What Happens if the Accuser Has a History of False Accusations? Attorneys Christopher Combs and Joshua Boardman from Combs Waterkotte discuss everything you need to know about Illinois sex crime charges, including sexual assault, sexual abuse, rape, and more.
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Interview Transcript
Scott Michael Dunn: What happens if the accuser has a history of false accusations?
Christopher Combs: This is common.
Joshua Boardman: Yes, it is our purpose to utilize those previous allegations if we can get a history and a motivation behind previous allegations. And if those allegations have always resulted in being unfounded, especially if it’s with the same person. We use it as part of a credibility defense. Hypothetically speaking, this is now the one that you want the state’s attorney to believe? The state’s attorney and law enforcement has pursued three or four of these same types of reports, and they’ve all been unfounded, and this is the one. Now, it may be that that fourth or fifth one is founded, but it’s our job to suss all that out and use that as part of a credibility defense.
Combs: And that’s when it comes into play, how important it is to investigate the alleged victim in these cases. And, I think we see, or at least I see, a lot of sex cases where the alleged victim has mental health issues. Whether it’s a child of a parent or things of that nature, that is incredibly important in any sex case.
