Historical sexual offence allegations can be complex, particularly when it’s an allegation of something that occurred a while ago. However, like any accusation of a sexual offence, it should be taken seriously by both parties involved.
A meticulous approach is required to ensure clients are supported every step of the way, whether challenging inconsistent claims or helping provide the legal guidance required to fight multiple accusations.
With expertise and discretion, ABV Solicitors is familiar with these types of allegations and has already helped many clients with tackling such allegations. Gaining early legal advice is vital to help manage these allegations effectively. This guide will help you understand what historical sexual offence allegations are, how they’re handled, and why you should choose ABV Solicitors.
A historical sexual offence allegation is a claim of sexual abuse that will have occurred a long time ago. Historical can mean as far as decades ago to several years prior. The law that applies to such allegations will depend on when the alleged incident took place.
Examples of historical sexual include:
Prosecutors will rely on the complainant’s word when it comes to these historical sexual offence allegations. As such, it may be difficult for the defendant to disprove the allegations.
Due to the nature of this allegation, time also has an impact on what might be available as well. Vital evidence might have been lost over time and witnesses that could have shed light on such allegations being true or false may have passed away or simply forgotten that period of time due to memory.
Within the UK, the same legal framework applies to historical offences in the same manner as more recent offences. There’s a police investigation, a court hearing and sentencing.
The police will begin an investigation if there’s enough evidence and it’s within the public interest to proceed with such a case. Next will be a court hearing, which may involve witness statements, medical reports, and forensic evidence being submitted.
As such, the accused is usually summoned to court, has a first hearing with their solicitor, and attends a plea and trial preparation hearing. After this a trial is set and the trial goes ahead with ultimately a sentencing or a verdict of not guilty.
If you’ve been accused of a historical sexual offence allegation, there are a number of things you should do in order to tackle this allegation quickly and effectively.
A solicitor is important to reach out to if you’ve had any inclination of a sexual offence allegation coming to light. Even if it hasn’t been made yet but you’ve been warned or threatened with one, you’ll want to get legal advice straight away.
It’s important that you speak to a solicitor, ideally one who has a specialism or a lot of experience with historic sexual abuse cases. Speaking to a solicitor helps to guide you through the next steps and will ensure you don’t do anything you shouldn’t do in the meantime that could hinder the investigation or case that’s trying to prove your innocence.
Speaking to the accuser or anyone connected with the case is likely not going to go in your favour. That’s why it’s important that in any case where the accuser might make contact, or perhaps anyone related to the accuser in any way, you should block and avoid speaking to them.
You may find that strangers are contacting you, particularly in cases where there might be a certain amount of press involved. Again, it’s important that you don’t speak to anyone about the case or your opinion, as this may go against you in court.
A police interview is terrifying, especially if you’ve never found yourself in a police station before, never mind an actual interview room being interviewed.
Regardless of whether a crime has been committed or not, it’s important for any accused to be well prepared for the police interview. Many innocent people have fallen victim to the methods of police officers who have wanted to get justice but may have been quick to judge or point the finger at the wrong person.
Being prepared for the interview is something you can do with your solicitor but ultimately, you want to remain calm and be honest, and whether it’s looked at as guilty or not, your use of no comment should be used where necessary.
While your solicitor is going to have all of the knowledge and expertise in your case and the handling of it, you still have a right to say what needs to be said and to have a say in how your case plays out. You may not like certain aspects of what your solicitor has suggested, so it’s always good to challenge this where possible and if necessary.
Your solicitor will do everything in their power to help you but if you’re not feeling that is the case or you’re looking at something from a different angle, it’s important to say it out loud.
There might be an outcome where you will need to go to court. When it’s being taken to court, it’s assumed there’s enough evidence to try the accused for the alleged crime. While that might be a worrying thought, it’s important to prepare yourself for such an outcome to arise and to ensure you’re ready to face the day or days in court.
Your solicitor will prepare you for the trial so that you’re ready for the court dates, as well as the potential outcomes for sentencing.
Being accused of any crime is devastating but if you have the right support and guidance around you, you stand the best chance of being found not guilty. At ABV Solicitors, we have the knowledge and guidance needed to represent you or a loved one who finds themselves at the receiving end of an accusation. Get in touch today to learn how we can help.
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