• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

False "FBI" report

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

Taxing Matters

Overtaxed Member
What can I do to clear my name?
There had to be other evidence to convict you. A police report is not admissible evidence in a criminal prosecution against you. If the prosecutor tried to introduce the report as evidence against you then you, or your lawyer if you had one, should have raised a hearsay objection. Was that done?

Even if the police report had been admissible, you could have proven that the FBI report never did exist by ensuring you asked for that in discovery and had the prosecutor not been able to turn up that report it would be evident the police never had it in the first place. Was that done?

And what other evidence was introduced against you? The judge almost certainly would have entered a directed verdict in your favor if the only evidence against you was an uncorroborated police report. Since the police report is itself not good evidence the state cannot make a prima facie case based on that.

I'm going to guess that there was in fact a lot more to this than you are telling us since what you have told us does not make sense. But in any event the answer to your question is that your remedy would have been to appeal the conviction. If you did not file a timely appeal you may be out of luck. Meet with an attorney in your state who handles post conviction relief to see might be done now. And do that ASAP since there is only limited time for pursuing whatever relief might still be available.
 


I'm going to hate myself for asking this but, who is the person your children were with? Their father? Another family member? A friend of the family? A complete stranger? A school friends' family? Who?
The individual was someone who I had known for a long time ago didn't associate with my children, or anyone who was close to me.
 
I was wondering why the FBI were involved in a teenager runaway case.
I had a public defender. He was probably at the bar after a heavy overworked day.
The case was brought up as domestic violence after no abuse was corroborated by social workers. In this state victims do not need to testify and I'm not sure if that changes the manner in which evidence is handled.
I was assigned a different attorney the day I went to jail who was shocked that I was being sentenced with jail time after reading the report. She was another public defender.
When I was released I contacted her several times about what I needed to do to correct the record and never heard back. I know that public defenders have big caseloads but there has been no communication since.
 
There had to be other evidence to convict you. A police report is not admissible evidence in a criminal prosecution against you. If the prosecutor tried to introduce the report as evidence against you then you, or your lawyer if you had one, should have raised a hearsay objection. Was that done?

Even if the police report had been admissible, you could have proven that the FBI report never did exist by ensuring you asked for that in discovery and had the prosecutor not been able to turn up that report it would be evident the police never had it in the first place. Was that done?

And what other evidence was introduced against you? The judge almost certainly would have entered a directed verdict in your favor if the only evidence against you was an uncorroborated police report. Since the police report is itself not good evidence the state cannot make a prima facie case based on that.

I'm going to guess that there was in fact a lot more to this than you are telling us since what you have told us does not make sense. But in any event the answer to your question is that your remedy would have been to appeal the conviction. If you did not file a timely appeal you may be out of luck. Meet with an attorney in your state who handles post conviction relief to see might be done now. And do that ASAP since there is only limited time for pursuing whatever relief might still be available.
To the best of my knowledge no objections were filed.
Because this was a first time offence there was some type of agreement that was made that had no jail time. I'm not sure if my attorney had taken a plea deal which had resulted in this result as there was no trial or even the option for one.
When I attempted to speak with the prosecutor, she was more interested in having a conviction than anything else.

I was not willing to press charges on my teenage son in the matter, and that may have been another mitigating factor in what occurred.

The post was not intended to scrutinize the details of the case, but whether or not a private citizen has any form of remedy when law enforcement makes a false accusation that results in serious consequences for the individual.
If there is no manner to protect yourself from this, what would the next logical step be?

At this point, as someone pointed out, the sentence has been served and there is no continuing litigation specifically involving this. I am not necessarily seeking damages, though that could potentially help overall. I filed a complaint prior to the situation occurring but don't think I would've updated as to any internal investigation or outcome as to what happened,if anything.

Would I possibly be able to submit a declaration of facts statement at this point in order to clear my name of this? I just don't know what remedy, if any, there is. Do FBI agents have some type of protective status when making slanderous remarks in a lawsuit? Could I even file a suit in this case?
 
A prosecutor cannot just read a police report into the record as evidence at a trial. Not only is a police report hearsay, the only way it can come in as evidence is if a witness takes the stand and a foundation is given as to the document by someone with personal knowledge of the events.
The police report was not read aloud at any time, but there was no other evidence brought up.
In fact, when I told my attorney that I was seen at the hospital for my injuries, he didn't even bring that up.
The "new" attorney that I was assigned brought up
I suspect your only real chance lies with consulting an attorney.
You are probably right. Which type of attorney would I contact? Civil rights? Criminal? Tort law? Any idea?
 

Taxing Matters

Overtaxed Member
To the best of my knowledge no objections were filed.
Because this was a first time offence there was some type of agreement that was made that had no jail time.
You took a plea deal and didn't go to trial? Then you could have rejected the plea deal and gone to trial had you wanted and made the state prove its case against you. The police report would not have been admissible against you and the state would have had to present evidence against you to support the charges. But when you agree to a plea deal the state doesn't have to prove anything because you are admitting to the offense. If, as you say, the state did not have any evidence then you'd have been acquitted. But you took a plea deal and by doing that you admitted guilt. That closes the door for pretty much all appeal of the matter and also generally forecloses any other options for post conviction efforts to undo it. Why would you take a plea deal if you were so sure there was no evidence against you?

Would I possibly be able to submit a declaration of facts statement at this point in order to clear my name of this?
I don't see what good that would do for you. The conviction from the plea deal would not be affected in any way.

I just don't know what remedy, if any, there is. Do FBI agents have some type of protective status when making slanderous remarks in a lawsuit? Could I even file a suit in this case?
First just because the police report said that the FBI provided some information does not automatically make that true. It could also have been someone within the police department making that up for all you may know. But assuming that the FBI did provide the information then it is not possible to sue the federal government or the agent in his/her official capacity for defamation as federal law specifically bars defamation claims. You'd have to prove the agent was acting outside the scope of his/her authority and sue him/her personally for the alleged defamation. But the problem there is that your conviction as a result of the guilty plea would tend to support that what the FBI said was true, and truth is a defense to defamation.
 
Last edited:

Shadowbunny

Queen of the Not-Rights
.....Would I possibly be able to submit a declaration of facts statement at this point in order to clear my name of this? I just don't know what remedy, if any, there is. Do FBI agents have some type of protective status when making slanderous remarks in a lawsuit? Could I even file a suit in this case?
There's no "declaration of facts" statement that you could submit - that's just not a thing. But even if there were, the chance of it making one iota of difference is practically nil.

Truly -- you're jousting at windmills.
 

FlyingRon

Senior Member
He's free under the Privacy Act to submit a request for amendment. I can almost guarantee that request is going to be declined. The only time the FBI positively responds to such things is in cases of Identity Theft where an individual's record has picked up criminal history of someone impersonating him.
 

Ohiogal

Queen Bee
I had a public defender. He was probably at the bar after a heavy overworked day.
The case was brought up as domestic violence after no abuse was corroborated by social workers. In this state victims do not need to testify and I'm not sure if that changes the manner in which evidence is handled.
I was assigned a different attorney the day I went to jail who was shocked that I was being sentenced with jail time after reading the report. She was another public defender.
When I was released I contacted her several times about what I needed to do to correct the record and never heard back. I know that public defenders have big caseloads but there has been no communication since.
You are pathetic. Probably at the bar after a heavy overworked day? Go away. And after you served the time, the public defender is NOT your attorney. Case is done.
 

quincy

Senior Member
Might've been the other thread - late teens.
Ah. I didn’t check the history.

Teens ages 17 to 18 in Michigan are not yet considered adults but they are also not considered minors subject to their parents’ control should they run away from home.

There is too much that is odd about what has been said by Grrlcheeze for me to say much more than that. :)
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top