Youth accused of rape - Investigation dropped

Case study summary

We represented a youth accused of rape. He had been to a social gathering following which false allegations were made that he had sex with a girl against her consent. We represented him throughout the interview and investigation process, resulting in No Further Action.

Case study

Our client was a young man studying for his A Levels. He was contacted out of the blue by police and was only informed that serious sexual allegation had been made against him. He was asked to attend a voluntary interview under caution at the police station which he agreed to.

He had no idea what the allegation was about and his parents were understandably scared and worried. Their son had never been in trouble before, and they were concerned about the interview process and him being treated unfairly or like a criminal. Soon after the initial contact from the police, they contacted us to seek guidance on what to do next.

We explained the police investigation process in detail and the legal rights and entitlements their son had. We were instructed to represent him straight away following which, we quickly established contact with the police.

We then requested information in advance of the interview date, so that we could go through this in detail with our client and advise him accordingly. We obtained disclosure from the police which confirmed he was accused of Rape and provided some background information from the person who had accused him.

After advising on the allegations, the law, and what information we knew from the police, we then took detailed instructions from our client. Based on this, a prepared statement was carefully drafted to set out his version of events in the most concise and clear way. For a young man who never had any involvement with the police in his life, this allowed him to say his side of the story without feeling pressured, intimidated or tricked into saying something else.

This statement was submitted and we then followed up with supporting information after the interview process had been carried out. In less than 3 months, the police confirmed that they investigation was being dropped against. He was very happy that he was able to carry on his life and studies as normal and his parents were very relieved.