Jacksonville Criminal Defense Attorney Blog
You meet a woman on an internet dating site or through a dating app such as Tinder. You subsequently end up having what you understood to be consensual sex. Later, however, the woman calls you complaining you forced her into having sex with you or otherwise contends the sex was non-consensual.
This is a relatively familiar scenario. And, it’s a potentially dangerous one. It’s dangerous because unbeknownst to you, your date may have already contacted police with her allegations and the call is part of an investigative tactic known as a controlled, or pretext, call.
In a controlled call, a sex crimes detective will have already been in contact with your accuser. The detective will further have coached your accuser regarding what to say to you prior to making the call. And, most importantly, the call is recorded to collect and preserve crucial evidence to use against you in a criminal case.
A controlled call can come days, weeks or even months after the incident. In fact, some detectives intentionally wait awhile before orchestrating a controlled call. They delay is designed to lull you into a sense of false security causing you to let your guard down and be more willing to speak about the matter. And, oftentimes more than one controlled call is made.
If you’re aware of the possibility of a controlled call being made to you they are oftentimes relatively easy to detect. First, to quell your suspicions, controlled calls are often, although not always, made during the weekends and/or late at night instead of during normal business hours. And, the caller is usually instructed to be subtle in her approach. Thus, instead of saying “why did you rape me?” the caller will instead be instructed by the detectives to ask questions more likely to elicit an incriminating response from you. The caller might say something along the lines of “why did you have sex with me after I pushed you away and/or told you to stop?” Or, if she was using drugs and/or alcohol prior to or during the incident, your accuser might ask “you knew I was out of it. Why did you have sex with me anyway?”
To be safe, you should consider any phone call from someone accusing you of having non-consensual sex with them as being a controlled or pretext call. You should therefore be extremely careful not to admit any of the allegations. Also, care should be used not to apologize for anything, as even if you are innocent but regret any misunderstanding or the alleged victim’s emotional state, an apology will later be characterized as your admission of the allegations. Evasiveness is equally damaging to you as well. Rather, you should categorically deny any and all such allegations and terminate the call politely but quickly.
It is also fairly common when confronted on the phone with date rape allegations to request your accuser not to go to police regarding the matter. While this request may seem harmless at the time it is made, it will be later be characterized as evidence of guilt when instead it may have been simply an earnest attempt on your part to prevent the personal, professional and financial ramifications of false accusations.
Participating in controlled or pretext calls can be devastating to your case. You can easily end up making it very difficult for even a very capable criminal defense lawyer to win your case. If you’ve received a call from someone accusing you of sexual battery or date rape, you should contact a sex crimes defense attorney to discuss how to protect yourself and minimize the chances you are subsequently arrested and prosecuted for a crime you did not commit.