False Rape Allegation Dropped

Case study summary

Our client was accused of rape, out of the blue, and five years after he had last seen the complainant. We represented him at a voluntary interview and carefully drafted a prepared statement which ultimately led to the police taking no further action just a few weeks' later.

Case study

Our client was called by a police officer out of the blue and told he had been accused of a historic sexual offence. He was provided with no further detail and left hanging in a state of panic and confusion. Knowing the severity of such an allegation, he contacted us shortly after the call to instruct us for his case.

Right away, we contacted the officer in charge to request the specifics of the allegation. Our client, a man of good character and ex-military personnel, had no idea who would make such an allegation and why. Very quickly, we were able to confirm the allegation was that he had raped a female five years ago. We sought advanced written disclosure so that we could take the time to explain and advise our client away from the police station. This ensured he had sufficient time to ask us questions and be prepared before stepping foot in the interview room.

As a result of several conferences, we were able to carefully draft a prepared statement which set out the reality of the evening in question. In essence, our client never denied that sexual intercourse took place and was able to say that the complainant was verbally and physically reassuring him of consent throughout.

After taking time to review their own enquiries, and the prepared statement we presented, the Detective Inspector overseeing our client's case decided to take no further action against him. This decision was reached only 4 weeks after our client's first interview which ensured that this false allegation would not loom over his head.

Our client is now taking time to recover and process the effects of having such a malicious allegation brought against him. However, thanks to the approach taken in interview, he is now able to do this knowing that there is no criminal investigation against him.