The number one piece of advice that I can give you is keep your head up and get ready for the fight of your life. Because the accusation alone is enough to ruin your reputation. With a sex crime allegation, it almost seems like you're guilty until proven innocent. And that's backwards from how our system is supposed to operate.
The other piece of advice that I would give you is don't talk to the police. Probably more so than any other type of case. People talk themselves into prison for sexual allegations. And here's why. Most of the time when the police are investigating, all they have is the accuser's word. They're looking to you to complete the pieces of the puzzle that they need to make an arrest.
And they will use anything you say against you. Even if they claim that they're just trying to help you, even if they claim that they're just trying to clear this up or they just want your side of the story, what they're doing is they're trying to trap you into incriminating yourself. They are not your friend. They already think you're guilty.
So, the number one thing you can do to stay out of prison is don't talk to the police. The next piece of advice that I would give you is stay off social media and don't engage or reach out to the alleged victim or their family. The time to fight this battle is in the courtroom, not on social media. If you've been contacted by the police about a sexual allegation, get an attorney involved right away.
We can have a conversation about what the allegations are and we can also make a decision together on whether or not it makes sense to go talk to the police and give a statement. In some situations, it might help you. In some situations, you might be walking into a trap. An experienced, seasoned attorney can help you make that decision and potentially avoid a life-changing mistake.
More than just about any other type of case, sexual allegations require a very high level of expertise and experience. At Flaherty & Merrifield Florida Criminal Defense Lawyers, we have that track record. We have that experience. So, call us today and let's get to work.
