Investigators say a 27-year-old woman who claimed she was sexually assaulted by a man posing as a police officer earlier this month was lying.
Heather Speicher now faces charges of Attempting to Influence a Public Official, a class-four felony.
The Larimer County Sheriff’s Office plans to seek restitution for the resources it expended investigating the case.
Speicher told authorities that she was pulled over in her vehicle on the night of Jan. 5 and then assaulted by a man who purported to be a law enforcement officer.
She provided description which led to the release of a composite sketch of the “fictitious suspect,” the Sheriff’s Office said.
Speicher was being held at the Larimer County Jail on a $2,500 bond.
The Sheriff’s Office did not offer a motive for why Speicher would have concocted the story.
“Larimer County Sheriff Justin Smith said it is important to fully investigate any allegation of sexual assault as well as police impersonation; however, false reports of this nature redirect very limited resources that are needed for other important investigations,” said Sheriff’s Office spokesman John Schulz.
“While this report proved to be false, incidents of this nature do occur. Motorists are still reminded to be cautious when stopped by an unmarked or uneasily identified vehicle. They are encouraged to turn their flashers on and drive safely to a well-lit populated area and/or call 911 to verify the identity and location of officers. Motorists are further encouraged to stay in their vehicle until an additional officer in a marked vehicle arrives. Law enforcement vehicles are typically later models with significant emergency light systems.”
Link:
http://www.kdvr.com/news/kdvr-larimer-sheriff-woman-lied-about-police-impersonator-sex-assault-20120118,0,4797257.story
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6 comments:
"Deputies are recommending a felony charge of attempting to influence a public official and will seek restitution. The charge carries a maximum of six years in prison."
http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/55b26c430a484911b4951f0fa08ce7db/CO--Police-Impersonator-Hoax/
Six years. Doesn't that sound wonderful for filing a FRA? OK, yes I know she won't get six years if any years.
Aharon
Actually, I think 6 yrs would be far too much for this particular FRA. FRAs should be punished based upon the harm they cause. For instance if some guy where to actually go to jail for some period of time, the false accuser should face that same amount of time. In cases where a perpetrator is not named the person who made a false report to the police (Calling said person a false accuser is improper, b/c they didn't actually accuse anyone) should be punished in the same manner that a person making a non-rape false police report. Restitution should be included + mental treatment.
T
It just so happens the fictitious accused in this case was a cop.
Hence the actual punishment.
Some are 'More Equal" than others...
Aharon - ""Deputies are recommending a felony charge of attempting to influence a public official and will seek restitution. The charge carries a maximum of six years in prison."
http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/55b26c430a484911b4951f0fa08ce7db/CO--Police-Impersonator-Hoax/"
Since the felony charge of "attempting to influence a public official" would be a difficult one to prove in court, I'd bet that the threat of this charge is simply a manuver to try to get her to more readily agree to some financial restitution.
Interestingly, the last part of that article you linked made note of the fact that Larimer County was also home to the "balloon boy" incident, for which the peretrators were assessed $36k in restitution.
It's unlikley Heather Speicher could afford any where near as much, but she should be hit with several thousand dollars worth, never-the-less.
T, folks like Amanda Marcotte believe that naming a fictitious rapist isn't a false rape claim. Of course it is. The claim is the false allegation of rape. And if you and Marcotte think that innocent men haven't been hurt by "white lie" rape claims, you are wrong. We've reported on a fair number here.
I have long advocated not punishing such persons as harshly as those false accusers who name a real person. My problem with your comment is that you don't seem to respect that using the "r" word should be sacrosanct. You also seem to feel that she obviously has mental health issues and should be treated with sympathy. I agree. But I wonder if you would ever say the same about a young man who commits sexual assault? Or, let me guess, in your world, rapists are typically white heterosexual "undeservedly privileged" upper middle class guys who have no mental issues -- aside from masculinity and all. Right?
Those people who rape, file FRA, murder, etc --- all have mental issues. However, that does not mean that a mental 'condition' should be identified that keeps them out of prison or grants them a light parole along with therapy.
'When society is kind to the cruel then society is being cruel to the kind' to paraphrase Proverbs. People make choices and must be held accountable for their actions. Rationalized and silly excuses for any action for any person can always be found. We need to choose the type of society we want to live in.
Aharon
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