sexual misconduct case need advice!

[kristinhonan]

What is the name of your state? Minnesota

in cases of sexual misconduct ( 4th degree ) ..what kind of evidence does the prosecution need to actually charge someone if there were no wittnesses of an act btwn an adult and a 14 year old? can they just go by what she says and what she has written down in a notebook?

my fiance is being charged with this nonsense and while he was sitting in jail, the alleged victim was going around town recanting and telling a neighbor friend of mine that its a bunch of lies and laughed about it.. cant this neighbor go to the investegator on the case and make a statement about what she said? my fiance's Public defender told him that its "normal" for victims in these types of cases to change thier story and deny that anything ever happened and what our wittness ( neighbor) testimony is only hearsay...well isnt that what her accusations are? heresay? all they have is what she wrote down in a notebook which i now have possession of and i cannot for the life of me find ANYTHING remotley close to what she told the police in her complaint. The funny thing is, is that she never told anyone about any of this happening..she wrote it down, her dad found it, and called the police. my Fiance is taking this to a jury trial, he wants to prove his innocence, and he believes that is when the "victim" will change her story and deny everything. He is a good man, and would NEVER touch a child in this manner. all he was doing was being her friend. please help. if you have any questions, please ask. thank you

[CdwJava]

Originally Posted by kristinhonan

in cases of sexual misconduct ( 4th degree ) ..what kind of evidence does the prosecution need to actually charge someone if there were no wittnesses of an act btwn an adult and a 14 year old? can they just go by what she says and what she has written down in a notebook?

Generally, the statements of the victim are not going to sustain a charge unless there is something more to substantiate the allegations.

my fiance is being charged with this nonsense and while he was sitting in jail, the alleged victim was going around town recanting and telling a neighbor friend of mine that its a bunch of lies and laughed about it.. cant this neighbor go to the investegator on the case and make a statement about what she said?

Sure. At the very least, the person who witnessed these statements could be called as a witness for the defense to cast reasonable doubt on the victim's allegations.

my fiance's Public defender told him that its "normal" for victims in these types of cases to change thier story and deny that anything ever happened and what our wittness ( neighbor) testimony is only hearsay...

The neighbor can be used to counter any allegations made by the defendant as a rebuttal witness. If the victim does not take the stand, I suppose the neighbor might not be able to be called .... but, there may be other things that come in to play here.

The funny thing is, is that she never told anyone about any of this happening..she wrote it down, her dad found it, and called the police.

That would not be surprising. Very often, the victims of molestation and even rape do not tell anyone until quite some time has passed. Molestation victims, in particular, will often keep the information close to their chest for a long time. What you describe is typical of such a victim.

my Fiance is taking this to a jury trial, he wants to prove his innocence, and he believes that is when the "victim" will change her story and deny everything. He is a good man, and would NEVER touch a child in this manner. all he was doing was being her friend.

An adult male needs to be very wary about EVER being alone with a female who is not his own child.

And why did she need him as a friend? And why were they apparently alone together sufficiently for the alleged event(s) to have taken place?

At worst, he's guilty ... at best, he needs to grow some new "wisdom" teeth.

- Carl

[Happy Trails]

Originally Posted by kristinhonan

What is the name of your state? Minnesota

in cases of sexual misconduct ( 4th degree ) ..what kind of evidence does the prosecution need to actually charge someone if there were no wittnesses of an act btwn an adult and a 14 year old? can they just go by what she says and what she has written down in a notebook?

my fiance is being charged with this nonsense and while he was sitting in jail, the alleged victim was going around town recanting and telling a neighbor friend of mine that its a bunch of lies and laughed about it.. cant this neighbor go to the investegator on the case and make a statement about what she said? my fiance's Public defender told him that its "normal" for victims in these types of cases to change thier story and deny that anything ever happened and what our wittness ( neighbor) testimony is only hearsay...well isnt that what her accusations are? heresay? all they have is what she wrote down in a notebook which i now have possession of and i cannot for the life of me find ANYTHING remotley close to what she told the police in her complaint. The funny thing is, is that she never told anyone about any of this happening..she wrote it down, her dad found it, and called the police. my Fiance is taking this to a jury trial, he wants to prove his innocence, and he believes that is when the "victim" will change her story and deny everything. He is a good man, and would NEVER touch a child in this manner. all he was doing was being her friend. please help. if you have any questions, please ask. thank you

How do you know that the paper wasn't ripped out by the father and given to the pollice?

[kristinhonan]

thank you

she is a friend of his neices and nephews who always hang out at our house. she told everyone that he is hot etc that she loves him etc.. she has been in the house while i have been there to hang out with his neices and nephews. He has never been alone with her. she has been in our house, yes but seems like every kid in the apartment building has been over to play with our 2 children or see his neices and nephews.

there is no evidence other than what she says and has written down. i guess there doesnt need to be anymore than that huh? its scary b/c anyone can go around accusing people of something, even if they never met the person.

My fiance is not a ignorant person, he is more like a mentor, and the 25 days has taught him that you really cannot be everyones friend. We have changed our # ( b/c she has it, and she used to call and hang up ALL THE TIME)

I just know that when i look at the so called evidence nothing makes sense. stories are being changed, and such. it would be nice if we could place an actual date with this accusation to make it easier on the both of us. but of course, there is no date. just an estimated time frame, and i KNOW for a fact that after this allegedly happened, she called and pranked a few times, and when her dad called my fiance to tell threaten him with a baseball bat, she called the next day apologizing about the way her dad reacted, and that is when my fiance told her to leave him alone. well she did more than that. she made up a story. I have wittnesses who can and will testify against her character and how she acts on an every day basis.( walking around town telling all the boys she loves them, and how she wants to have sex with them, and how she openly talks about masterbation and penises etc ) she said in her statement that she will NEVER go back to the apartment building after all this , however, she was just there last week visiting a friend , and that is where she was lauughing about the whole thing, like it was a joke.

[kristinhonan]

the whole notebook was given to the police. they made copies of it, and i have the whole thing. my fiance's name is in it. but so is about 15 other male names. some are abbreviated, some are spelled out. There is no direct reference to his name.

[CdwJava]

The level of proof necessary to sustain an arrest is only that there exist probable cause to believe that a crime occurred and that the person arrested likely committed the offense. The level of proof necessary for a conviction must be beyond a reasonable doubt.

So her word alone is still not likely to convict him - especially with rebuttal witnesses that can cast doubt on the veracity of her claims.

However, it IS common for sexual assault victims - and molest victims - to make light of the allegations and sometimes recant to some degree. And the prosecution will likely bring in some sort of expert to testify to this behavior.

Bottom line is that he will have to go the distance at trial to prove his innocence unless the DA can be convinced to drop the case earlier.

- Carl

[kristinhonan]

must i add, that this allegation was not about sex. not penetration, just touching.

[Florid-aise]

As I told you in your other post. As eye-witness/ear-witness to the tales of success, and the tales of attempts; by cunning persons with a specific agenda to do the very thing you now describe, the shuddering by me never complete; have I never forgotten; to never be alone with another person's child, ever again. It is precisely because of the shrill shriek of that God-awful laughter that has never left my memory. It is a shame that this is the way of the world today, but the risks are so, so, so very great anymore.

Beyond a reasonable doubt, that is your hope. That is your hope.

[kristinhonan]

Thank you everyone for the advice. I just know this girl is lying, and i hope the case gets dropped.

[kristinhonan]

Sure. At the very least, the person who witnessed these statements could be called as a witness for the defense to cast reasonable doubt on the victim's allegations.


what if my fiance's PD told him that it really doesnt matter what the neighbor/witness was told by this girl because its hearsay. Should i maybe go to the prosecution on the case with my wittness? obviously the PD is not doing a damn thing.

[You Are Guilty]

There is no such thing as hearsay outside of a courtroom. The police, if competant, should be interviewing every witness, not just the ones they think will support their case. That being said, tell the DA everything, and talk to the witnes yourself if you have to. You'll certainly need them to show up and testify should this go to trial (that's the only time when their statement to you becomes hearsay).