lmao I mean I’m a felon because of some similar “high school rumors,” as it were.
Met a girl. Was 17, she was 16. 14 month age difference. About a year goes by, I turn 18, she’s still 16 almost 17. Age of consent in my state is 16. Girl wants to come over. She is ready to GO. No panties, no bra, skimpy tennis skirt and a tube top. She initiates sexual contact, I reciprocate and perform fellatio. She climaxes, says she wants to stop. Cool with me. She leaves. Week goes by, rumors are circulating around the school that I fucked her. I don’t substantiate but also don’t deny, I just ignore them and move on with my life.
Turns out she had a boyfriend. Rumor gets to the Boyf. Boyfriend confronts her, she says I forced myself on her against her will. Bf tells girls mom, girls mom takes her to get a rape kit done which she obviously fails. Police report is filed. She is steadfast to avoid the consequences of her infidelity. Outlandish claims are made. More interviewed after she fails the rape kit. Claims are changed, dates altered, and at no point during the 4 interviews she had with police does her story match the original, there is major deviation. Detectives pick up the case and charge me with object rape of a minor, a first degree felony with a 15-life sentencing guideline and a lifetime registry upon release.
4 and a half years of my life, $50,000, and major trauma related drug abuse issues later, the case finally hits a court room. At some point she cheats on bf again and gets caught and dumped anyways. She also got fat, which is hilarious. During this time, MeToo became a major talking point and ingrained in US culture. Victim blaming became the penultimate defense against any claims of false accusations. What was initially an easy win in a trial became a nigh-impossible case. Prosecution comes to us with a plea deal, reduction to a sex abuse charge with no jail or prison time and 24 months probation with a 10 year registry plus an $800 fine. The extra caveat is I have no group conditions. Those are the restrictions around playgrounds and schools and interacting with minors. I have literally no restrictions. In my state there are over 30,000 RSO’s. There are a total of 8 that have no conditions. 8. After hours of deliberation with my now-fiancé, my lawyer, my mom, my dad, and my fiancé’s parents, the decision is made to accept the plea. The worst case of life in prison with lifetime registry was too great to risk on the whims of a jury who is no longer impartial to sex crimes. Trial by media two degrees separated, I suppose.
As a result of high school rumors, I am a sex offender and my life fucking sucks. I make the most of what I have, but I can’t travel, I’m making 47,500 a year in a position I’m lucky to have and will never be able to move on from, and will be living this life until my early 30’s. My name has been dragged through the mud, I’ve been publicly shamed, I have been physically beaten, threatened, and I have no friends. My dog, cat, fiancé, and in-laws are my only support system or sense of community in life.
The salt in the wound is she admitted publicly, on Facebook, that she lied about me forcing myself on her. The ex-boyfriend even came to support me and substantiate the claims that she has repeatedly stated the initial claims against me were false. My appeal was rejected on the grounds that she was not sober when she wrote the post. There is literally nothing I can do. So I go to therapy, cry in my car sometimes, and cherish what I have.
This wasn’t supposed to be my life. I got a 35 on my ACT. I was supposed to go to an Ivy League. I was supposed to live a life of experience and freedom. Now I manage a restaurant and hope no one googles me.
OP, get a fucking lawyer.