Athens, Georgia to crack down on false crime reports
Athens-Clarke County police claim that fake reports of crime are reaching epidemic levels. In response, authorities have announced that they will begin prosecuting anyone they believe to have invented a crime.
The Athens Banner-Herald has the story.
In one recent case, a UGA law student told police that she had been mugged on College Station Road after walking home from work one night. Police say that the story was false and that the student was only trying to gain sympathy from her husband. Several other high profile cases have also turned out to be nothing more than made-up stories.
The crackdown on false reporting is due largely to the fact that police claim to spend a great deal of resources investigating fake crimes. This includes interviewing witnesses, interrogating suspects and collecting evidence. Authorities are also worried that the fake crimes will give Athens an inflated crime rate and make some parts of the city appear to be more crime ridden than they actually are.
Under Georgia law, the false reporting of a crime is a misdemeanor and is punishable by one year in jail. Prosecutors in Athens have pledged to make sure that offenders actually serve jail time if they are convicted of the offense.
Unfortunately, false reports of crimes do happen. Many times, it will take an experienced defense lawyer to investigate the charges and convince the prosecutor that the alleged "victim" simply made the whole thing up. In many cases, a false arrest can lead to the loss of a job, the expense of significant attorney's fees, public humiliation, and possible jail time.
We hope that the police in Athens, and elsewhere in Georgia, remain diligent for false reports of crimes. If they do a thorough job of investigating these claims, some wrongful arrests could be avoided.
