False sexual abuse and assault allegations are real. Even by conservative estimates, they may occur in hundreds, even thousands, of sexual misconduct cases per year in Texas. If a teenager has made false sexual allegations against you, the steps you take in responding can have a significant impact on your freedom, reputation, and future.
Here’s an overview of what do to if a teen makes a false sexual abuse or assault claim against you, and the critical role an experienced criminal defense lawyer will play in defending you against that terrible injustice.
What Should You Do If a Teen Makes False Sexual Allegations Against You?
Exercise your right to remain silent and contact a criminal defense lawyer immediately if a teenager falsely accuses you of sexual misconduct in Texas. A false sexual allegation can threaten to devastate your life and pose an extreme risk to your rights, liberties, and reputation. Do not answer police questions and do not contact or retaliate against your accuser. Instead, seek legal help immediately.
Jack B. Carroll & Associates is a Houston criminal defense law firm that represents people accused of sexual misconduct. Call us (713-228-4607) or fill out our online contact form today if a teenager has falsely accused you of sexual charges in Texas.
How Common Are False Sexual Allegations?
A false sexual allegation holds the potential to severely damage the life of the person accused. It shouldn’t happen, but it does. Studies estimate that between 2% and 10% of sexual assault reports are classified as false. Rates of false reporting are significantly higher in child custody cases, where research suggests anywhere from a third to a half of sexual allegations are untrue. In Texas, where upwards of 20,000 sexual assault cases are prosecuted per year, that translates to potentially thousands of false sexual misconduct-related claims annually.
Why Would a Teenager Make a False Sexual Allegation?
In the realm of sexual allegations, perhaps none hold the potential to cause as much damage to the accused as one made by a teenager against a peer or an adult. Allegations of that nature tend to capture public attention, cast the alleged perpetrator in the worst possible light, and often lead to over-aggressive prosecution.
What would cause a teen to make a false sexual claim like that? As with so many aspects of teenage life and behavior, the answers are diverse and complicated. A teen may falsely accuse someone of sexual misconduct for various reasons. These may include:
- Being impulsive and lacking the capacity to understand the consequences of their actions on others
- Feeling regret or embarrassment about a consensual sexual encounter
- Feeling pressure from peers to interpret sexual awkwardness or inexperience as misconduct
- Being coerced by a parent to make an accusation in the context of a divorce or custody proceeding
- Wanting to harm or take revenge on the person accused because of an unrelated incident or circumstance
Regardless of a teen’s reasons for making a false sexual allegation, however, doing so can lead to severe fallout for the person accused. Being arrested and charged with a sex crime against a teen can lead to loss of your job, home, family, and reputation. You may spend time in jail awaiting bail or a trial. If you are a non-citizen, you may lose your immigration status. And, of course, unless you can convince the authorities or a judge and jury that the accusation is false, you could be convicted of a sexual offense, incarcerated for years, fined, sued for damages, and required to register as a sex offender.
Steps for Handling a False Sexual Allegation by a Teenager in Texas
The steps you take in the aftermath of a teenager’s false sexual allegation against you can significantly affect your rights, freedom, and future. Here is a step-by-step guide to what you can do to protect yourself.
Do Not Speak to Law Enforcement
Most people’s first instinct after being falsely accused of sexual misconduct towards a teenager is to deny the allegation to anyone who will listen. As natural as protesting your innocence might seem, however, it can also be a big mistake.
If the police arrest you or ask to interview you about sexual assault or abuse allegations made by a teen, you should immediately exercise your constitutional right to remain silent. Even though you know that the accusation is false, do not answer law enforcement questions about it and do not try to talk your way out of an arrest or charge.
As any experienced criminal defense lawyer will tell you, once you’ve been arrested or brought in for questioning on a sexual allegation (even a false one), nothing you can say to law enforcement will change their minds about charging or investigating you. They have already concluded you are probably guilty. Their only reason for talking to you is to get you to say something that makes it easier for them to secure a conviction.
So, as much as you want to loudly declare that you did nothing wrong, bite your tongue. For now, exercising your right to remain silent is your best defense to the injustice of a teen’s false sexual allegation.
Do Not Contact or Retaliate Against Your Accuser
For similar reasons, it is also a mistake to try to speak with the teen who has accused you. Natural as it might seem to want to confront your accuser and get them to take back what they’ve told the police, that can only backfire. The authorities could interpret your actions as attempts to intimidate a witness or obstruct justice, exposing you to further criminal charges. By speaking to your accuser, you could also end up creating additional evidence for the state to use against you.
Similarly, resist any urge you have to take revenge against the teen who has falsely accused you. Lobbing false allegations of your own, disclosing your accuser’s private information, or retaliating in any other way against them will only make your situation ten times worse.
Take it from a team with experience handling these situations: if you hire a skilled criminal defense lawyer, you will eventually get a chance to tell your side of the story and hold your teenage accuser appropriately accountable for their lies. Until then, however, contacting or retaliating against the teen who accused you of sexual misconduct is just asking for more trouble.
Hire a Criminal Defense Lawyer Immediately
Instead of speaking with the police or your accuser about the false sexual allegation made against you, contact a criminal defense attorney immediately. A lawyer is the only person you can talk to 100% confidentially at the moment, and the only one who can take meaningful steps to protect you from a teenager’s false sexual offense charge. A skilled lawyer can:
- Investigate your accuser’s false claim and begin collecting evidence to prove it’s untrue
- Prevent law enforcement or prosecutors from interrogating you
- Work to convince prosecutors or a court to dismiss the charges
- If necessary, defend yourself against the charges in a jury trial
Skilled criminal defense lawyers know how to evaluate a case to identify reliable ways of demonstrating your innocence, such as that you have an alibi, that your accuser is untrustworthy, or that forensic evidence exonerates you. But of course, a lawyer can’t begin doing that essential work until you contact them.
So do not wait. As soon as you find out that a teenager in Texas has made a false sexual allegation against you—even if you haven’t been arrested or charged yet—contact a knowledgeable criminal defense lawyer. Your rights, reputation, and future depend on it.
Believe That You Will Weather the Storm
People who face false sexual allegations from teenagers sometimes feel like their lives have been destroyed. Based on a terrible lie, they see their entire world turned upside down, often in a matter of days or weeks. It’s a blow that frequently causes isolation and despair.
If you find yourself in that situation, however, we urge you not to lose faith. You know the charges are false. Eventually, through your perseverance and the hard work of an experienced criminal defense lawyer, others will know it too. It might take time until prosecutors see that they’ve made a mistake, a court dismisses your case, or a jury acquits you, but justice can prevail and you can get back to living your life.
If you are in crisis or having thoughts of self-harm, dial 988 for free, confidential mental health support.
Contact Our Team Today
A false sexual allegation by a teenager can severely disrupt your life. It is critically important, however, not to let the outrage you justifiably feel drive your decisions about what to do next. Instead, protect your rights and safeguard your future by contacting a skilled criminal defense lawyer immediately and following the other steps above.
Have you been arrested or charged with a crime in Texas? The Houston sex crimes attorneys at Jack B. Carroll & Associates can provide the elite defense you need to keep your future safe. Jack B. Carroll & Associates is proud to have a reputation as one of the best sex crimes law firms in Houston. Call us at (713) 228-4607 or contact us today.