HELP! I need help about laws and advice.?

Question

My friend went to her friend's apartment. He sexually assaulted her. She's not 18 yet and he's at least 18. That woud be adult minor. Now she won't tell her parents because their family isn't so well right now and she won't tell the police because her parents will know. She doesn't want her family to fall apart.

Can you get the guy in jail even if there's no proof of him doing that but you know he did? I know you always need proof but what if she lies to the police to save her family? They're already in a mess and she doesn't want to make it worse. I'm just trying to help her out. Will the guy be sentenced for life if he gets caught? Help me out PLEASE.

Answer 1

Be supportive of your friend.  That's all you can do.  As far as him being sent away because you know he did it but can't prove it, How would that be different then him saying you bashed him in the back of the head so you should go away even though he can't prove it.

Answer 2

You cannot convict a person without proof establishing guilt beyond a reasonable doubt, and you cannot prosecute a person with only hearsay information.  

There is no such thing as you knowing something but having no proof.  You may have little proof or insufficient proof, but you have to have something, or you are just guessing.  if your friend told you about the incident soon after it happened, it could form an exception to the hearsay rule known as the "excited utterance" exception.

"what if she lies to the police to save her family?"

Then she'll have to live with this for the rest of her life.  Just what answer did you expect.  Do you really think, with the controversy over Guantanamo Bay, that our justice system will allow the imprisonment without proof of guilt?  Just how do you even know that this happened. Your friend told you, but how do you know that she was honest with you about every detail?  People do lie - the circumstances may not allow for that possibility, but you're aksing the CrimJusSys to make a huge guess.

"Will the guy be sentenced for life if he gets caught?"

You really need a reality check - nobody is caught unless they;re being chased, and that's not going to happen unless there is a case.  I'm sorry to put it so bluntly, but you're getting too old to have this distorted an idea of how the system works.

Answer 3

If there is no victim, there is no crime.  What I mean by that is, your friend is going to have to be the one who brings information to the police.  If there is no proof of the crime, then this guy will not be arrested.  You will need to stand behind her decision.  If she won't say anything to the police, there is nothing else that you can do.  Proof beyond a reasonable doubt is needed to convict someone of a criminal offense.  This is due to the fact that the freedom of the accused is at stake.  I'm sorry that I cannot be more optimistic in my answer, but your friend will be responsible for bringing the incident to the police.