If you are accused of a sexual offence, it may come out of the blue with no prior warning, resulting in disbelief, shock and personal crisis.
The serious and unpleasant nature of the allegations can also mean that you may not have the support of friends and family. Due to the embarrassment and stigma attached to sexual offence allegations you may not feel able to ask for help from those close to you.
Early advice is crucial
Early advice can be critical in protecting your legal position and reputation, so if accusations are made against you, it is important to seek legal advice quickly to ensure your interests are carefully safeguarded from the start.
At Brodies, our team of specialist criminal defence lawyers are experts in this area. We provide wise and calm counsel, at a time of crisis.
Immediate steps to consider
The first step we take is to have a detailed meeting to understand the nature of the allegation which has been made, whether there is any evidence to support it and, crucially, the reason for the allegation. Where there is evidence to disprove the allegation, we will move quickly to interview witnesses and obtain documents. It is also important that any electronic evidence is secured. The matter may not be straightforward. Sometimes allegations are made by former partners whom our clients have not been in contact with for many years. In other cases, allegations are made by a current partner and there is often a link with the recent separation or divorce.
We will work with you to create a case strategy. That may involve instructing our investigators to obtain evidence which supports your position, and it may also involve specialist representation at a police interview. If you have instructed a family lawyer who is dealing with the separation or divorce, we will work in collaboration with them to prepare a strong defence.
Attending police interview
If the police ask you to attend an interview it is vital to first obtain legal advice. That advice will include attending a police interview only with a specialist criminal defence lawyer. It is vital to understand that there may be significant serious consequences (which cannot be reversed) if, for instance, an admission is made to the police about having had sexual contact with a former partner on a specific occasion. It is important for clients to remember that because of the serious nature of the allegation they will be interviewed by experienced, specially trained police officers who will have carefully prepared an interview plan. The defence does not get access to that information and often it is only limited information about the allegation and the evidence. That means that the defence are often at a disadvantage and there are many risks and dangers attending a police interview without a lawyer to guide you.
Following a police interview a person may be charged with an offence where conditions of bail can be imposed, pending a court hearing. These conditions can have far reaching consequences. They may, for instance, exclude a person from their own home or prevent them from contacting the complainer or their own children. The conditions require to be carefully crafted, where possible, for instance to allow contact with children to continue. If the police impose bail conditions which are unsuitable, it may be possible to have the conditions reviewed by a Sheriff at a court hearing, but that may take a week or two to organise.
Preparing for court
The court hearing may be some weeks in the future, and the conditions will apply for the whole period until the case calls in court. In other cases, the police may commence what is called the Investigative Liberation procedure. The person may be released on bail for a period of 28 days and there may be a further police interview in the future
Careful preparation is necessary by experienced lawyers to provide the necessary expertise and support at all stages to our clients. We know how important our clients’ reputations are and we work hard to protect them at all stages of any police investigation.
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