109 women prosecuted for false rape claims in five years, say campaigners

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 2:48pm #1

Ok so i have just been driving from the airport to the city center and on the radio comes this report about how 109 women in the UK have been convicted for false rape claims. Nothing new there says you sure it obviously happens a lot right?

Now here's the bit that had me perplexed, There is a group called WAR Women Against Rape who are tryng to say that women who make false allegations of rape should not be prosecuted!

Don't know who the presenter is (classic hits 4fm) but he was talking about this article in the guardian

http://www.theguardian.com/law/2014/dec/01/109-women-prosecuted-false-rape-allegations

Charity accuses authorities in the UK of pursuing cases against rape complainants more aggressively than other countries

On Tuesday, the charity Women Against Rape (War) is taking its campaign to the House of Commons, where some of those who have been jailed for lying about rape allegations will speak out against their treatment by the authorities.

The vast majority of the convictions in the last five years, 98 out of 109, involved prosecutions for perverting the course of justice – which carries a maximum life jail term – rather than the lesser offence of wasting police time, which has a maximum tariff of six months in prison or a fine.

The woman from this WAR group was basically saying that because the cases of false allegations are so low (2%) the women shouldn't be charged, When pressed she went further and literally said that because the acquittal rape for men is so high it's ok for some men to have their lives ruined by these false allegations because so many women have their lives ruined by rape

darkpagandeath · 02-12-2014 2:49pm

Making false allegations about anything is illegal and should remain so.

smoking_kills · 02-12-2014 2:50pm

Does it seriously surprise you?

keano_afc · 02-12-2014 2:52pm

There should be a custodial sentence for a false rape allegation.

suicide_circus · 02-12-2014 2:52pm

Pack of loolaas, ignore

El Weirdo · 02-12-2014 2:54pm

Timberrrrrrrr wrote: »

When pressed she went further and literally said that because the acquittal rape for men is so high it's ok for some men to have their lives ruined by these false allegations because so many women have their lives ruined by rape

I'm going to hold off on the outrage until I can be sure that you've used "literally" correctly.

Iranoutofideas · 02-12-2014 2:54pm

Receptionist: How do you write women so well?

Melvin Udall: I think of a man, and I take away reason and accountability.

shruikan2553 · 02-12-2014 2:55pm

I suppose we could get rid of the whole innocent until proven guilty and just make it "that man killed my brother!" and he gets thrown in prison.

anncoates · 02-12-2014 2:56pm

Iranoutofideas wrote: »

Receptionist: How do you write women so well?

Melvin Udall: I think of a man, and I take away reason and accountability.

Youranoutofideas.

Corvo · 02-12-2014 2:58pm

I think this spokeswoman is seriously disturbed.

A Neurotic · 02-12-2014 3:01pm

Iranoutofideas wrote: »

Receptionist: How do you write women so well?

Melvin Udall: I think of a man, and I take away reason and accountability.

Yep, this small group of loonies perfectly represent 50% of everyone alive today.

Yep.

Wibbs · 02-12-2014 3:02pm

I can see one side of the logic of this, namely that prosecuting such individuals may put off real victims from reporting for fear of punishment. However in reality I can't see that having so much of an effect. However letting clearcut cases of false accusation get away scot free when it means someone's life is ruined is well out of order.

Timberrrrrrrr wrote:

The woman from this WAR group was basically saying that because the cases of false allegations are so low (2%) the women shouldn't be charged, When pressed she went further and literally said that because the acquittal rape for men is so high it's ok for some men to have their lives ruined by these false allegations because so many women have their lives ruined by rape

For a start the rates for false accusations are very much up in the air. It's a very hard thing to measure. If they only measure the examples were it was admitted, you can be sure that such a figure is on the low side. It might be 1% it might be 20%. Who knows(though I would suspect it's below 10% myself). Her "logic" re the acquittal rate as an excuse is beyond idiotic. God forbid thinking that acquittals happen because the evidence is weak or non existent. Sounds like the usual extreme wing of "feminism" guff, whereby men are always to blame and responsible and women are always victims with no agency. Men by virtue of being male are guilty until proven otherwise. It's not so far off "all men are rapists" watered down for public consumption. See the Man up campaign for a sideways example of that.

Grayson · 02-12-2014 3:03pm

darkpagandeath wrote: »

Making false allegations about anything is illegal and should remain so.

The issue isn't false accusations. The issue is that women are being tried for this when there's little evidence.

Imagine a situation where a woman gets assaulted. She says that X did it. The police investigate but don't have enough evidence to charge.

Now, does that mean that she lied about the assault? Should she be charged with making a false complaint? That's basically what happened to the woman in the story. She made a complaint. There wasn't enough evidence to charge/prosecute. Then the police brought charges against her. She killed herself.

Remember that only a very small percentages of rapes result in convictions. Should all those women who report a rape but don't get a conviction be charged with making a false report?

Obviously not. And likewise if a woman does make a false complaint there should be charges filed. The issue is the line we draw. The group in the article point out that the UK prosecutes far more often for this than any country.

LoonyLovegood · 02-12-2014 3:05pm

If someone makes a rape allegation against someone, and it is found to be false - as in before it goes to trial, or the person recants their statement - then they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

suicide_circus · 02-12-2014 3:09pm

Grayson wrote: »

The issue isn't false accusations. The issue is that women are being tried for this when there's little evidence.

Imagine a situation where a woman gets assaulted. She says that X did it. The police investigate but don't have enough evidence to charge.

Now, does that mean that she lied about the assault? Should she be charged with making a false complaint? That's basically what happened to the woman in the story. She made a complaint. There wasn't enough evidence to charge/prosecute. Then the police brought charges against her. She killed herself.

Remember that only a very small percentages of rapes result in convictions. Should all those women who report a rape but don't get a conviction be charged with making a false report?

Obviously not. And likewise if a woman does make a false complaint there should be charges filed. The issue is the line we draw. The group in the article point out that the UK prosecutes far more often for this than any country.

I'd imagine british authorities pursue these women only when there is evidence of malicious intent on their part and not simply when the there isnt enough evidence to bring a charge of rape. It is also entirely possible that the woman in the article took her own life to avoid the consequences of her actions in bringing the false claim.

discus · 02-12-2014 3:12pm

I disagree with the recant part - what if a real victim is forced to do it under threat?

RonanP77 · 02-12-2014 3:13pm

Even if a lad is found innocent it'll always be hanging over him, people will always think he must have done something. There should be very serious consequences for anyone found to be making false allegations of rape.

IvySlayer · 02-12-2014 3:13pm

Women can do no wrong according to the charity

A spokeswoman said: “Cases of perverting the course of justice that involve allegedly false rape allegations are serious but rare. They are usually highly complex and sensitive often involving vulnerable parties, so any decision to charge is extremely carefully considered and not taken lightly.

People who make false accusations of rape are 'vulnerable'

KomradeBishop · 02-12-2014 3:14pm

Uhm OP, they are campaigning against wrongful sentences where people were pressured/co-erced into retracting rape claims, and then prosecuted as 'lying' for that - where they have not actually lied.

Way to take the article out of context, in an inflammatory way...

suicide_circus · 02-12-2014 3:15pm

The portrayal of women as perpetual victims should be offensive to any feminist worthy of the name.

Ficheall · 02-12-2014 3:16pm

CTYIgirl wrote: »

If someone makes a rape allegation against someone, and it is found to be false - as in before it goes to trial, or the person recants their statement - then they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

Surely that makes it less likely for someone to retract a false statement, no? Thereby increasing the chance of the accused being unjustly punished..

suicide_circus · 02-12-2014 3:18pm

KomradeBishop wrote: »

Uhm OP, they are campaigning against wrongful sentences where people were pressured/co-erced into retracting rape claims, and then prosecuted as 'lying' for that - where they have not actually lied.

Way to take the article out of context, in an inflammatory way...

So authorities know these women are being coerced into retracting their genuine allegations yet are still pursuing them? That sounds unlikely.

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 3:19pm

El Weirdo wrote: »

I'm going to hold off on the outrage until I can be sure that you've used "literally" correctly.

Oh i did!

KomradeBishop · 02-12-2014 3:19pm

suicide_circus wrote: »

So authorities know these women are being coerced into retracting their genuine allegations yet are still pursuing them? That sounds unlikely.

Regardless of how credible you view that, that is the basis of what the charity are campaigning on - which is completely different and far more reasonable, to what everyone in the thread is panning them for.

suicide_circus · 02-12-2014 3:20pm

KomradeBishop wrote: »

Regardless of how credible you view that, that is the basis of what the charity are campaigning on - which is completely different and far more reasonable, to what everyone in the thread is panning them for.

Indeed. Presumably they have evidence that this is happening and will bring it to the appropriate ombudsman

lazybones32 · 02-12-2014 3:21pm

suicide_circus wrote: »

Pack of loolaas, ignore

It'd be easier to ignore if they weren't presenting their case to the House of Commons. Having an audience who could do something for their 'cause', will only encourage them.

seamus · 02-12-2014 3:23pm

There is actually a relatively useful way of doing this; absolute anonymity.

That is, in any case involving any sexual assault or allegation, the accuser and their victim are guaranteed absolute anonymity by law unless the accused is found guilty, in which case the victim can choose to be named.

Now, clearly people close to both people are going to be aware of the issue, but you can add in additional protections to help mitigate this:

- Discussing/revealing the identity of the accused or the nature of the case can be punished with massive fines (€10k+) or jail time. This goes as much for people talking down the pub as it does to the media
- You could incorporate an equal status act style protection for anyone denied access to services, work or other things on the basis of such rumour and allegation.

If the accused is found not guilty, the accused can choose to be named (along with the "victim"), or the entire court transcript is anonymised to "Defendent", "Plaintiff", "Witness 1", etc. There is no record of the case on the accused's Garda record, and the victim's own garda record just mentions that they had made an allegation of sexual assault which was tested and not proven in court.

lertsnim · 02-12-2014 3:23pm

keano_afc wrote: »

There should be a custodial sentence for a false rape allegation.

Absolutely. If someone is willing to lie so they can destroy the life of someone else then they should be thrown into prison for the same amount of time the accused would have gotten.

desertcircus · 02-12-2014 3:37pm

Literally every case of a false rape allegation I've seen reported in my life has had the same thing in common: the accuser either has severe mental health issues, or is so genuinely terrified of someone else in her life that the rape accusation seems like the only option. Other, more cynical cases may exist, but I've honestly never seen one reported. On that basis, prosecuting cases of false allegations and pushing for prison time in the bunk of cases is an astronomically stupid decision: it does nothing to dissuade people with mental issues and almost nothing to dissuade people who are genuinely terrified from making such accusations, but it does make it less likely that a person wrongly convicted will ever have that conviction quashed, as the result of the accuser exonerating the convict is jail time for themselves.

KomradeBishop · 02-12-2014 3:41pm

seamus wrote: »

There is actually a relatively useful way of doing this; absolute anonymity.

That is, in any case involving any sexual assault or allegation, the accuser and their victim are guaranteed absolute anonymity by law unless the accused is found guilty, in which case the victim can choose to be named.

Now, clearly people close to both people are going to be aware of the issue, but you can add in additional protections to help mitigate this:

- Discussing/revealing the identity of the accused or the nature of the case can be punished with massive fines (€10k+) or jail time. This goes as much for people talking down the pub as it does to the media
- You could incorporate an equal status act style protection for anyone denied access to services, work or other things on the basis of such rumour and allegation.

If the accused is found not guilty, the accused can choose to be named (along with the "victim"), or the entire court transcript is anonymised to "Defendent", "Plaintiff", "Witness 1", etc. There is no record of the case on the accused's Garda record, and the victim's own garda record just mentions that they had made an allegation of sexual assault which was tested and not proven in court.

Problem with that is, publicly naming the defendant helps other victims of the defendant to come forward.

It also creates a problem with the legal system: If defendants in sexual assault cases can remain anonymous, why not let defendants be anonymous in other high-personal-impact cases, such as accusations of political corruption?

runawaybishop · 02-12-2014 3:44pm

desertcircus wrote: »

Literally every case of a false rape allegation I've seen reported in my life has had the same thing in common: the accuser either has severe mental health issues, or is so genuinely terrified of someone else in her life that the rape accusation seems like the only option. Other, more cynical cases may exist, but I've honestly never seen one reported. On that basis, prosecuting cases of false allegations and pushing for prison time in the bunk of cases is an astronomically stupid decision: it does nothing to dissuade people with mental issues and almost nothing to dissuade people who are genuinely terrified from making such accusations, but it does make it less likely that a person wrongly convicted will ever have that conviction quashed, as the result of the accuser exonerating the convict is jail time for themselves.

Are you for serious? Thats far from the only cases of false allegations. Malicious reports are absolutely part of it.

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 3:48pm

KomradeBishop wrote: »

Uhm OP, they are campaigning against wrongful sentences where people were pressured/co-erced into retracting rape claims, and then prosecuted as 'lying' for that - where they have not actually lied.

Way to take the article out of context, in an inflammatory way...

The spokeswoman for that group stated on the radio that even if a woman makes a false claim of rape against a man and then recants the allegation of her own free will she shouldn't be prosecuted.

Boskowski · 02-12-2014 3:56pm

it would lead to a situation where a rape allegation is a free shot at someone. If it sticks you destroyed the guy if it doesn't no harm done (to yourself).

Which would seriously devalue a rape allegation wouldn't it? There'd be rape claims all over the place from people trying to get rid of people and one of them happen to be a man and the other a woman.

Earthhorse · 02-12-2014 3:57pm

seamus wrote: »

There is actually a relatively useful way of doing this; absolute anonymity.

Useful way of doing what?

Just because the parties involved remained anonymous doesn't mean that justice wasn't perverted or that police time wasn't wasted.

02-12-2014 4:02pm

desertcircus wrote: »

Literally every case of a false rape allegation I've seen reported in my life has had the same thing in common: the accuser either has severe mental health issues, or is so genuinely terrified of someone else in her life that the rape accusation seems like the only option.

Yup, they're still victims of course.

spurious · 02-12-2014 4:03pm

All false rape allegations should be prosecuted.

Let the courts decide if it was malicious or not (and I do accept there are some delusional mental illnesses where someone may truly believe something happened when it didn't). If found to be malicious, the person should be convicted.

bucketybuck · 02-12-2014 4:03pm

desertcircus wrote: »

Other, more cynical cases may exist, but I've honestly never seen one reported.

You haven't looked hard enough. Or not at all more probably.

seamus · 02-12-2014 4:06pm

Earthhorse wrote: »

Useful way of doing what?

Of allowing claims to be made without fear of prosecution.
If the accuser is to be offered legal protection, the accused must be too.

Kalman · 02-12-2014 4:12pm

Grayson wrote: »

The issue isn't false accusations. The issue is that women are being tried for this when there's little evidence.

Imagine a situation where a woman gets assaulted. She says that X did it. The police investigate but don't have enough evidence to charge.

Now, does that mean that she lied about the assault? Should she be charged with making a false complaint? That's basically what happened to the woman in the story. She made a complaint. There wasn't enough evidence to charge/prosecute. Then the police brought charges against her. She killed herself.

Remember that only a very small percentages of rapes result in convictions. Should all those women who report a rape but don't get a conviction be charged with making a false report?

Obviously not. And likewise if a woman does make a false complaint there should be charges filed. The issue is the line we draw. The group in the article point out that the UK prosecutes far more often for this than any country.

You are innocent until proven guilty.
If it is a false allegation, then the penalty must be and should be severe, she should forfeit her freedom.
On the other hand, if the guy is guilty, then he should be dealt with.

You have to look what the guy has had to endure . It must be terrible to be accused of rape knowing that the other person is telling lies it must leave an awful stigma. What about family, work, and friends, etc.?

Buona Fortuna · 02-12-2014 4:13pm

CTYIgirl wrote: »

If someone makes a rape allegation against someone, and it is found to be false - as in before it goes to trial, or the person recants their statement - then they should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law.

I'm OK with most of that, and I hate to come across as a pedant but:

If someone knowingly and maliciously makes a false statement, sure prosecute them.
Just because someone recants their statement though, I'm not so sure. Maybe they just cannot go through with the whole sh1t maelstrom that will be a criminal trial. In those circumstances I don't think we should. If they just can't face it, its almost like where we used to prosecute people for a failed suicide attempt.

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 4:15pm

desertcircus wrote: »

Other, more cynical cases may exist, but I've honestly never seen one reported. On that basis, prosecuting cases of false allegations and pushing for prison time in the bunk of cases is an astronomically stupid decision:

http://www.uticaod.com/x1089264182/Police-Teen-lied-about-rape-to-get-revenge

Kayla Kelsey, 17, was charged with falsely reporting a crime and giving a false written statement. Kelsey contract the 911 dispatch center to report a rape but later said she lied about the crime to get revenge on another individual, deputies said.

Read more: http://www.uticaod.com/article/20100411/News/304119986#ixzz3KkluTPRc

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2242480/Woman-jailed-falsely-crying-rape-ex-boyfriend.html

A woman who falsely cried rape twice against her ex-boyfriend has been jailed.
Beverley Brandreth, 20, claimed that he had raped her while she was pregnant which made her lose a baby, a claim which was found to be untrue.
At the time prosecutors advised that no charge should be brought against her.
Then she made a second claim last November when she told police that he had dragged her into woods where she was beaten unconscious and raped, and he threatened to kill her if she reported the matter.
Her lies were unmasked again when the victim later proved he was in a DVD store with his new girlfriend when Brandreth claimed he attacked her.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2242480/Woman-jailed-falsely-crying-rape-ex-boyfriend.html#ixzz3Kkm4zKbD
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1289428/Lying-mother-jailed-crying-rape-wanted-rid-husband.html

Bernadett Kore, 29, told police she had been brutally attacked by two thugs in an alleyway in October.
But it transpired that the woman made the whole story up - leaving the two men she accused devastated by their terrifying ordeal.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1289428/Lying-mother-jailed-crying-rape-wanted-rid-husband.html#ixzz3KkmDqMf6
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

http://www.bustedinacadiana.com/2012/10/woman-charged-with-crying-rape-after-being-caught-in-the-shower-with-a-womans-lover/

Heather Atkins, a 26-year-old Columbia woman was jailed after she falsely claimed that she had been raped after she was caught in the shower with another woman’s boyfriend.
According to the Columbia Police Department, Atkins told detectives she received a black eye during a sexual assault on Friday.
Investigators say Atkins told them that she was punched in the face and then dragged to a secluded area by two black men who proceeded to rape and then rob her.

http://metro.co.uk/2014/06/26/jailed-law-student-who-falsely-cried-rape-so-she-had-an-excuse-for-exam-failure-4777434/

A law graduate who falsely accused her boyfriend of rape so she had an excuse for failing her bar exam was sentenced to three-and-a-half years in jail.

Rhiannon Brooker claimed Paul Fensome forced her to have sex five times. She also faked injuries to suggest he had beaten her.

http://www.avoiceformalestudents.com/in-academia-false-claims-of-rape-and-harassment-are-now-employed-by-activists-as-tools-of-social-change/

Yes: there is a rash of campus activists – most of them (if not all of them) Feminists – now brazenly making false claims of rape and harassment and using them for activism purposes. Most often, these false claims are made as a means to “raise awareness of the problem of rape on campus,” an interesting notion since if rape were such a big problem on campus there would be no need to make up fake rapes at all.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1206325/Woman-rape-allegation-faces-jail.html

A woman faces jail after luring a man into having sex with her and then crying rape in a plot to claim thousands of pounds in compensation.
Sarah-Jane Hilliard, 20, applied for £7,500 from the Criminal Injuries Compensation Authority days after falsely accusing Grant Bowers, 19, of raping her.

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1206325/Woman-rape-allegation-faces-jail.html#ixzz3KkngHhpb
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

02-12-2014 4:19pm

Well as long as we don't mean prosecuting the woman just because there wasn't enough evidence to prosecute the man in court and so he was found not guilty
innocent til proven guilty works both ways i guess
if there is any evidence she was deliberately lying about it whether maliciously or mental health reasons or whatever, that is certainly another story

KomradeBishop · 02-12-2014 4:20pm

Timberrrrrrrr wrote: »

The spokeswoman for that group stated on the radio that even if a woman makes a false claim of rape against a man and then recants the allegation of her own free will she shouldn't be prosecuted.

I'd have to see this quote - in context - in an article, to be sure of it: It's extremely easy to take this out of context, when what the spokeswoman likely means is "alleged false claim of rape".

In quotes from the article in the OP, it is out of context.

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 4:22pm

Buona Fortuna wrote: »

I'm OK with most of that, and I hate to come across as a pedant but:

If someone knowingly and maliciously makes a false statement, sure prosecute them.

Just because someone recants their statement though, I'm not so sure. Maybe they just cannot go through with the whole sh1t maelstrom that will be a criminal trial. In those circumstances I don't think we should. If they just can't face it, its almost like where we used to prosecute people for a failed suicide attempt.

But what about the man who would have had to go through the whole maelstrom of a criminal trial? I knew a lad back in the 80's who was accused of rape when a girl he slept with at a party reported him. Lost his wife and kid, friends and family deserted him and he was basically bullied out of his job. This all happened over the space of 14 months and as the trial date got closer he eventually snapped and hung himself. 2 days after his funeral the girl admitted e hadn't raped her but she was scared she may have got pregnant and "panicked".

14 Months of pure ****ing hell for that lad and eventually commits suicide because it got too much for him just because some girl decided it was better to accuse him of rape than admit to her Mammy that she had sex. I still see that girl around with her husband and teenage son, I have often felt like approaching her and asking her how she would feel if it was her son who is next falsly accused of rape.

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 4:25pm

KomradeBishop wrote: »

I'd have to see this quote - in context - in an article, to be sure of it: It's extremely easy to take this out of context, when what the spokeswoman likely means is "alleged false claim of rape".

In quotes from the article in the OP, it is out of context.

No i heard her on the radio as she said it live, This is not some out of context misrepresentation of what she said.

KomradeBishop · 02-12-2014 4:26pm

Timberrrrrrrr wrote: »

No i heard her on the radio as she said it live, This is not some out of context misrepresentation of what she said.

Given the way you took the original article out of context in the OP, I don't really trust that you interpreted the radio interview correctly.

Buona Fortuna · 02-12-2014 4:27pm

Timberrrrrrrr wrote: »

But what about the man who would have had to go through the whole maelstrom of a criminal trial? I knew a lad back in the 80's who was accused of rape when a girl he slept with at a party reported him. Lost his wife and kid, friends and family deserted him and he was basically bullied out of his job. This all happened over the space of 14 months and as the trial date got closer he eventually snapped and hung himself. 2 days after his funeral the girl admitted e hadn't raped her but she was scared she may have got pregnant and "panicked".

14 Months of pure ****ing hell for that lad and eventually commits suicide because it got too much for him just because some girl decided it was better to accuse him of rape than admit to her Mammy that she had sex. I still see that girl around with her husband and teenage son, I have often felt like approaching her and asking her how she would feel if it was her son who is next falsly accused of rape.

Yeah, but thats a different point to the one I made.

In the case you refer to, the girl admitted that the statement was false. As far as I'm concerned prosecute her.

tritium · 02-12-2014 4:28pm

KomradeBishop wrote: »

Problem with that is, publicly naming the defendant helps other victims of the defendant to come forward.

It also creates a problem with the legal system: If defendants in sexual assault cases can remain anonymous, why not let defendants be anonymous in other high-personal-impact cases, such as accusations of political corruption?

I don't see why this is a problem? We already have a different rule around identifying the victim and I don't see anyone calling for that to be applied everywhere else.

I'm pretty uncomfortable tbh with the idea that a raoe accusation is allowed to become a juducial fishing exercise. If you want to gather evidence do it properly.

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 4:28pm

KomradeBishop wrote: »

Given the way you took the original article out of context in the OP, I don't really trust that you interpreted the radio interview correctly.

Maybe you should listen to it yourself then :rolleyes:

KomradeBishop · 02-12-2014 4:29pm

tritium wrote: »

I don't see why this is a problem? We already have a different rule around identifying the victim and I don't see anyone calling for that to be applied everywhere else.

I'm pretty uncomfortable tbh with the idea that a raoe accusation is allowed to become a juducial fishing exercise. If you want to gather evidence do it properly.

There's no advantage to hiding the victim in other cases - there are huge advantages (for defendants) for hiding the defendant in other cases.

Timberrrrrrrr · 02-12-2014 4:29pm

Buona Fortuna wrote: »

Yeah, but thats a different point to the one I made.

In the case you refer to, the girl admitted that the statement was false. As far as I'm concerned prosecute her.

I agree

But this war crowd are saying that women should NEVER be prosecuted for making false allegations of rape.

109 women prosecuted for false rape claims in five years, say campaigners

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