What should someone do if they are being falsely accused of a criminal charge?

Question

A friend of my is being charged with 10 cases of statutory rape by one girl and giving minors alcohol. She was willing to have sex him and the detective wants him to get a lawyer but he does not have the money for one and she said that she will put a warrant out for his arrest if one does not contact her in the next few days.

Jared Austin · Answer

If the children are under the age of consent (16 in Michigan) they cannot legally consent to sexual acts. It is still a crime even if they were willing. These are serious charges with long prison terms and sex offender registration so he definitely needs to retain a lawyer quickly. If he cannot afford one, the court will appoint him one.

Michael Palumbo · Answer

the detective wants him to get a lawyer GOOD ADVICE!  he does not have the money for one He needs to get money for a good lawyer ASAP  she said that she will put a warrant out for his arrest if one does not contact her in the next few days. The police are giving him an opportunity to turn himself in before they have to come get him. That he is being arrested and charged seems inevitable. The BEST THING he can do is retain counsel and turn himself in, and we can represent him.

Andrew Subin · Answer

Absolutely essential that your friend hire a good attorney as soon as possible.  This type of crime carries huge penalties.

Leonard Harden · Answer

Your friend should not make any statements to police at all.  Statutory rape charges are very serious and a single conviction will send a person to state prison.    The state will appoint an attorney if the friend is indigent.  If he has family or friends with money he needs to borrow it to hire the best lawyer he can. These charges are among the most serious.  Do not talk to the police, do not admit anything.  DO NOT TALK!!!  If a warrant is issued your friend will turn himself in and likely get bailed out.  Having a formal arrest will at least entitle your friend to learn what the allegations are and be able to prepare a defense.

Robert Driessen · Answer

If he cannot afford an attorney a public defender will be appointed to the case after charges have been filed. This may mean that he gets arrested and is given an attorney while he is in custody. These are serious charges and he should not make any statements without an attorney being present.

Loren M. Dickstein · Answer

He should keep his mouth closed and not talk to anyone. There is no way to avoid the charge at this point. When he is charged, he will have the right to a lawyer at public expense.

Gregory Casale · Answer

First, consent is not a defense to statutory rape. The whole concept of statutory rape is that a person who is under 16 (in Massachusetts) is too young legally to consent to sex. Therefore, anyone who has sex with a person under 16 can be found guilty of statutory rape. Your friend really should do everything possible to hire a lawyer. I don't know of any publicly appointed counsel for someone who has not yet been charged, but there could be some assistance out there that I am not familiar with. I would recommend calling the Mass Bar Association to check. In any event, he should not go speak with police without first speaking with a lawyer. It is far more likely that the police are trying to get him to incriminate himself than anything else. A lawyer could contact the police on his behalf and know what to say, and more importantly, what not to say. He should not speak with the police on his own!  If he is charged, then he will be able to get court appointed counsel, if he qualifies.

Roianne Houlton Conner · Answer

You need to retain an attorney, IMMEDIATELY.

Craig Elhart · Answer

He should not talk to the police until he has talked to an experienced criminal defense attorney.  He could look to family and friends to assist him with paying for a lawyer.  If he truly cannot afford an attorney, once charges are filed, the court would appoint one for him.

Michael Maltby · Answer

If your friend is charged with a crime he can get a court appointed attorney.  Only a judge can issue a warrant.  Your friend should have no further contact with his accuser and should make no statements, except to an attorney.

Michael Nack · Answer

This friend of yours needs an attorney immediately. For charges of this   nature it would not be unusual for an attorney to require a retainer fee in  the  amount of several thousands of dollars. If your friend can not hire an  attorney,  then your friend should decline any further statements to the  police. REPEAT:  your friend should not talk to the police at all!!! Your friend  should be  prepared to be arrested and should make arrangements for someone  on the outside  to attempt to post bond. After a court appearance your  friend may qualify for a  public defender.

James Schoenberger · Answer

Your friend should ask that a lawyer be appointed to represent him in any meeting with law enforcement.  Be aware that consent is not a defense to rape of a child (statutory rape).

Jules N. Fiani · Answer

Hire a Lawyer.

Cynthia Henley · Answer

Even if he does contact the detective, he is going to get a warrant. He should NOT contact the detective. There is nothing that he can say that will stop a warrant from issuing. The detective is simply trying to tie him down to a story and information. The detective's job is not to determine who is telling the truth but only to investigate & present the case to the prosecutors' office. And, they will accept charges if the girl says he did it - almost no matter what. The case will then be presented to a grand jury to see if there is probable cause to hold the case over for a trial. He will be able to plead guilty or not guilty, but he is 99% chance going to get charged.  If he gets arrested and cannot afford a lawyer because he is indigent - does not own property - then a lawyer will be appointed to represent him. He will likely sit in jail while the case is pending.  These are VERY serious charges.

Michael J. Breczinski · Answer

FIRST He should not say anything to the police without a lawyer. Even if thye put him in jail. There are lots of people in prison that would be out if they kept silent. Second HE CAN'T AFFORD NOT TO GET A LAWYER. This could carry 15 years in prison and MANDATORY PRISON.

Terry Nelson · Answer

What can you do?  There is only one valid suggestion in those circumstances:  Hire an attorney, unless you know how to effectively represent yourself in court against a professional prosecutor intending to convict.  No amount of free 'tips and hints' from here or anywhere else are going to effectively help you in your defense, other than the advice to exercise the 5th Amendment right to SHUT UP and do NOT talk to ANYONE about the case except an attorney.  That includes on this or any other web site or public forum.  Most police and prosecutors will happily tell you that 95% of people convict themselves by trying to be 'helpful and cooperative', either during initial contact, questioning, interview or interrogation.    When charged with any felony, you potentially face one or more years in prison if convicted;  on a misdemeanor, you potentially face up to 6-12 months in jail.  Multiple counts and charges multiply your problems.  If you have priors and strikes, they may be  penalty enhancements under the 3 Strikes rules.  If this constitutes a probation or parole violation, factor those new and old charge[s] in as well.    Of course you can fight the charges.  When arrested or charged with any crime, the proper questions are, can any evidence obtained in a test, search or confession be used against you, and can you be convicted, and what can you do?   Raise all possible defenses with whatever admissible and credible witnesses, evidence, facts and sympathies are available for legal arguments, for evidence suppression or other motions, or at trial.  If you don't know how to do these things effectively, then hire an attorney that does, who will try to get the best outcome possible through a plea bargain, or take it to trial, as appropriate for the clients best interests.    If you get serious about hiring private counsel to help in this, and if this is in SoCal courts, feel free to contact me.  Ill be happy to help use whatever defenses there may be.  If you cant afford private counsel, you will simply have to wait until after arrest and apply for the Public Defender at your first court appearance.

Stephen Freeborn · Answer

Get an attorney.. At least talk with one.   This is a VERY serious matter that could result in some VERY substantial prison time (especially with 10 counts).  The fact that the girl may have been "willing" to have sex with this person is absolutely irrelevant because a minor (depending upon how young she is - cannot give consent).  If this is statutory rape, all they look at is the age of your friend and the age of the girl(s).  Additionally, the fact that alcohol is an issue is also a major concern, especially if you friend supplied the alcohol.  If the girl was under the influence, she can hardly give consent, even if she was old enough to do so.   It can certainly be argued that your friend got this girl drunk so he COULD have sex with her.  If such is the case, this could enhance (add to) any prison sentence. This is nothing to be taken lightly.  GET AN ATTORNEY.

Carina Laguzzi · Answer

Hire an attorney immediately!  If there is evidence against your friend, he will get arrested no matter what.  Your friend should NOT give any statement or talk to the police until speaking to a criminal defense attorney.  Just so you know, statutory rape is a strict liability crime which means if your friend had sex with a minor he is guilty of statutory rape as minors cannot consent in the eyes of the law.

Thomas Tomko · Answer

Thank you for your inquiry  If your son is without any money to hire an attorney, he should request a court appointed attorney.  He should not answer any questions without an attorney being present.  It is not for the detective to say that he should get an attorney or not, and I suspect from your question that your son already made statements.  This should stop immediately.  Getting an attorney to represent him is imperative to find out about the charges, the possibility of resolving the case, and the specter of sex offender registration.  The age is the issue, not the consent.  So he can be charged without any regard to consent.  I hope that this was helpful.

Gary Moore · Answer

He needs a lawyer before he talks to any police officer. If the detective wants him to surrender on the charges it is wise to comply because surrendering will help keep the amount of the bail down. He should not talk to anyone without consulting with a lawyer. I mean ANYONE. He should keep his mouth absolutely shut.

Jeffery Cojocar · Answer

He needs to request a court appointed attorney if he can not afford one on his own.

Jared Altman · Answer

I am not 100% sure that I understand your question. But, the bottom line is that if your friend really cannot afford a lawyer then he is going to have to wait until he is arrested before one will be appointed.

Michael Chastaine · Answer

Your friend really does need legal counsel. Maybe he can get friends or family to help him out.  But if he does nothing, it sounds like he is going to get arrested.

Thomas Ogas · Answer

If hes falsely accused, then he has to fight the case and hell need a criminal attorney to help him. If he cant afford one, hell be appointed an attorney by the court. With regards to the detective what good would it do your friend to talk to the detective? You mentioned that she was willing to have sex with him which sounds like he did have sex with her so if he talks to them and they ask him and he admits he had sex with her, he will have proven their case against him. They'll arrest him if he talks to them, and theyll arrest him if he doesnt. So the best thing is to not give them extra evidence they can use to prove your friend guilty.

Jason Overton · Answer

He needs to get a lawyer.  And if the Detective is telling him to get a lawyer, he certainly needs to get a lawyer. If he can't afford a lawyer, he has a right to have one appointed to represent him. Although I don't represent him and don't know the specific facts of his case, I think any lawyer would recommend that your friend not talk to police or anyone else about this. Also, consent is no defense to "statutory" or 2nd degree rape, which involves sex with a minor, so he should stop telling anyone that she consented.

Paul J. Wallin · Answer

It is against the law for anyone over 18 to have sex with a minor under age 18. Consent by the minor is NOT a legal defense. Your friend should figure out how he can pay a private lawyer 100.00 for an in office consultation before he takes any further action. If he is arrested and he has no money he will remain in jail until or unless he can pay the bail amount. After he is arrested the court will appoint him a public defender if he is indigent.

Harley Gutin · Answer

He must contact an attorney right away. Statutory rape is that a person has sex with a minor.  Permission of the minor does not matter. If she is under age it is a crime. He should not talk on the phone or in person to anyone until he has talked to a lawyer.

Eric Rothstein · Answer

If she was under 17, it does not matter if she was willing to have sex with him; she was unable to consent as a matter of law. The person should try to retain an attorney to negotiate the surrender. If the person does not voluntarily go to the police, the police will look for him and when he is arrested, the DA will tell the judge that higher bail should be set because the person refused to surrender.

Jason Savela · Answer

Do not talk to her or police any more. Request an attorney as soon as you see the police - do not talk to them - just say I want a lawyer. Once charged, they will give him a public defender. All jail calls and meets are recorded - do not talk about the facts with anyone but your lawyer.

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What should someone do if they are being falsely accused of a criminal charge?

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