A false criminal accusation is a serious crime in the US constitution. People have served jail terms for crimes they did not commit. Issues of alleged sexual offenses and physical abuse to subject to error especially when there is are no witnesses. Criminal justice agencies should carry out proper investigations to accusations to avoid the effects of false accusations. Making a statement or publishing a false accusation against individual amounts to defamation. The effects of false accusation are that it damages the reputation of an individual or a group of people. There are two forms of defamation. First, there is the slander defamation that is orally published such as through conversation and speech. Secondly, there is libel defamation which is published in such media as the internet, magazine, and newspaper.
The case of Jackie Coakley concerns false rape allegations. After getting Jackey’s side of the story, in 2014, Rolling Stone went ahead to the public the article, A Rape on Campus . Jackie claimed that the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity engaged her in a violent gang rape. Jackie was a student at the University of Virginia (Burnett et al., 2017). She had personal problems with a boy who allegedly never gave her enough attention. She opted to use a false accusation as the means of getting attention from the boy.
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Jackie must have had connections with the Rolling Stone magazine, which prompted the company to ignore protocols of journalism and when ahead to publish a false story. Rolling Stone published the story for their financial and journalistic satisfaction. It hid the identity of Jackie as that could have raised controversial concerns (Turvey & Savino, 2017). The story had moral implications for the University of Virginia. It was not long before other news agencies started scrutinizing the truth of the information. Sources such as the Washington Post, ABC News, and Washington Times realized discrepancies in the accusation.
The article causes serious moral damage to the University of Virginia community. It led to the suspension of many individuals who were implicated in the scam. The university management did not bother to lift the suspension even after proving that the accusations were false. The issue damaged the reputation of Phi Kappa Psi members (Applegate, 2013). Their residence was vandalized and they also received death threats. The matter led to the public victimization of some members of Phi Kappa Psi as a rapist. “Jackie” became a household term for referring to false rape accusations. It is unfortunate that the University of Virginia did not give the Phi Kappa Psi the opportunity to defend themselves from the allegations.
The issue happened amid the high climate against sexual assault. Jackie used the opportunity to seek attention only to ruin the reputation of an entire community. Nicole Eramo and Phi Kappa Psi sued Rolling Stone (Burnett et al., 2017). The company lost the first case with Nicole Eramo and had to give a compensation of $3 million. The company entered into an agreement with Phi Kappa Psi, which resulted in a $1.65 million in compensation. The court confirmed that the actions by the Rolling Stone magazine were defamatory.
The case study reveals the implications of rushing to make judgments on accusations without making proper investigations. Rolling Stone magazine rushed to believe Jackie’s side of the story. Consequently, the story ended up causing serious implications for many individuals. It calls on law enforcement officers to be lenient whenever they receive such information. They should never handle suspects as guilty until they get sufficient proof of allegations. The University of Virginia was quick to implicate the Phi Kappa Psi before they conducted investigations on the matter. It dawned on the management when it realized that the individuals were innocent and that the story was false.
Rushing to take critical actions in false accusations may compromise the relationship between the public and law enforcement officers. The case study is a revelation of the effect of wrongful victimization of a suspect. Law enforcement officers must not attribute suspects to guilt until there is enough proof (Turvey & Savino, 2017). It is the responsibility of the Department of Corrections to make a follow up to ascertain the credibility of the available information about an accusation. Failure to adhere to the simple criminal investigation procedures may have such serious reputation implications. The fraternity had a hard time convincing the public and the members were forced to hide.
The wrongful accusation has the implication of forcing an inmate to commit another crime. It is painful to be convicted for a crime that an individual did not commit. It is difficult to come to terms with reality (Burnett et al., 2017). The traumatic experience of being punished wrongfully could lead to mental instability. An individual is likely to become violent due to the inability to come to terms with reality. The situation may compel an innocent and law-abiding individual to engage in criminal activities. In Jackie’s case, the fraternity suffered the damage of public humiliation. The trauma could force them to be vengeful by committing crimes.
In conclusion, the public and law enforcement agencies should not rush in making judgments on accusations. Rolling Stones magazine ruined the reputation of the University of Virginia community by publishing a story about the rape case in the interest of Jackie. There need to be proper investigations to ascertain the truth of the matter. Someone who is wrongfully accused is likely to be vengeful to the social system. They may decide to engage in criminal activities even though they were innocent.
References
Applegate, B. E. (2013). Prior (False) Accusations: Reforming Rape Shields to Reflect the Dynamics of Sexual Assault. Lewis & Clark L. Rev. , 17 , 899.
Burnett, R., Hoyle, C., & Speechley, N. E. (2017). The context and impact of being wrongly accused of abuse in occupations of trust. The Howard Journal of Crime and Justice , 56 (2), 176-197.
Turvey, B. E., & Savino, J. O. (2017). False allegations: Investigative and forensic issues in fraudulent reports of crime . Elsevier.
