Woman who sent man to prison for cruel rape lie 'likely' to face perjury charges

We hope that our readers have not grown numb to what seems to be an endless cavalcade of false rape horror stories. The following chronicles an especially cruel rape lie. Anyone who would minimize the horrors and injustice of a false rape claim need only examine the story of William McCaffrey. Three years ago this month, Mr. McCaffrey was sentenced to twenty years imprisonment for a rape that never happened. It was a lie. At the time of sentencing, three years ago this month, the following appeared in a New York newspaper:

McCaffrey admitted he was in the car, but he contended the victim was never raped and there was no DNA evidence to prove she was.

Officials acknowledged the lack of DNA, but Assistant District Attorney Shanda Strain said there were bite marks and bruises all over the woman's body, and the judge noted the jury believed McCaffrey raped the victim and then facilitated rapes by his two friends.

"You abducted the victim, held her against her will, threatened her with a knife, beat her and raped her," the judge said. "This attack was disgusting, and for this young woman, it was degrading in the most cruel sense."

The judge said he was especially moved by the woman's testimony that as she was raped repeatedly, "she gave up caring about what was being done to her and hoped only that you would not take her life."

(JUDGE WALLOPS BX. RAPIST WITH 20 YRS., New York Daily News, October 21, 2006. Link here: http://www.nydailynews.com/archives/news/2006/10/21/2006-10-21_judge_wallops_bx__rapist_wit.html)

Notice the "he said/she said" nature of the allegation; the absence of significant, much less dispositive, corroborative evidence; and the false accuser's frightening credibility on the witness stand. Those things are a chilling recipe for injustice, and one that ought to concern every innocent man and the women who care about them. The judge, Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Richard Carruthers, showed no mercy, and addressed this innocent man as if he had behaved like an animal.

Now, three years later, as we previously reported, the false accuser has found religion, and her priest, Rev. Zeljko Guberovic, one of the only heroes in this story, convinced her to come forward with the truth. She confessed in March of 2009, but Mr. McCaffrey wasn't released until September. That's an extra six months because, obviously, the state believes its lumbering, inefficient process is more important than a man's liberty. But now an innocent man finally has been freed from prison, after almost three years. We don't know what horrors he faced behind bars, but it is fair to assume his life was destroyed beyond repair, due to a selfish rape lie.

The New York Post reports that a grand jury is now considering evidence to convict her. It is doubtful that even if she is charged and convicted that she will serve as much time as her victim, another common trait of false rape cases.

Here is the story from the New York Post:

Rape-lie rap looms

By BRAD HAMILTON
Last Updated: 5:03 AM, October 4, 2009
Posted: 3:45 AM, October 4, 2009

A woman who allegedly lied about being raped in 2005 and sent an innocent man to jail could soon be facing her own trip to prison, The Post has learned.

Prosecutors are now presenting evidence against her to a Manhattan grand jury. A source said perjury charges were "likely."

They plan to call witnesses to testify that Biurny Peguero Gonzalez made up a story of having been raped at knifepoint in upper Manhattan because her pals were furious with her for leaving them.

Among the witnesses is the Rev. Zeljko Guberovic, her priest at St. Anthony's, in Union City, NJ, where Gonzalez, 26, confessed to the fabrication in March, sources said.

Gonzalez had accused William McCaffrey and two of his friends of gang-raping her in Inwood. He was convicted and sentenced to 20 years before being released last month.

Link: http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/manhattan/rape_lie_rap_looms_UH6Q3vI8XtnqV8MRMtZTMP