Accusations in Denver for felony crimes like Sexual Assault on a Child (CRS 18-3-405), Incest (CRS 18-6-302), and Sexual Exploitation of a Child (CRS 18-6-403) are devastating. Many people in Denver, Jefferson, and Arapahoe County look at someone accused, even after the charges are dropped, and view them as guilty. This is the case for a nineteen year-old in Longmont who was arrested and charged with a felony crime in Boulder County.

The teenager was arrested and charged just after New Year's Eve for a fatal hit and run. She spent a week in jail while police let news sources and reporters believe they had arrested the person responsible. The boy who police accused the girl of hitting was running away from a fight. Police discovered that the teen girl was related to a few of the other men involved in the fight, and found damage to her car which they attributed to hitting the boy. The girl explained the damage was there previously and that she was at church all night playing games during the evening the accident occurred and many witnesses to back that statement up.

After an investigation, and the air-tight alibi from the teen, the police had to eat their words. The District Attorney quietly dropped the charges and released the teen. Unfortunately, they were less vocal to the media about the teen's innocence. Police officers and District Attorneys in Weld, Larimer, Douglas, and Adams County don't want to publicly admit that they made a mistake, and rarely apologize or retract statements to media sources.

The teen girl says that people all over Longmont are treating her as if she is guilty just because she was arrested. She says that she has had trouble finding employment because charges of a felony crime on her record. She says that she has been blacklisted in her town because people are not aware that she has been cleared. She wants police to issue a public apology for arresting her on charges that were later dropped. She is having little luck receiving any corroboration from the Longmont Police Department.

Being arrested and charged with a sex crime does not mean you are guilty. But you may be perceived that way in the eyes of many people, just like this teen girl. If police arrest you and the District Attorney charges you with a felony sex crime, be smart, exercise your right to remain silent, and contact the experienced criminal defense attorneys at the O'Malley Law Office at 303-830-0880. Together, we can protect your future.