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Allegations
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Manawatu Standard A woman who pretended she was raped to "get attention" was convicted in Dannevirke District Court yesterday of making a false complaint. Rebbecca Jane Little, a 17-year- old Dannevirke beneficiary, told the court she didn't know why she had made the false accusation. "I just wanted attention, I think." The police summary of facts outlined how on July 5, Little went to Dannevirke police and said she had woken up at a party with her clothes in disarray and she was bleeding. She suggested she had been drugged and raped but, when questioned further, was vague and unhelpful. A medical examination was inconclusive. Little then went for a drive with police, "frivolously" pointing out an innocent person's house as the location of the rape, before staying at Women's Refuge in Palmerston North for three nights. When she failed to show for a follow-up police appointment, her claim was discovered to be a lie. Defence lawyer Catherine Clarkson said Little was deeply remorseful for her crime. She had a difficult relationship with her family, and had been drug and alcohol dependent, Ms Clarkson said. Judge Oke Blaikie said wasting police time and undermining legitimate rape prosecutions was a serious offence. "People have been sent to prison for doing what you did." He convicted Little of making a false statement to police, sentencing her to 9 months' supervision for substance abuse. |
