What do you do if you are accused of a sex crime and you didn't do it???

Question

My son has been accused of molesting a minor.He was 18 at the time and the minor was 14.He was questioned by the police a year after the soposed incident.They told him he was guilty because he didn't answer their questions fast enough.He hasn't been formally charged yet but it has been turned over to DHS.He is waiting on them to tell him what they have decided.What can he do to protect himself?The girl has some mental issues and they totally believe her.All he was tring to do was be a friend .Yes, he was alone with her in her room..he had copied a cd for her.Her mother was there.A few days later her dad called and said she had tried to kill herself and she said my son was the cause.She later said that she was afraid her dad was going to get mad at her for something so she lied.The time frame he has been accused of this is not right but he has no way of proving it.How does he go about finding legal counsel??? He cannot afford to hire one and we are unable to help him.

Answer 1

You both need to prepare for battle.

Answer 2

I'm sorry to hear that. Sounds like that girl is in love with your son; and yes, she probably has a lot of mental problems. The law here makes no sense, 18 and 14 are the same thing, they are two kids, how in the world can you molest someone 4 years younger than you? give me a break. If they had something, she knew what she was doing. At 14 I perfectly knew any and everything there is to know about sex, and I'm slow. Well, regardless of how I see them as two kids and if they had something or not; is not important to the judges. In this country's "you are innocent until proven guilty" is really, "you are guilty until proven innocent". The judge and the system don't care what really happened, they just want to see prove he didn't do it. How much prove do you have? Is really, how much money you have to pay for good lawyer that will outsmart the judge, or bore him by being very persistent in details that don't make any sense to the point the judge gives up; and claims your son's innocence. Not caring what he really thinks happened. Look at OJ's case.
Lie detector is a good idea, accusing her of being mentally flunked up will help too. Good luck!!!

Answer 3

Call your local public defender's office. I'm not trying to suggest anything, but are you absolutely sure your son didn't do anything wrong? Even if it was consentual, like making out or something, if the girl's father found out about it, she'd probably lie. All things being equal, this is a crappy situation. Anyway, call the public defender, and ask for the girl to be strapped to a lie detector. It may not be admissible in court, but an untruthful result could convince her to tell the truth. I would also ask for her school records, and any police records she might have. Perhaps her home is an unstable environment or abusive and she's using this as a way to call attention to the matter. I don't know what would make a 14 year old girl do this other than the homelife being in question. Do the parents have arrest records? There are alot of things you might be able to dig up that could bring this girl's testimony into question. I'm not a lawyer, but I smell something fishy if the police haven't charged him but it is still being referred to Child Welfare. Definately call the public defender. I wonder if Johnny Cochran does pro bono work? He'd eat this up.

Answer 4

First of all, he won't need legal counsel unless he is formally charged with a crime. Secondly, has DHS interviewed your son? How long has DHS been aware of the accusation? If it has been anything close to a year, stop worrying. They may be well aware of the situation and know all the circumstances whereas you don't. When I was an investigator for Children and Family Services, we were obligated to investigate immediately upon the report of an incident which would include interviewing all parties involved including your son. Has the girl been examined by a physician? My initial sense is that probably nothing more will come out of this. If DHS does contact your son, tell him to be truthful, confident and respectful and not to blame the girl for anything. If your son is charged with a crime, the State is obligated to provide him with legal counsel if he cannot afford one. He could also contact your local Legal Aid Agency.

Answer 5

Looks like the wolf (government) is looking your son in the eye. Even if you had all the money in the world he is scared for life. Just goes to show you how cheap life is in America. Oh the system will drain you dry then appoint some shyster lawyer who will do nothing and receive a big check. The only good that will come of the whole thing is you will learn how rotten the criminal justice system is but I really feel sorry for both you and your son. Only chance you have is if you don't have any money to put into the legal system but the taxpayers do and you son is just a means of some shyster getting a big check. No one in the system cares if he did it or not, they see only money.

Answer 6

He is in a really bad situation someone that my dad works with had a son that got accused of rape by a "loose" female that got tired of hearing about herself it came back in court that she had wrote otherwise in her diary but they wouldnt let that be considered evidence for some stupid reason even though she later admitted she wrote it and to my knowledge he is still in jail. This kid at the time was going to U-M and had a promising football career his life is now ruined. I suggest you take a loan out and get a lawyer before this gets outta hand and if he gets off the hook counter sue(if you can, dont know) for court cost and time wasted

Answer 7

"If you cannot afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you by the court". It's part of the Miranda warning, which is read at the time of arrest. Tell him to stop answering questions unless you do get an attorney. Unless they get him to sign a confession, which has been known to happen even though someone is innocent, it will be a "He said, she said", which is hard to prove. If he didn't do anything, there's no DNA evidence, so you don't have to worry about that. Good luck!

Answer 8

The very first thing he should do is stop answering questions.

If they charge him, they will be required to provide an attorney.

The more he talks, the deeper the hole he is digging for himself.

Tell him to SHUT UP and if they ask him any more questions, refuse to answer them. If they charge him, he should demand an attorney and still keep his mouth shut.

They are trying to get him to incriminate himself because they have no evidence. If they had evidence, he would have already been arrested.

Tell him to shut up.

Answer 9

Amendment 4 to the Constitution includes "if you can't afford a lawyer, one will be provided to you at no cost"-your son was told this when he was first questioned, it's in the Miranda Rights, which they HAVE TO tell him.

Answer 10

Well I hate too say it but I have seen other cases like this and they believe the girl!
So I don't know you but if he didn't do it he'll probably still get in trouble because he was around her and they will believe her!
There are alot of men in jail right now b/c someone lied on them. Don't say anything more until he gets his attorney.
Good Luck

Answer 11

Have them give him a lie detector test, then this will help, resolve matters. They cannot assume things and accuse him guilty, unless, he's truly guilty of the incident. If I was him, I'd get a probono lawyer, unless, he's able to pay for one. Then, I'd go from there.