January 17, 2012 - Sponsor, Palm Beach County Bar Association, Solo & Small Firm Practitioners Committee Lunch & Learn Series, What You Need & Don't Need to Run Your Practice

"There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics."

~   Benjamin Disraeli           

Our client was accused by his daughter of molesting her on several occasions. These incidents were purported to have occurred during the daughter's visits to her father in West Palm Beach and during the time she lived with him in Savannah, Georgia. In her deposition, the daughter remarked that the incidents were so traumatizing to her that she had taken to cutting herself (self-mutilation). She showed a small scar on her arm to the prosecutor and defense attorney as "proof" of her allegation.

After studying the deposition and interviewing the client, we determined that the daughter lived with her father in Savannah during her middle school years and had stayed with him for at least two summers. With this information, I traveled to Savannah to pursue contact with several of the daughter's classmates and friends.

Child sexual abuse is a very sensitive topic. Instances of child sexual abuse can fracture families, tear communities apart, and leave emotional scars that linger for decades. There is one facet of child sexual abuse that is particularly sensitive, but must be discussed honestly nonetheless. That is: kids do sometimes lie about sexual abuse.

Over time we have developed a "don't blame the victim" culture in this country. While that is a humanistic perspective and certainly one that should be pursued and upheld, it does not mean that all alleged victims are blameless all the time. Children, particularly those embroiled in dysfunctional home and family situations, do sometimes falsely report sexual abuse. Often, the principal motive is to have the accused adult removed from the child's life. For example, a girl who has a rocky relationship with her father or step-father may accuse him of sexual abuse to "pay him back" for verbal abuse, alcoholism, strict discipline, or placing restrictions on her dating relationships.