Special Mentions
There is nothing funny or entertaining about a false allegation of a sexual crime. It’s a horrible crime, with especially severe consequences for male victims.
Still, some rape hoaxes stand out above others in the sheer outrageousness of the claims. For instance, there was the case of ABC weather girl Heidi Jones who, despite being on television five days a week in New York City, felt like she was not getting enough attention. So, she complained to police about being sexually attacked on separate occasions by a Hispanic man. Police put in 350 man-hours of investigative work before concluding that Jones was lying. Jones was sentenced to probation and a fine. No jail time. [1]
Then there was Jemma Beale, a British woman who falsely accused 15 men of raping her on separate occasions before she was finally sent to prison for her actions. [2] The enabling legal lenience on false accusers is common, but rarely goes as far as it did in the Beale case.
Both of these cases exemplify the outrageous nature of some sexual assault claims, as well as the hesitance of state functionaries to scrutinize allegations, or to take action against women making them. This reality in part is why Register Her was established.
In order to call attention to the severity of this problem, we have established three “awards” for false rape claims.
The Broken Gavel
Awarded to judges, prosecutors, and law enforcement officials who practice gynocentric lenience with women who make false rape claims. This is especially apparent in cases like that of Jemma Beale, who falsely accused 15 men of rape before she was finally subjected to legal punishment for the crime.[2]
The Sulkie
For the more incredible claims made in the United States, we have established The Sulkie. The Sulkie is based on the infamous story on Emma Sulkowitz [3], also known as Mattress Girl, whose questionable rape story and subsequent public harassment of her alleged rapist and fellow Columbia student, Paul Nungesser, became the subject of national headlines in April of 2013. Despite Columbia settling a Title IX suit with Nungesser and finding him not responsible for sexual misconduct, it took him years to start reclaiming his life.
The Faress
For rape stories of unusually questionable origin in the United Kingdom, we have The Waterloo. The Waterloo is based on the highly unusual sexual assault claim of British actress Souad Faress. [4] Faress claimed that a man named Mark Pearson sexually assaulted her on a train platform at Waterloo Station in London. CCTV video revealed, however, that Faress’ story could not have possibly been true. Despite this, the Crown Prosecution Service prosecuted Pearson. The entire ordeal lasted over a year before the Crown’s case fell apart completely.
When you see the special annotation of The Broken Gavel. The Sulkie, or The Faress by one of the profiles on Register Her, consider it an invitation to click through the link provided about the case and discover just how surreal and Kafkaesque false allegation cases can be.
More than anything else you can do, this will help you understand why the mission of Register Her is so important.
[1]https://www.cbsnews.com/news/nyc-meteorologist-heidi-jones-pleads-guilty-to-falsely-reporting-rape/
We’re doing the right thing.
Register Her promotes a badly needed service in raising awareness of the problem of false allegations and putting perpetrators in the public eye.
This work is predicated on the idea that no one and no gender is above the law and that men are human beings, deserving of the same justice and compassion afforded women in today’s world.
Your support with either a one-time donation or a monthly subscription is appreciated and makes this work possible. It also helps fill my inbox with messages from men (and the women who love them) saying that the work done here is saving their sanity, and in some cases, their lives.