Boyfriend falsely accused & charged with rape

[lulurose22]

Hello,

my boyfriend was accused of raping an 18 year old girl of june 2011 and was released on bail until his Trial beginning 12th December, which is when my boyfriend was charged on 14th December 2011 with rape, ultimately receiving a sentence of four and a half years. My boyfriend has always maintained his innocence and i completely believe and trust him 100%.
He has admitted that he had sexual contact with her (I understand this is cheating but he still needs my support) yet it was all consensual. As he had been drinking, he could not remember if they had full penetrative sex however maintained if they did it was fully consensual.

When he was arrested he had full DNA taken from him and the results returned that there was NO DNA, NO BRUISING, NO BLEEDING, nothing. The only dna was from her on the inside of his trousers. Yet still, the jury of 6 men and 6 women, came to the decision that he was guilty. Even though her story didn't match up with her friend who claimed she was there. She didnt cry/scream/bite/push/kick, or any of the 'normal' expressions that you would expect if you were being raped, and as a girl of a similar age, I feel that i would do anything in my will to stop it happening if i didnt want it too, especially shout if i knew my friend was 100m away from me in a terraced house.

My boyfriend is an extremely good looking boy, who had many girls throwing themselves at him constantly, literally emailling him constantly offering themselves on a plate, he did not need to rape someone (to look at it bluntly), he really didn't need to.
During the trial, i feel that my boyfriends solicitor didn't use all the evidence that could have been used and i feel that perhaps the decision may have been different from the jury, considering the Judge made a point of informing the jury that he is a young boy (only 20) and that the whole accusations would have scared him and made him confused and distressed, distorting his memory.

He has never, in the whole 2 years we have been together, been forceful, aggressive or horrible in any way towards me, even when i have been aggressive towards him or had an argument.

He is a 20 year old, who has been accused of rape, by a girl who had a boyfriend at the time and ultimately felt bad that she had cheated on her boyfriend and was scared she would get found out. The ''victim'' during and after the trial, has put on social networking websites that she is going out on the 'pull', going out to get 'legless' and that her friends refer to her as 'slag', all of which i feel are completely inappropriate for a rape victim.

I respect peoples opinions that they may think i am stupid for sticking by him, but i am only 19 years old, and i would not want to be the person who walks away from someone in need. Also, I am not a stupid girl that people think I am, I have a high intelligence and I know that I am becoming a better person for helping him, without walking away for my own ego, and that I am supporting someone when they need me most.

I have been my boyfriends complete support throughout and i am still his main support whilst he is in prison.
The police are no help to me at all and haven't been throughout everything, even when I was being harassed via the internet and verbally abused (a violation of the malicious communications act 1988) they refused to help me because I was supporting him.

Does anyone know if there is a way of appealing his innocence without the risk of the appeal being rejected, whilst his sentence is suspended, and ultimately he would end up spending more time in there than he would if he just carried out the sentence, maintaining his innocence?

He is struggling inside and I am intent on helping him in anyway possible. I am a full time university student, therefore i cannot really afford an expensive barrister.

Is it better to appeal his innocence when he gets out or is there a way of him being released without the girl admitting she is lying?

Would appreciate some help

Thanks.

[wunderland]

Wow,
lulu I am very sorry to hear your sad story poor guy 4 1/2 years omg that is brutal.
What a mess.I would of course appeal it so sorry for you both he is great to have you in his life. Other people will give you advice on here good luck

[Casehardened]

Hello,

Firstly well done for supporting your boyfriend rather than walking off and leaving him to his fate. If you have a look through other threads on the forum you will note that this scenario is sadly not unusual (and doesn't reflect well on either accuser or accused) and very hard on the partner.

As to your specific question, I'm not quite sure what you mean by the sentence being suspended?

Does anyone know if there is a way of appealing his innocence without the risk of the appeal being rejected, whilst his sentence is suspended, and ultimately he would end up spending more time in there than he would if he just carried out the sentence, maintaining his innocence?

If an appeal was lodged he would continue to serve his sentence while the appeal was proceeding and the only way the sentence would be increased is if the prosecution were to appeal against it's leniency.

The question of being released on licence halfway through would be irrelevant to whether an appeal was in process.

We do have a member who specialises in appeals and hopefully she may be able to advise you further but basically first of all he has to apply for 'Leave to appeal' before an actual appeal can be proceeded with.

This needs to be done by a barrister; did the trial barrister give him any advice on appealing at the end of the trial?

[Faith]

Hello lulurose

I have the utmost of respect for you for standing by your boyfriend despite his foolish infidelity.
I am glad that you recognise that while you have been betrayed, your boyfriend does not deserve to be punished for a crime which he did not commit. They are seperate issues and the only person who has the right to 'punish' your boyfriend for that is you. By the time you are reunited, I would imagine that you will have moved past that anyway...one things for sure, you can fully believe that he will never make that mistake again.

You must feel very let down by justice that your boyfriend was found guilty, despite evidence discrepencies and lack of physical evidence. Sadly, this is often the case...offences such as these can lead to a guilty verdict just on a complainant's word.

What you must remember is that every victim of rape reacts differently. While you say that you would have struggled and fought back, one cannot make those claims for definite until, god forbid, they are ever in the situation. Many women are too frightened or just close their eyes and wait for it to end. many rapists are not physically violent in a way that would leave markings. So this is what the members of the jury would have been thinking.

It's a tough result for your boyfriend, who has done nothing wrong. Did you get a motive across for the accuser making these lies? Was it driven by revenge, desire for attention, compensation...?

As casehardened says, your barrister would have mentioned his thoughts for appeal. You would need suitable grounds for appeal and evidence that was available for the trial would not be admissable. It's a tough, long process but it has been successful for many people. You must consider who is going to represent you if an appeal is granted. How satisfied were you with the barrister and solicitor who represented at your case. Were they specialists in the sexual crime field?

As for your partner, he will be going through a frightening ordeal. Is he in a Vulnerable Prisoner wing or unit? How easy is it for you to travel for visits? Try and write to him as much as you can, this will be a real comfort. Is there anyone in your family or friendship groups that could write to him as well. Was his sentence four and a half years or is that the time he is expected to serve. If that was his sentence, chances are that with 'good behaviour' and provided he is not considered a danger to the public, he may serve as little as half of that sentence. Not a huge comfort, it is still a long time to be apart.

And how strong are you feeling? You sound is if you are prepared to stand by him throughout which is brilliant but please ensure you have a good network of support. You will find a lot of help here but make sure there are people in real life who can be there for you too. it's too much of a burden to carry alone. If you haven't already, speak to your GP, who can often provide some valuable support.

Come and talk to us anytime, whether you have something to ask or not. Knowing that others are going through the same ordeal and are also coming out the other side can be a real comfort. Many friendships are made on here for life because people are so good at supporting eachother in the times of need.

We have all been touched by false accusations in one way or another so understand what effect they can have on your life. Stay strong. You've gotten this far and proven you're made of sturdy stuff.

Take Care

[RFLH]

wise words coming in again. Follow them and you won't go too far wrong. Welcome to the forum, you'll find that there are several ladies in the same position and gents too. So you're not alone any more.

[Saffron]

Hey, I have been in the exact same situation as you.
You have already been given excellent advice. There are also some Stickies that you can read about what to expect in prison (your BF should be on a VP wing) and what to expect on visits, although from what you say you know that already.

Apppeals are hard. Believe it or not, the right to appeal is not automatic. You must be able to prove that the trial was mainfestly unfair (in a legal sense, not a common-sense way) or that new evidence has come to light that was not available at the time of the original trial. You cannot appeal because you have evidence that was available at the original trial but was not used.

Having accepted poor legal advice, or having been poorly represented by your legal team is not considered grounds for appeal either, unfortunately.

The trial Barrister should have given your BF an indication of whether there could be grounds to appeal. Don't be too disheartened if he says there are no grounds. If the Barrister did not do a good job, he will not be inclined to assist you.

Others will no doubt be along shortly. In the meantime, welcome.

[wunderland]

what a lovely poem from this old movie:

"Had I the heavens’ embroidered cloths,
Enwrought with golden and silver light,
The blue and the dim and the dark cloths
Of night and light and the half light,
I would spread the cloths under your feet:
But I, being poor, have only my dreams;
I have spread my dreams under your feet;
Tread softly because you tread on my dreams."

[MrsBarber1989]

You've got to keep fighting , and never ever give up !
In oct 2010 I had my boyfriend of 3 years then accused of rape by a 15 year old nutcase ! And like you know your world completely comes crashing down and you don't know what to say or think , he was bailed for four months and later on charged in the feb of 2011 .

Going to all them court hearings and listening to the person you love be in a dock and read as some sort of scum it's heartbreaking , and I remember when we got the details of the trail dates through and I thought no I can't do this anymore I need to walk away I don't know what I'd do if he was sent to prison etc but I didn't , I kept going and believe it or not I just prayed and prayed and god rest his soul I asked my grandad to give me a sign if I should walk away and I didn't .

Recalling the feelings and memories of the trail it was possibly the worst week of my life but as a couple as a family we kept fighting we didn't leve any stone unturned asked every question in the world even if you think it's crazy ask it , and I wouldn't rest untill I knew and read each detail of statements etc , and trust me the prosecution are corrupt , the police are corrupt , in our trail the police had tampered with telephone evidence which was only discovered when our barrister bought in a phone expert , and our barrister broke the little girls best friend and caught her out lying .

If you love this guy and stand by him then credit to you , people doubted me and called me crazy , people talk as well you know , but if I hadn't done what was in my heart I wouldn't be with him 2 years later and expecting our first child in April next year ,

Good luck keep strong and as crazy as it sounds say a prayer

Mrs b

[Faith]

Mrsbarber, I am going to post your comments on a seperate thread if you don't mind. I think it may help others here.

[MrsBarber1989]

Mrsbarber, I am going to post your comments on a seperate thread if you don't mind. I think it may help others here.

That's fine faith I'm more than happy with that

Mrs b

[Rights Fighter]

Does anyone know if there is a way of appealing his innocence without the risk of the appeal being rejected, whilst his sentence is suspended, and ultimately he would end up spending more time in there than he would if he just carried out the sentence, maintaining his innocence?

He is struggling inside and I am intent on helping him in anyway possible......

You say in the 2nd paragraph that he is struggling inside, so he's not serving a suspended sentence - or have I misunderstood?

Is it better to appeal his innocence when he gets out or is there a way of him being released without the girl admitting she is lying?

It is impossible to be granted an extension of time if he just sits and waits it out with no attempt to appeal the conviction.

Has his trial barrister sent him a document called an 'Advice on Appeal?' If he has, is it positive or negative - or is it that you just don't you know? If you don't know ask the solicitor for the Advice.

If the Advice is negative you can approach another solicitor with a view to applying for leave to appeal. Check out my signature.

[whatsgoingon?]

Hi Lulurose, I'm surprised people think you're stupid, I think you must be a pretty amazing and couragous young woman. Well done for standing by the guy you love and trying to help him.
As others have already said - take good care of yourself, your studies and your future plans as well.