falsely accused and falling apart

[contrib]

I was accused of rape in 2012 and it's still ongoing, i met this girl at a party and the morning after i wss arrested, in her starement she said she didnt remember giving concent, my lifehas been totally thrown, I got a letter from the courts in april and appeared in the sheriff court a few weeks later, my solicitor has said ill be tried before april of next year I just dont know what to do? If I go to jail for this everything ive ever dreamt of doing wont be possible. Ive become very paranoid and introvert, I can't trust anyone anymore. I onky leave the house if its absolutely necessary. I used to hold a full time job and I was doing extremely well but ive since had to leave due to stress. Ive pushed all my friends away and spend most of my time in a daze. Im scared, before all of this I was mentally strong and could deal with a lot but im so scared now I cant make it through the day without breaking down. I need advice and oppinions on what to do and how to deal with this. Thanks

[Casehardened]

Hi and welcome to the forum,

As you mentioned sheriff court I guess the original allegation took place in Scotland.

There are some forum members who are well versed in Scottish law and hopefully will see this thread and be able help you understand the process.

However as a general guide use this awful time of uncertainty to work on your defence together with your solicitor: for instance you mentioned you met the girl at a party; did any of the other party-goers see you and the girl enjoying each others company and would they be willing to make a statement to this effect? Wherever the intimacy occurred, were there anyone else nearby who would have heard the girl if she had in fact objected? Is she claiming she was too drunk to remember anything and can you disprove this? (again by corroboration from other guests)

Hopefully now you have made the initial step of posting of your fears, with some support from us, you will be able to regain the mental strength and agility you will need to fight this allegation.

[bootandsuit]

Hi i know exactly what you are going through although I'm at the very start of this grim and very unjust system which has destroyed my beliefs in the phase innocent until proven guilty. I met a girl on a night out she approached me when had a great evening all be it a drunken one. She came back to my apartment we kissed one thing lead to another and seconds after sex cried rape I even called the police as she was so hysterical.

Lost friends family judge me lost my job on rumours I was a rapist been told by my solicitor I should expect to be charged in 4 weeks when I return for bail. It really is a living nightmare

Don't know how to advise you but just wanted to say your not alone I suppose I have been so scared of a trail but kinda thinking now that's the day her lies are exposed ....keep in touch

[whatsgoingon?]

Hi Contrib - welcome to the forum. I'm sorry you find yourself in this situation and that it's having such a toll on you.
I hate to say this, but you must rebuild your strength in order to fight this. Keeping away from friends etc is not the solution, however bad you feel. You need their support if possible, you need to have some times out with them, some distraction to think of something else, excercise and if possible, some fun!

As far as the case itself goes - I assume you're being accused of rape?
She says she can't remember giving consent - even in law this says exactly what it says - she doesn't say she didn't give consent.
The automatic response to this is 'Why can't she remember? Has she been drugged, did she have so much to drink for it to affect her brain function?
Presumably you both had a blood test which will show how much alcohol each consumed. This can be intepreted using a blood alcohol content calculations (BAC) which will give the court an idea of what state she may have been in and whether it is likely she was capable of giving consent or not.
This still does not mean she didn't give consent, infact a counter expertise at the request of your solicitor would make this clear. You should discuss this whole issue of alcohol with him.

There is also a related appeal case (R v Bree 2007) which establishes that drunken consent is still consent (so long as the person is not comatosed) - the ruling made was:

“If, through drink (or for any other reason) the complainant has temporarily lost her capacity to choose whether to have intercourse on the relevant occasion, she is not consenting… However, where the complainant has voluntarily consumed even substantial quantities of alcohol, but nevertheless remains capable of choosing whether or not to have intercourse, and in drink agrees to do so, this would not be rape.”
http://www.lawteacher.net/criminal-l...allawcases.php

As CH has said, try and remember who at the party was a witness to the way both of you were behaving prior to the event, go speak to them and see if they would be willing to speak out for you in court. Note the chain of events, your impressions etc as you remember them.

At the end of the day it may well be her word against yours and who seems the most credible. Only you can build yourself up to face that challenge, with the help of friends, family and your GP. You must give yourself a maximum chance of success to prove your innocence. Imagine it was a boxing match looming - you would be out in the practice ring, wouldn't you?

Make sure you have an excellent legal team with experience in this area.

Keep posting whenever you feel low, most of us here have either been through it or are going through it and together, we're a minefield of information and support.