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Hello
This is my first post on the forums, despite having gone through 6 months of difficulty. I have read many posts on here, and have silently benefited from the experience of others, and for this I am eternally grateful. I have a couple of questions regarding the circumstances around my case, and I wondered if anyone had dealt with similar, and could share any advice.
I was arrested on suspicion of rape on August 26th 2014. My accuser was a recovering alcoholic who i'd supported to move back into the community following a stint in rehab. I was detained for about 6 hours where I was questioned, samples were taken, belongings withheld for evidence (Chiefly my phone) etc. I was absolutely co-operative, but extremely traumatized by the process. The investigation lasted about a month, however the impression I got from the police was that it would have been much shorter if they could get her to attend an actual interview. Being an alcoholic who relapsed she was unreliable. I was given an NFA on September 20th and was incredibly relieved.
The position of the police changed, with them wanting to pursue a course of charging her with Perversion of the course of Justice. I gave them a new statement, this time as the victim of the crime of false accusation. I was led to believe that the evidence against her was both substantial and of good quality. This case was passed to the CPS in November 2014. It was studied by them, and eventually passed to the District Chief Crown Prosecutor in January. This is where my confusion begins.
I was contacted this week by the police, specifically by the main investigator of this entire case. He had heard from the CPS and they'd determined that they were not going to continue with a prosecution against her. He didn't have any of the paperwork to hand, so couldn't tell me their reasoning, but assured me that he would ring me when he returns from annual leave next week, to see what we could do about this. He also informed me that due to this, my record will forever be marked as having been the suspect of a rape investigation, but the notes of it on any DBS check would confirm that this was a malicious allegation and 'should not' impact my applying for work. I was obviously not satisfied with this, from my perspective i was innocent of everything, the police agreed with me, so why should my record have anything on it?
However the plot thickened. Today I received written notification from the CPS confirming their reasons for not continuing. What I found surprised me, and I quote 'in this particular case it is important to note that the suspect made no formal complaint or allegation in this matter, the investigation is triggered due to a 999 call which when reviewed does not contain the allegation of rape, but has been logged as such'. It continues by saying 'This therefore is the catalyst for the investigation. The suspect in this case is spoken to and provides details, note is made that she is clearly drunk and unable to provide full details and at no time is a rape alleged.'
Finally, when it comes to making a decision for the case they state 'What is crucial in the decision making process is whether we can prove that the suspect lied or mislead the police. Having considered the evidence, it is clear that on each occasion the suspect was spoken to she was drunk or distressed and made no formal complaint'.
From my understanding of this she never alleged that i'd raped her, and it was only logged as such by the representative who received the 999 call. I have a number of queries, and I don't know whether I trust the police anymore.
1: If I was never accused of committing a crime, how could it be that I was arrested?
2: Was it not obvious during the initial 999 phone-call, and subsequent meetings with her, that she made no formal complaint or allegation?
3: Was I falsely arrested / imprisoned? Do I have a case against the police?
4: Why should I have any mark, however small, on my records given that I was never accused of a crime, and when investigated for that crime was given NFA by the police, who then pursued a Perversion of the Course of Justice Case against my accuser?
5: Should I get legal advice?
Since this whole thing started my life has fallen apart. I haven't worked for six months, and have felt shame for having been accused of this horrific act, even whilst innocent of it. For a large proportion of this time, even after the NFA I have almost confined myself to my house, appearing outside only when necessary. The fear I have of encountering people I know is only outweighed by the prospect of having to meet new people. My trust is shattered, and whilst i've been applying for work, it has been extremely half-hearted. This is an alien situation for me, having worked my entire adult life until 6 months ago. I'm still terrified, and today i've found out it could have been due to an admin error or incompetence. I am very angry, but too reserved to shout and scream.
Any advice or guidance would be amazing. If you've got this far, thanks for reading this, and if you're still under investigation yourself, stay true and strong to yourself, you can really make it.
Kindest Regards
This is my first post on the forums, despite having gone through 6 months of difficulty. I have read many posts on here, and have silently benefited from the experience of others, and for this I am eternally grateful. I have a couple of questions regarding the circumstances around my case, and I wondered if anyone had dealt with similar, and could share any advice.
I was arrested on suspicion of rape on August 26th 2014. My accuser was a recovering alcoholic who i'd supported to move back into the community following a stint in rehab. I was detained for about 6 hours where I was questioned, samples were taken, belongings withheld for evidence (Chiefly my phone) etc. I was absolutely co-operative, but extremely traumatized by the process. The investigation lasted about a month, however the impression I got from the police was that it would have been much shorter if they could get her to attend an actual interview. Being an alcoholic who relapsed she was unreliable. I was given an NFA on September 20th and was incredibly relieved.
The position of the police changed, with them wanting to pursue a course of charging her with Perversion of the course of Justice. I gave them a new statement, this time as the victim of the crime of false accusation. I was led to believe that the evidence against her was both substantial and of good quality. This case was passed to the CPS in November 2014. It was studied by them, and eventually passed to the District Chief Crown Prosecutor in January. This is where my confusion begins.
I was contacted this week by the police, specifically by the main investigator of this entire case. He had heard from the CPS and they'd determined that they were not going to continue with a prosecution against her. He didn't have any of the paperwork to hand, so couldn't tell me their reasoning, but assured me that he would ring me when he returns from annual leave next week, to see what we could do about this. He also informed me that due to this, my record will forever be marked as having been the suspect of a rape investigation, but the notes of it on any DBS check would confirm that this was a malicious allegation and 'should not' impact my applying for work. I was obviously not satisfied with this, from my perspective i was innocent of everything, the police agreed with me, so why should my record have anything on it?
However the plot thickened. Today I received written notification from the CPS confirming their reasons for not continuing. What I found surprised me, and I quote 'in this particular case it is important to note that the suspect made no formal complaint or allegation in this matter, the investigation is triggered due to a 999 call which when reviewed does not contain the allegation of rape, but has been logged as such'. It continues by saying 'This therefore is the catalyst for the investigation. The suspect in this case is spoken to and provides details, note is made that she is clearly drunk and unable to provide full details and at no time is a rape alleged.'
Finally, when it comes to making a decision for the case they state 'What is crucial in the decision making process is whether we can prove that the suspect lied or mislead the police. Having considered the evidence, it is clear that on each occasion the suspect was spoken to she was drunk or distressed and made no formal complaint'.
From my understanding of this she never alleged that i'd raped her, and it was only logged as such by the representative who received the 999 call. I have a number of queries, and I don't know whether I trust the police anymore.
1: If I was never accused of committing a crime, how could it be that I was arrested?
2: Was it not obvious during the initial 999 phone-call, and subsequent meetings with her, that she made no formal complaint or allegation?
3: Was I falsely arrested / imprisoned? Do I have a case against the police?
4: Why should I have any mark, however small, on my records given that I was never accused of a crime, and when investigated for that crime was given NFA by the police, who then pursued a Perversion of the Course of Justice Case against my accuser?
5: Should I get legal advice?
Since this whole thing started my life has fallen apart. I haven't worked for six months, and have felt shame for having been accused of this horrific act, even whilst innocent of it. For a large proportion of this time, even after the NFA I have almost confined myself to my house, appearing outside only when necessary. The fear I have of encountering people I know is only outweighed by the prospect of having to meet new people. My trust is shattered, and whilst i've been applying for work, it has been extremely half-hearted. This is an alien situation for me, having worked my entire adult life until 6 months ago. I'm still terrified, and today i've found out it could have been due to an admin error or incompetence. I am very angry, but too reserved to shout and scream.
Any advice or guidance would be amazing. If you've got this far, thanks for reading this, and if you're still under investigation yourself, stay true and strong to yourself, you can really make it.
Kindest Regards
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