children and his relationships in the community we live in. I am a strong independent woman and i have in the past been very vocal about rape but this has opened my eyes to the effect that this woman has caused to all our lives.

I believe my husband is innocent and i am supporting him as are his female friends, who are also incredulous that this could happen. I cannot believe that a woman could be so evil as to make these extremely serious allegations. I cannot imagine why she is doing this and why she would put herself through such a harrowing experience. Not only is she damaging fasmilies she is also damaging other women who have been genuinely raped and need to be taken seriously!! The length of time this is taking is also beyond belief, what about human rights? I used to believe in the judicial system but have come to the conclusion that if someone is accused of rape they are guilty until proven innocent.

I am in regular contact with my friend and she has reported that the woman appears to be mentally unstable and has changed her story about the incident several times.

Surely if the forensic evidence does not corroborate her story then there is insufficient evidence for this to go to trial. I truly beleieve that this woman should be charged and punished for the pain and suffering she has caused to me, my family, my husbands family and friends. Any advice would be welcome!!!

[worriedfather]

Hi
Sorry to find you here but you and your ex will get a lot of help on this site. Others who are more knowledgable will be along soon.
Your ex needs to get a good experienced solicitor, RF may be able to offer help on that score. Gather as much evidence as you can, did anyone see them go upstairs and how long where they gone, did they come down together or singly.
Do not trust the police, they are only intersted in a conviction that will further their career. Do not give the police any evidence and if you have evidence route it through his solicitor so that it does not get "lost"
This is a long haul average seems to be about 8-12 weeks minimum before charge then at least 6 months before trial.
Understand that he should get the forensics tested by his sol as plod may not test them,
Get your ex to the doctors, most of us have been on medication of one kind or another. keep strong and keep coming back, good luck

[Casehardened]

Hi,

If by chance you have not posted under an anonymous user name I would urge you to do so, I believe you can still edit your post until the hour is up!

(anyone can read this forum and you may not wish the details to be made public)

[Rights Fighter]

Hi,

If by chance you have not posted under an anonymous user name I would urge you to do so, I believe you can still edit your post until the hour is up!

(anyone can read this forum and you may not wish the details to be made public)

I thought that myself. Can mod change the username?

[webmoo]

Username changed...
worriedfather - I've also edited your post to remove the name of the OP.

FYI for other bods - You cannot change your username once registered, although the mods and admins can. We'll need a good reason to do it, but we can.

Moo

[Rights Fighter]

Thanks for that clarification Moo!

[Casehardened]

I am in regular contact with my friend and she has reported that the woman appears to be mentally unstable and has changed her story about the incident several times.

Surely if the forensic evidence does not corroborate her story then there is insufficient evidence for this to go to trial.

Hi 'AB'

Taking the worst case scenario, that of the case going to trial, if the forensic evidence is not helpful (i.e. Husband's DNA not found inside the woman) it won't be used and CPS will prosecute on the basis of the evidence they have, the woman's statement.

More positively, if the woman is likely to be an unreliable witness they may be reluctant to prosecute simply on the basis of her statement. If they do, and the forensics are 'inconclusive' (meaning not helpful to the prosecution) your solicitor should consider getting them admitted as evidence. As Worried Father said it is important to use a solicitor experienced in this field, though I understand it is more difficult to change solicitors after charge.

[witsend]

Welcome

Hi there, glad you found your way here, we will try to support you and yours as best we can. If you read other threads you will find we have all ended up here due to very similar circumstance. This is an awful thing to happen to anyone and the effects can be devastating. Has your husband been to his GP? if not, as others have suggested, he really needs to. If he needs someone impartial to speak to get him to ring the Samaritans, I know from experience they are a great "shoulder to cry on". Also bear in mind that you really need to take care of yourself, supporting somebody through this ordeal is unbearable at times. Please keep coming back here and we will do our best to support you through this.

[Rights Fighter]

Hi 'AB'

More positively, if the woman is likely to be an unreliable witness they may be reluctant to prosecute simply on the basis of her statement. If they do, and the forensics are 'inconclusive' (meaning not helpful to the prosecution) your solicitor should consider getting them admitted as evidence. As Worried Father said it is important to use a solicitor experienced in this field, though I understand it is more difficult to change solicitors after charge.

I attended a trial last year where the complainant was proved to be lying several times over, she changed her story several times, she too has mental health problems and was flanked by a CPN and psychiatrist (or counsellor) and after they gave evidence she accused them of lying too despite their evidence being back up by contemporaneous notes.

They still convicted him on her evidence on one charge.

The forensics report showing an inconclusive result should be in the "unused bundle" and available to the defence. You need to politely ask the solicitor and barrister that if they have not already done so, they should check the unused as this should be used as it supports your story that nothing happens.

[Hedgecroft]

Just to add my pennies worth!!

When I went through a similar problem I found it very difficult to trust my life to people I did not know "Police, Solicitor" etc. In my case I found the email address for the Chief Constable of my local police authority and emailed him outlining my concerns in a very similar way persons mental health issues, the situation of the night etc. I then on the botton of the letter cc'd my local MP so the police were aware that I was escalating this at an early stage. I then wrote to my MP and in a seperate envelope sent a copy of the letter to the Chief Constable of Surrey Police.

This started off a mail exchange between my MP and Surrey police. The put an even more senior on the case to oversee it and she had to also write to my MP and update him whilst copying myself. My personal belief is this helped the police keep the investigation honest. I was also in the situation that I had slept with the person the day before they went to the police and the day after I just did not know it at the time.

As for medication I tried my hardest not to go down this road and at the time I needed to loose a little weight anyway so I started running every morning. To be honest for months the only time I did not think about my situation was whilst I was running.

If you escalate this now and the police come across things like she may have made an allegation before they are a lot more likely to prosecute the person rather than sweep it under the carpet. At present prosections for perverting the course of justice reach the desk of the head of the CPS for the UK before they decide to proceed a little known fact.

So chin up have a plan write some letters your x will feel a lot more positive if he is activley doing something about it. Theres nothing worse than waiting for loads of people you do not know to save your life.

Regards,

Hedgecroft

[RFLH]

Good post Hedgecroft - and thank you for coming back to help and support others. I know RF has been trying to contact you - did she manage it?!

[Rights Fighter]

Brilliant advice Hedgecroft! If you don't mind I might copy and paste this (not word for word but just the advice) into my own forum. is that ok please?

[LS]

But do add that if you are not affluent, and your local MP is not one with the highest integrity, then the inability of that Force to comprehend or accept facts may still not come to anything.

As stated before Hedgecroft was incredibly lucky to get the right result off that Force. Having had first-hand experience of Surrey Police's corrupt attitude and total disregard for facts, I would state that are a number of factors will heavily influence the response you receive. Being affluent and having a decent MP are the main two in Surrey.

Had you been a resident of, say, Redhill's Cromwell Road Estate, the treatment you would receive would be a world away from that which Hedgecroft received.


Wat police forces are scared of is of being shown to have either done something wrongly or of covering something up. They know they are generally safe from exposure, except an affluent person may well have the money and the contacts to fund such an exposure.
As a poor person, with hindsight I should have gone public in the papers and on the internet instead.
The worst thing you can do is to do nothing. That lets them get away with it.

[Saffron]

Just to add my thoughts....
I don't think that wealth/poverty is a deciding factor, to be honest. However I think it's absolutely imperative that your letters are coherent, articulate and intelligent. If they are, your correspondence will be taken seriously. Check for spelling and grammar errors, and if you are nervous, ask a friend to help you.
Great advice from Hedgecroft. Thanks for coming back and not deserting us now that nasty woman is behind bars!

[LS]

Hmm, if it isn't wealth/property, then maybe someone could explain to me how an affluent person from one end of Surrey gets an honest outcome, and I come from the other end of the scale and county, and the treatment I got was little short of scandalous.
Saffron, I've pm'd you.