# A false rape allegation **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 24, 2018, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756 "2018-05-24T21:21:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Flyer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/flyer/32/7298_2.png) [@Flyer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flyer)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 9:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/1 "2018-05-24T21:21:46Z")
It’s been said, on this board and other places, that false allegations of rape and sexual assault are very rare. Perhaps so, but we have one recent, well-documented case. A woman accused a Texas state trooper of sexual assault. > [@](#): > > But on Tuesday, the Texas Department of Safety released nearly two hours’ of body camera footage that starkly conflicted with Dixon-Cole’s claims. > **[She said she was sexually assaulted by a state trooper. His camera footage...](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-nation/wp/2018/05/23/she-said-she-was-raped-by-a-state-trooper-his-camera-footage-shows-otherwise/?utm_term=.ebbbedc32b0d)** > > Social activist and blogger Shaun King published an article which addressed Dixon-Cole's allegations. On the bright side, the lawyer involved has behaved very honorably. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 9:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/2 "2018-05-24T21:23:49Z")
It is hard to know but I have seen stats that suggest false rape accusations are about 10% of the total. So, not a lot in the scheme of things but not rare either. ---
**Author:** ![elbows](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/b3f665/32.png) [@elbows](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elbows)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 9:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/3 "2018-05-24T21:32:28Z")
10% ! Wow! Ima need a cite for that, please and thank you! ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/4 "2018-05-24T23:24:20Z")
In 20 years of policing including 5 years in SVU I’ve seen a number of false allegations. It’s usually from someone who is embarrassed by something and they are trying to deflect. I have no idea what the motivation is here. I have no idea what the percentage of false accusations are. I do know it will be difficult to tell how many there are because most of the ones I’ve dealt with were obviously problematic from the start and the story fell apart before an investigation really started. No way of tracking those kinds of incidents. ---
**Author:** ![buddha\_david](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ee7513/32.png) [@buddha\_david](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/buddha_david)\ **Post date:** [May 24, 2018, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/5 "2018-05-24T23:51:18Z")
> [@elbows](#): > > 10% ! Wow! > > Ima need a cite for that, please and thank you! [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_accusation_of_rape) says between 2-10% of rape accusations are false, but does acknowledge that accurate statistics are extremely hard to come by. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/6 "2018-05-25T00:03:55Z")
In addition to **Loach** ’s very valid point, you also have all the people who are assaulted who never come forward at all, for a variety of reasons, such as fear of the attacker, or not being believed, not wanting to relive the attack, not wanting to go through a trial, and so on. Some estimates put this group as high as 63% of victims who never report. In addition, there are inconsistencies between the way “false” accusations are counted. The category that is tracked is “unfounded” and several types of accusations are rolled up underneath that including false (provably untrue), baseless (does not meet criteria for rape, but is truthful), and there is unsubstantiated (not enough evidence to determine whether or not a crime occurred). The numbers for “false” accusations range from 2-8%. The range seems to be caused largely by conflation of these types of accusations, and different procedures being followed for reporting at different jurisdictions nationwide. [This paper](https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/Publications_NSVRC_Overview_False-Reporting.pdf) from the National Sexual Violence Resource Center covers more information on the topic. It’s from 2010, so it’s slightly dated. Looking elsewhere, the numbers do not seem to have shifted. Here is another source: [RAINN](https://www.rainn.org/statistics/criminal-justice-system). This one is depressing reading. Out of 1000 rapes committed, 6 perpetrators will be jailed. If you make it past the infographics, there are other interesting stats at the bottom of the page. Yes, **Flyer** , it’s been said to be rare, because compared to the number of rapes, it is. ---
**Author:** ![Xema](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/x/9de053/32.png) [@Xema](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Xema)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/7 "2018-05-25T02:02:23Z")
Here’s a link to a recent (2017) paper in the _Journal of Forensic Psychology_ entitled [The Prevalence of False Allegations of Rape in the United States from 2006-2010](https://www.omicsonline.org/open-access/the-prevalence-of-false-allegations-of-rape-in-the-united-states-from-20062010-2475-319X-1000119.php?aid=86695). The paper’s Abstract concludes with: > [@](#): > > Approximately 5% of the allegations of rape were deemed false or baseless. That was at least five times higher than for most other offence types. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/8 "2018-05-25T02:14:21Z")
False = untrue Baseless = does not meet criteria for rape but is truthful These are lumped together, so we can’t know how many are truly false. Let’s crunch some numbers anyway. From the RAINN numbers linked above, 310 of 1000 rapes are reported to the police. That would be 31% of rapes committed. Of those, 5% are false or baseless. 5% \* 31% is 1.5%. We can’t know how many of those are false vs baseless, so the actual number of false claims is even less. ---
**Author:** ![muldoonthief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/muldoonthief/32/3188_2.png) [@muldoonthief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/muldoonthief)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 12:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/9 "2018-05-25T12:36:10Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > False = untrue > Baseless = does not meet criteria for rape but is truthful > > These are lumped together, so we can’t know how many are truly false. Let’s crunch some numbers anyway. > > From the RAINN numbers linked above, 310 of 1000 rapes are reported to the police. That would be 31% of rapes committed. Of those, 5% are false or baseless. 5% \* 31% is 1.5%. We can’t know how many of those are false vs baseless, so the actual number of false claims is even less. I’m not arguing with you at all, but can you give an example of a baseless claim? ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/10 "2018-05-25T13:12:37Z")
While I doubt any breakdown exists, it would be interesting (to me anyway) if there was separation between a general claim (“I was out jogging when a masked man pulled me into the bushes”) and targeted claims (“So-and-So attacked me in his apartment”). Only because there’s the idea among certain circles that men are constantly under siege from targeted false accusations. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 1:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/11 "2018-05-25T13:24:48Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > Baseless = does not meet criteria for rape but is truthful What are the criteria that it doesn’t meet? Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![Dangerosa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/22d042/32.png) [@Dangerosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dangerosa)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 2:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/12 "2018-05-25T14:05:29Z")
> [@Shodan](#): > > What are the criteria that it doesn’t meet? > > Regards, > Shodan Sometimes its “no penis in vagina” in jurisdictions where rape is defined that way - so you can have a sexual assault where the claim is rape, and they are guilty of sexual assault, but not of rape. This was the case with Brock Turner - he had penetrated her, but not with his penis, so the claim of rape was baseless. ---
**Author:** ![Fotheringay-Phipps](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/d9b06d/32.png) [@Fotheringay-Phipps](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fotheringay-Phipps)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 2:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/13 "2018-05-25T14:07:35Z")
> [@buddha\_david](#): > > [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_accusation_of_rape) says between 2-10% of rape accusations are false, but does acknowledge that accurate statistics are extremely hard to come by. I believe that - in contrast to some claims being made here - that these estimates refer to instances where the police have determined in some manner that the claims are false. There are also many instances where the police (or prosecutors) can’t definitely decide one way or the other. (I’m not aware of any study which has tracked such cases.) But obviously many such accusations will be false. So I think most estimates for the number of false accusations likely significantly underestimate the true percentage. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 2:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/14 "2018-05-25T14:36:59Z")
Dopers may find [this QZ article](https://qz.com/980766/the-truth-about-false-rape-accusations/) of interest. > [@](#): > > The reasons for false reports > In every academic study, one of the most common kinds of false accuser is a teenage girl who tells her parents she was raped to avoid getting in trouble. Unwanted pregnancy is sometimes cited by such girls, but the reason can also be trivial; the phrase “missed curfew” shows up with disturbing frequency in these cases. As a rule, it’s the parents who insist on getting police involved. Two different studies have found that almost half of all false rape complaints are lodged by someone other than the alleged victim, usually a parent. > > Another kind of case which evaporates rapidly is that of a person who falsely reports a rape in the hope of getting needed medical care or psychiatric medication; in one study, six of the 55 reports classified as false by a police department in one year fit this description. Like the teens who missed their curfew, these false accusers have no interest in pursuing charges after the lie has served its purpose. ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/15 "2018-05-25T14:54:11Z")
I will refer questioners on post #8 to my post #6, above, which covers the question of legal definitions and conflation of the same into the category of “false”. In post #7, two of those definitions were immediately referenced, so I repeated them. I have copied post #6 here for your reference. > [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > In addition to **Loach** ’s very valid point, you also have all the people who are assaulted who never come forward at all, for a variety of reasons, such as fear of the attacker, or not being believed, not wanting to relive the attack, not wanting to go through a trial, and so on. Some estimates put this group as high as 63% of victims who never report. > > In addition, there are inconsistencies between the way “false” accusations are counted. The category that is tracked is “unfounded” and several types of accusations are rolled up underneath that including false (provably untrue), baseless (does not meet criteria for rape, but is truthful), and there is unsubstantiated (not enough evidence to determine whether or not a crime occurred). The numbers for “false” accusations range from 2-8%. The range seems to be caused largely by conflation of these types of accusations, and different procedures being followed for reporting at different jurisdictions nationwide. > > [This paper](https://www.nsvrc.org/sites/default/files/Publications_NSVRC_Overview_False-Reporting.pdf) from the National Sexual Violence Resource Center covers more information on the topic. It’s from 2010, so it’s slightly dated. Looking elsewhere, the numbers do not seem to have shifted. > > Here is another source: [RAINN](https://www.rainn.org/statistics/criminal-justice-system). This one is depressing reading. Out of 1000 rapes committed, 6 perpetrators will be jailed. If you make it past the infographics, there are other interesting stats at the bottom of the page. > > Yes, **Flyer** , it’s been said to be rare, because compared to the number of rapes, it is. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/16 "2018-05-25T15:03:54Z")
Proof that body cams and car cams are in the interests of everyone - the cop, the general public, suspects, etc. Except, well, a false accuser like Dixon-Cole. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/17 "2018-05-25T15:07:06Z")
In a related story, the woman who accused 49ers player Reuben Foster of assaulting her has now [admitted she invented the story. She had even done prison time previously due to making a prior false accusation.](https://sports.yahoo.com/lies-told-49er-reuben-fosters-case-done-tremendous-damage-053153681.html) ---
**Author:** ![Sunny\_Daze](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunny_daze/32/438_2.png) [@Sunny\_Daze](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunny_Daze)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/18 "2018-05-25T15:19:25Z")
Yes, I agree, no one should file false criminal charges against any one. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/19 "2018-05-25T15:19:47Z")
> [@Sunny\_Daze](#): > > I will refer questioners on post #8 to my post #6, above, which covers the question of legal definitions and conflation of the same into the category of “false”. In post #7, two of those definitions were immediately referenced, so I repeated them. > > I have copied post #6 here for your reference. Both your cites include rape under “sexual assault” or “sexual violence”. So I am not sure how much “baseless” means “sexually assaulted but not raped”. I would have expected “baseless” to mean “not proven” or “not enough evidence to convict beyond a reasonable doubt” or the accuser withdrew the accusation because she didn’t want to go thru trial/reconciled with the rapist/just wanted to put it behind her/whatever. I am not saying these are bad reasons, or good reasons, or that they prove anything. But it’s different from “truthful”. Regards, Shodan ---
**Author:** ![raventhief](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/raventhief/32/4_2.png) [@raventhief](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raventhief)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2018, 3:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756/20 "2018-05-25T15:22:11Z")
Since we are now talking about specific cases, the flip side has Marie, who was charged with making a false allegation that an unknown man had broken I’m and raped her knife point. She was the very definition of an unreliable witness, and ended up taking a plea deal to the false accusation charge. [Then when the rapist was caught, the police found a photo of her and her license as one of his trophies](https://www.propublica.org/article/false-rape-accusations-an-unbelievable-story). She was a “false allegation” statistic until she wasn’t. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/a-false-rape-allegation/814756.md?page=2)