We all know that, in the United States, a person is supposed to be considered innocent unless he or she is proven guilty of a crime. We also know that, while a person is supposed to be considered innocent, in many cases, a person accused of a crime will be treated if he or she is guilty, regardless of whether or not the allegations are true. This is particularly true in cases involving allegations of child abuse or sexual assault. A recent case out of Kentucky proves the point.
A young couple, engaged to be married and the parents of an infant daughter, we shocked one night after police showed up at their home to investigate a call reporting suspected child abuse. In that incident, an anonymous caller reported that the couple was engaged in a drunken altercation outside their apartment while one of them was holding the baby. When police arrived, they found that the child was asleep in her crib, the parents were not intoxicated, and they had spent the evening with friends--not having a drunken fight. The couple was confused about the origins of the complaint, and thought that since the call was made on April Fools' Day, it was some kind of terrible joke.
However, the complaints continued, and each time, the parents were accused of more egregious acts of abuse. Despite these claims being "unsupported" during investigations, the parents were required to submit to home inspections and to agree to a parenting plan. The parents protested that the calls were false, and begged police to investigate to find out who was placing the anonymous--and wrongful--calls. Meanwhile, DHS said that, by law, they had to investigate every claim of abuse.
Eventually, the couple figured out a pattern to the calls. Every time one complaint was about to be closed, a new one would open. When they realized another case was to be closed, they left home to stay with their child's grandparents. Sure enough, the anonymous caller made another complaint, and investigators arrived to find that no one was home or had been home to commit the acts described by the caller, giving proof to the couple's assertion that the reports of abuse were false.
Police arrested the couple's neighbors, one of whom was a DHS case worker. The couple remains uncertain as to the motive behind the anonymous tips, but they believe it is because the fake caller thought they were "too loud." The neighbors--a woman and her fiance--have both been arrested and charged with making false reports.
The case is just one illustration of why it is so important not to jump to conclusions just because someone is accused of a crime. It highlights the need for criminal defense in a society in which anonymous tips are sufficient to launch and investigation, and in which the accused rights are trampled in the name of protecting the victim--even if there is no real victim involved.
Certainly, allegations of crimes against children must be taken seriously; however, it is also important to remember that false accusations can and do happen.
